BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Shortly after President Donald Trump addressed supporters Wednesday in Washington D.C., and said he would never concede the election, chaos and violence erupted as a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. Congress was in the process of certifying electoral votes to officially confirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory when some members of the crowd gathering on the Capitol steps forced their way inside. Lawmakers have since gathered to officially certify the election, and Trump has released a statement indicating that there would be an orderly transition as Biden becomes the next president. But questions remain about violent extremism in the U.S., the historic context of the events, and what consequences may be in store for Trump and his supporters. IU experts in politics, history and constitutional law are available to comment. For more information contact Mary Keck at marykeck@iu.edu or 812-856-2148 or Barbara Brosher at bbrosher@iu.edu or 812-855-1175.
Nicholas Almendares
Accountability, democracy, administrative law, class actions, collective responsibility and liability, election law, protests and democracy, class actions, separation of powers, collective responsibility, campaign financing.
IU Bloomington
Phone: 812-856-7834
Email: nalmend@indiana.edu
Expert Bio
Nicholas Almendares is an associate professor at the Maurer School of Law. His research focuses on accountability and democracy across areas of law such as class actions, separation of powers, collective responsibility and campaign financing. His work takes an interdisciplinary approach, often drawing upon economics, social science and philosophy. (more)
Jeannine Bell
Criminal law and procedure, First Amendment, interdisciplinary perspectives, property.
IU Bloomington
Phone: 812-856-5013
Email: jeabell@indiana.edu
Expert Bio
Jeannine Bell’s research is broadly interdisciplinary, touching on both political science and law. Her most recent book, “Hate Thy Neighbor: Move-in Violence and the Persistence of Racial Segregation in American Housing,” was published by NYU Press in 2013. Bell was named co-editor of the Law and Society Review in 2016 and has served as a trustee of the Law and Society Association and as a member of the American Political Association’s Presidential Taskforce on Political Violence and Terrorism. (more)
Elizabeth Bennion
Politics, American politics, campaigns, elections, voter turnout, political behavior, race and gender politics, civic education, civic engagement, the youth vote, Indiana state politics, Indiana General Assembly.
IU South Bend
Phone: 574-520-4128
Email: ebennion@iusb.edu
Expert Bio
Elizabeth Bennion is a professor of political science at Indiana University South Bend, where she teaches courses in American politics. Her research includes large-scale voter registration and mobilization field experiments in which randomized assignments are used to test the effectiveness of different mobilization techniques. (more)
Raymond Haberski
U.S. history, intellectual history, religious history, civil religion, war, just war theory, movies, film critics, tennis, American studies, higher education.
IUPUI
Phone: 317-292-2566
Email: haberski@iupui.edu
Expert Bio
Raymond Haberski Jr. is a professor of history and director of American studies at IUPUI. He also directs the Institute for American Thought and is part of the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture. He is trained in 20th-century U.S. history with a focus on intellectual history. (more)
Ore Koren
Political violence, civil war, mass killing, rebel groups and militias.
IU Bloomington
Phone: 612-309-2500
Email: okoren@iu.edu
Expert Bio
Ore Koren is an assistant professor of political science in the College of Arts and Science at IU Bloomington, specializing in international relations and research methodology. Previously, Koren was a pre-doctoral fellow at the Dickey Center at Dartmouth College and a Jennings Randolph Peace Scholar at the United States Institute of Peace. Within international relations, his research has involved innovative approaches to studying the causes of civil conflict, with an emphasis on how environmental pressures shape patterns of political violence. (more)
Rebecca Spang
Money (history of, current politics); French Revolution; restaurant history.
IU Bloomington
Phone: 812-856-4671
Email: rlspang@indiana.edu
Expert Bio
Rebecca Spang is author of two prize-winning books, “The Invention of the Restaurant” and “Stuff and Money in the Time of the French Revolution” (both published by Harvard). She regularly teaches about the history of money and, as director of the Liberal Arts and Management Program, also teaches Luxury: From Mortal Sin to Market Sector. She has written for the Financial Times, the TLS, Cabinet Magazine and World Policy Journal, as well as many academic venues. She is a former president of the Bloomington Faculty Council. (more)
Steven Webster
Anger and politics, polarization, voting behavior, public opinion.
IU Bloomington
Email: swwebste@iu.edu
Expert Bio
Steven Webster, an assistant professor of political science at IU Bloomington, focuses his research on the role of anger in American politics. His book, “American Rage: How Anger Shapes Our Politics,” was published in 2020 by Cambridge University Press. He has also written extensively on the growth of “negative partisanship” in the American electorate, as well as the growing amount of polarization between Democrats and Republicans. (more)
