The UK and the US in 2010: Transition and Transformation

Britain and the United States are grappling with major crises and transitions to new governments. How have these two political systems responded to these challenges? How have these relatively young administrations/governments performed? Does the current period represent a critical economic and/or political juncture for these states? Is it fair to talk about a common Anglo-American political sphere in both domestic and foreign policy, or have the US and UK begun to diverge in their political development? The British Politics Group is organizing a special one-day conference to explore these issues in addition to our regular APSA panels. We are open to all interesting paper and panel proposals. Individual papers do not have to be comparative in focus. The idea is to organize panels that are as a whole comparative.

Possible topics include: (1) the 2008 US and 2010 UK elections compared; (2) executive transitions in the US and UK – Obama and Cameron (?); (3) party political developments in Britain and America; (4) ideological change – divergence or convergence across the Atlantic?; (5) comparative responses to the financial crisis; (6) dealing with debt – fiscal crises in Britain and America; (7) is there still an Anglo-Saxon model of capitalism?; (8) the healthcare debate – a transatlantic perspective; (9) still the Special Relationship?; and (10) the US, UK and the ‘War on Terror’.

The conference is being held on the Wednesday prior to APSA at George Washington University, adjacent to the Foggy Bottom Metro stop. Co-sponsored by the Institute for Global and International Studies, Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University