Adult Education Program: Ross K. Baker
May 16, 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
(Adult Education Event)
The Rise and Imminent Demise of the Administrative State:
A Provisional Obituary
The talk will begin with the rudimentary American government that existed in the years before the Civil War and its limited scope and powers, its overnight expansion to meet the challenge of civil war, and the postwar incapacity of Congress to deal with the blossoming of modern technology. It will continue with discussion of the innovation of the first “regulatory agency,” and how it served as the template for the expansion of the scope of the federal government. The talk will end with reflections on the current forced retrenchment under the Trump Administration of what has been called “the administrative state.” Refreshments will be provided.
About the Speaker
Ross K. Baker, Professor Emeritus, Rutgers University, received his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He was a Research Associate at the Brookings Institution before joining the Rutgers Political Science faculty, specializing in American Government and U.S. Legislative Politics. His books include: Friend and Foe in the U.S. Senate; House and Senate; Strangers on a Hill; and Is Bipartisanship Dead? Baker was a Fulbright Lecturer (Swedish Institute of International Relations in Stockholm), and a Visiting Professor (e.g., Univ. of Leipzig in 2000). Prof. Baker served as a consultant to the Democratic caucus of the U.S. House of Representatives, as a Senior Advisor to Senators Patrick J. Leahy [D-VT] and Chuck Hagel [R-NE], and as a Scholar in Residence in the Office of the Democratic Leader of the U.S. Senate (2008, 2012, 2016).
Please email the Program Planning Committee (Claudia Farber, Joyce Orenstein & Judy Stern) with your suggestions for speakers and/or programs, or to join our Committee and help plan our upcoming events!