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Rooney Faculty Op-Eds

Pinpointing Romney’s Mormon Challenge: Which groups view Mormonism favorably—and what does it mean for the GOP race? by By David E. Campbell and Robert D. Putnam, Wall Street Journal (10/21/11)
Crashing The Tea Party by David Campbell and Robert Putnam, NY Times (8/16/11)
Islam and American Tolerance-What the experience of Jews and Catholics suggests about the future for Muslims? by By David E. Campbell and Robert D. Putnam, Wall Street Journal (8/12/11)
Religious People Are ‘Better’ Neighbors by David Campbell and Robert Putnam, USA Today (11/14/10)

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235 Years of Canada-USA Relations — In Less Than One Hour! (Feb. 20, 2012)

Co-sponsored with the Kellogg Institute for International Relations

Roy Norton, Consul General of Canada in Detroit, addressed a packed room on the recurring themes in relations between the U.S. and Canada — countries sharing the world’s longest border and the world’s largest two-way trading relationship.
A strong, mutually beneficial relationship with the USA is Canada’s greatest foreign policy priority, one that Americans also regard as vitally important. It is especially worth noting that Canada is Indiana’s largest export market. Hoosiers sell more goods to Canada than to their next seven largest foreign markets combined.

As the Consul General of Canada based in Detroit, Roy Norton represents Canada in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky. The Canadian Consulate General, which he heads, promotes Canadian interests – trade, investment, the environment, culture and academic relations being among the principal ones. The office also provides consular, passport, visa and immigration services.

Rooney Center Welcomes Former Virginia Governor L. Douglas Wilder (Oct. 7, 2011)

The Rooney Center will host former Commonwealth of Virginia Governor L. Douglas Wilder for the 2011 Rooney Lecture on Friday, October 7 in the Geddes Hall Auditorium. As Virginia’s 66th governor, and the first elected African American governor in United States history, Gov. Wilder served the Commonwealth from 1990-1994. During his administration, he was praised for his sound fiscal management and his ability to balance the state budget during difficult economic times. He also sponsored new construction projects at many of Virginia’s colleges and universities, mental health facilities, and state parks. For a brief time in 1991 Gov. Wilder was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States. His most recent political office was Mayor of Richmond, Virginia, which he held from 2005 to 2009.

Rooney Center Honors JFK Election Anniversary in NYC (November 19, 2010)

Shattering the Stained Glass Ceiling: Fifty Years After the Election of America’s First Catholic President

Sponsored by the Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy, and the College of Arts and Letters

When John F. Kennedy ran for the presidency, he encountered resistance because of his Catholic faith. Public opinion polling at the time revealed that roughly 1 in 4 Americans said they would not vote for a Catholic. In winning the election, Kennedy shattered the “stained glass ceiling;” the public today is widely accepting of Catholic politicians. What are the lessons to be learned from Kennedy’s historic election victory? What are the parallels between resistance to Kennedy’s religion in the past and the “religion problems” faced by some politicians in the present?

The roundtable discussion featured four prominent experts of religion and the public life. These included E.J. Dionne (Washington Post columnist, author, and University Professor in the Foundations of Democracy and Culture at Georgetown University), John DiIulio (Frederic Fox Leadership Professor of Politics, Religion, and Civil Society, and Professor of Political Science, University of Pennsylvania), John McGreevy, Dean of Notre Dame’s College of Arts and Letters), and Robert Putnam (Malkin Professor of Public Policy at Harvards’ Kennedy School of Government, author of Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community and, with David Campbell, American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us). The roundtable was moderated by David Campbell, Director of the Rooney Center and the John Cardinal O’Hara, CSC Associate Professor of Political Science. As noted, he is also co-author, with Robert Putnam, of American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us.

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Inaugural Rooney Lecture: Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell

The Rooney Center was proud to host Governor Bob McDonnell for the inaugural Rooney Lecture on October 29, 2010 in the Hesburgh Center Auditorium. Drawing upon his Notre Dame undergraduate education (ND ’76), Gov. McDonnell addressed a standing-room only crowd with a talk that focused on young people and public service.

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American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us

Authored by David E. Campbell and Robert D. Putnam, American Grace was released in October 2010. This book is a major achievement and takes a fascinating look at religion in today’s America. Unique among nations, America is deeply religious, religiously diverse and remarkably tolerant. But in recent decades, the nation’s religious landscape has been reshaped. American Grace is based on two of the most comprehensive surveys ever conducted on religion and public life in America. It includes a dozen in-depth profiles of diverse congregations across the country, which illuminate the trends described by Putnam and Campbell in the lives of real Americans. Nearly every chapter of American Grace contains a surprise about American religious life. The recently completed paperback edition contains further survey results, analysis, and commentary based on 2011 follow up studies.

For more on the book and its release, please visit AmericanGrace.org

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