Ian Zuckerman, Author at Public Seminar

History

Yes, COVID-19 Is an Emergency: It’s Also a Paradigm Shift

This new challenge must include a demand for justice

March 24, 2020 • by Ian Zuckerman

I believe the answer is yes, in the immediate sense of what must be done. But it’s too early to tell, in the longer sense of whether our aim must be to return to the status quo ante, or undergo more permanent transformations. Either way, the legitimate, temporary suspension of ...

Yes, COVID-19 Is an Emergency: It’s Also a Paradigm Shift

North America

Impeachment as National Renewal

Can non-democratic institutions be repurposed for democracy?

January 28, 2020 • by Ian Zuckerman and Daniel Kato

All of these authors recognize that these comparisons have limitations. The 1868 impeachment of Johnson failed to remove him from office -- just as, in all likelihood, Trump will remain president after his impeachment. But the deeper problem is that these celebrations of the political potential of impeachment elide its ...

Politics

Evo Morales’ Presidency in Bolivia was Imperfect and Contested

His Removal from Power is Still a Coup

November 26, 2019 • by Ian Zuckerman

When the military intervenes to depose a democratically elected leader, it’s a coup. Let’s get that out of the way. Even if that leader’s mandate has never been accepted by segments of the population, even if the leader goes on to alienate some original supporters, even if there are large public protests against the ...

Evo Morales’ Presidency in Bolivia was Imperfect and Contested

Feature

Trump’s Emergency Is Part Of A Theatrical Tradition — And Congress Plays A Starring Role

In America, emergencies are normal. Whether they are real or not doesn’t seem to matter.

May 10, 2019 • by Ian Zuckerman

We in the United States are living under a state of emergency. But that’s nothing new. President Trump recently declared an emergency on the U.S./Mexico border, explaining that this was the quickest way to access funds for border wall construction that Congress had refused to appropriate. Some weeks later, Congress passed a ...