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fall 2016

Tony Hall (D-OH)U.S. House of Representatives

1979-2002

Frank Wolf (R-VA), U.S. House of Representatives, 1981-2015

Friendship Across the Aisle: In Pursuit of Justice, Human Rights, and Global Religious Freedom

By Heidi Leffler ’88, FPE Program Coordinator

How can our nation foster a spirit of bipartisanship and coop-eration between America’s two political parties? Last spring, at the FPE sponsored event, “Friendship Across the Aisle,” former congressmen Frank Wolf (R-VA) and Tony Hall (D-OH) shared with the Wheaton College audience that their answer to this question is prayer and Scripture. Tony Hall became a Christian during his freshman year in Congress when he realized his success had left him empty. So he went on a search for God and found him through Jesus. Subsequently, Hall sought out other Christians in Congress for fellowship and growth. The group that formed agreed to not talk politics during their meetings and focus on prayer and Scripture reading. Tony Hall said, “When you pray together and talk about Jesus together, it is hard to get up after that and get mad at each other.” Hall and Wolf also found that they shared several areas of similar interests such as fighting hunger, human rights violations and threats to religious liberty.

Tony Hall traveled to Ethiopia as chairman of the Select Committee to End Hunger, where he saw 25 children die of hunger in one morning. He called Frank Wolf and told him he needed to come to Ethiopia. This visit united them in efforts to help stop world hunger. Moderator Meredith Schultz, from the American Enterprise Institute, asked Tony Hall to address the concerns raised about the negative impact of foreign aid on local economies, citing the 2010 Haiti earthquake relief efforts as an example. Tony Hall acknowledged that this is a real concern and that the U.S. government and some NGOs had disrupted markets with some of their relief efforts but also noted that they have learned lessons from these expe-riences and made adjustments. Hall cited many government programs that are working and noted that in the past 35 years, deaths from hunger have dropped from approximately 42,000 to 21,000 a day. Tony Hall also went on a hunger

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DIRECTOR’S WELCOMEDavid C. Iglesias, J.D.

Several key issues are emerging in this 2016 presidential campaign season. The Wheaton Center for Faith, Politics and Economics will be taking an in-depth look at two of these issues this academic year through discussions on religious liberties and economic inequality. With the current composition of the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as recent and pending religious liberties cases in the Supreme Court, and current legislation in California, now is a time to seriously consider the real possibility of a significant loss of religious liberty and its implications for the Church, Christian institutions and the country as a whole. Secondly, we have seen a ground swell of

concern for the widening gap of economic equality in our nation. The Center will seek to lay a foundation on the current state of economic inequality, and then explore its causes, the government’s responsibility and elements that are best solved through the private sector.

Another emerging issue in this campaign is the apparent increase in violent crime in the United States which contradicts a trend showing decades of decline in violent crime. Also, ISIS inspired terror attacks both in the U.S. and Europe have many people on edge. FPE partnered with the Center for Applied Christian Ethics (CACE) to bring Bryan Stevenson, author of Just Mercy, on September 6 to discuss some of the challenges of our current judicial system. For an economy to thrive the rule of law needs to be in place and the judicial system must be fair, swift and transparent. Peace and stability are necessary for the market to function at its best.

David C. IglesiasDirector, Wheaton Center for Faith, Politics and EconomicsJean and E. Floyd Kvamme Associate Professor of Politics and Law

Friendship Across the Aisle: continued

strike to protect his committee’s work from budget cuts and ultimately was able to secure $100 million from the World Bank as a result of his efforts. This money was used to finance micro credit for small business start-ups across the devel-oping world and is now worth $500 million dollars, since 98% of the loans were repaid with interest and were then repeat-edly reinvested.

In an effort to address human rights violations, Frank Wolf and Tony Hall worked together in the ‘80s to deny Most Favored Nation (MFN) status to Romania. Ultimately Ronald Reagan revoked Romania’s MFN status, which helped the efforts to topple communism in that country. On a more current issue, former congressman Wolf was quick to praise Secretary Kerry for recently designating the atrocities in Iraq as genocide. This designation honors those who have been killed, helps those

L/R Frank Wolf and Tony Hall, Barrow’s Auditorium, Wheaton College, March 17, 2016

who are trying to leave, supports those who are staying and allows ISIS and supporters to be prosecuted for genocide in the International Criminal Court. Frank Wolf also discussed recent efforts to help protect religious liberties in Nigeria,

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where the Boko Haram is aggressively persecuting religious minorities. He challenged the audience, to reach out to our brothers and sisters in Christ and demonstrate our concern for those suffering from religious persecution in Nigeria. Although Americans are not in immediate danger of violence for their religious beliefs, their freedoms are coming under attack and with the recent death of Justice Scalia, will face even greater challenges in the Supreme Court. Frank Wolf is working to encourage bipartisan support for legislation that will protect the rights of individuals and institutions of all backgrounds to act on their conscience. Without this protection, Wolf sees

a difficult time for religious liberties in the next five years. When asked how people could participate, both Wolf and Hall encouraged people to pray, work to understand the issues, and then graciously approach their Congressmen with letters or personal visits to express their concerns. Wolf also mentioned several organizations that work to protect human rights and religious freedom around the world. «

FOR FURTHER DETAILS, watch the entire discussion on our website, wheaton.edu/fpe.

How the Immigration Debate Affects the U.S. Presidential ElectionsBy Heidi Leffler ’88FPE Program Coordinator L/R Ruben Navarrette, Jr., David C. Iglesias (moderator), and Ana Navarro

Coray Gymnasium, Wheaton College, April 7, 2016

As the primaries were coming to a close last spring, Ruben Navarrette, Jr., syndicated journalist, and Ana Navarro, GOP strategist and CNN and ABC news contributor, shared from their wealth of knowledge on immigration and U.S. Presidential elections.

Ruben Navarrette began the evening by giving a brief history of U.S. immigration, demonstrating the long-standing tension between the local population and the next wave of ethnic groups entering America. A thread of concern regarding cultural standards, language barriers, ethnic pride and economic impact runs throughout this history. These common fears, as monopolized by politicians, are clouding the general public’s ability to focus on many of the facts surrounding our nation’s current immigration challenges. For instance, illegal immigration has drastically declined since 2002 and almost half the people here illegally come initially on a legal visa and then overstay their visas. Yet we tend to focus on an image of people climbing a wall to enter the country illegally. The real impact of immigration is the 11 million illegal immigrants already here in combination with the approximately 40 million foreign born Americans. Ruben also noted that while Donald Trump threatens to build a wall, Hillary Clinton has already voted to build a wall (Secure Fence Act of 2006). While Pres-ident Obama said he would stop the ICE practice of “busting down the door and deporting mothers,” he has deported

three million people, more immigrants than any other presi-dent since Eisenhower. Ruben Navarrette acknowledged that presidents from both political parties have been known to shift from their political campaign rhetoric once they are in office and are faced with the stark realities that their position requires. Ana Navarro cited Donald Trump as the changing force in the increased negative rhetoric that resulted in making it difficult for all the other Republican candidates to focus on the facts and specific immigration solutions during the primaries. When asked what solutions our guest speakers would suggest, Ruben Navarrette reiterated the need to clear away the lies that are surrounding the debate. Then he would address issues of enforcement, guest worker regulations and the legal status of the currently 11 million illegal immigrants. In addition, Ana Navarro, former Director of Immigration Policy in the Executive Office of the Governor for Jeb Bush, would include efforts to modernize and streamline the immigration process and include both incentives and consequences. From a legislative standpoint, Ruben Navarrette tended to be less enthusiastic about the prospects on improved immigration laws as he believes the immigration issue is perceived as a bomb that can set off a civil war within each of the political parties, as both parties actually have constituents who fall on opposite sides of this debate. Ana Navarro was more hopeful, citing several congressmen whom she believes have made genuine attempts at immigration reform. «

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Reflections from Mark Sawyer FPE Summer 2016 Intern

FPE Intern, Mark Sawyer, (kneeling front/left) with Former President Jimmy Carter (center)

By Mark Sawyer ’18

The Carter Center is an international NGO founded by former president Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalyn Carter that promotes peace and hope through conflict resolution, election monitoring, access to information, and the eradication of neglected tropical diseases. The Development staff represents The Carter Center to donors, grant-makers, diplomats, and other constituents. As such, my work gave me a unique look into the daily operations of a change-making institution. While The Carter Center is not a faith-based institution, the work they are doing is fostering righteous principles in societies around the world. As they pursue peace in Syria, considerations for the inclusion of women in the post-war economy and society are being made. In addition, their Syria Mapping Project has used data mining from Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube to track and visualize the political and strategic landscape of the ongoing Syrian conflict. By having information on who owns what territory, who is shelling whom, and where human rights abuses are being committed, The Carter Center has been able to provide humanitarian groups the necessary information to safely assist Syrians desperately in need. «

FPE Interns receive financial assistance through a selective application process for intern-ships that integrate experience in the fields of government and economics. This year the Center sent nine students around the globe from as near as Aurora, IL, to Wash-ington D.C. and as far away as Kenya, Germany, Rwanda and Cambodia. Mark Sawyer served as a Development Research Intern at The Carter Center in Atlanta, GA.

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“Evangelica l Approache s to Poverty Relief ” SummaryBy Bryan McGraw, Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations

Professor Bryan McGraw with FPE Scholars, Luke Nellessen, Alice Zhang and Abby Guidera

This summer three students were selected to receive funding for research with Bryan McGraw, associate professor of Politics and International Relations, on the topic of “Evangelical Approaches to Poverty Relief.”

It is common these days to see media reports describing how American evangelicals have begun to shift or broaden their political agenda away from an exclusive or primary focus on issues like abortion or gay rights to issues like poverty, racism, or environmental protections. We spent the summer trying to determine whether this was so with respect to poverty, especially focusing on how evangelicals conceptualized poverty and thought about how to allevi-ate or combat it. After sifting through hundreds of books, articles, conference presentations, sermons, interviews, and documentaries, we can draw the following preliminary conclusions. First, it is not at all clear that evangelicals have in fact come to prioritize poverty as a more important policy issue than, say, a generation prior. They have always thought it important, but it still ranks behind issues like abortion. Second, even among evangelicals whose politically pro-gressive inclinations would, we might think, naturally incline them to focus on poverty, it still seems to rank behind race in terms of political importance. Third, evangelical elites (pastors, scholars, writers, etc.) tend to conceptualize the problem of poverty in a multi-dimensional manner, going beyond mere material deprivation to include the full manner of relational and social isolation that the poor experience. Fourth, and this follows on somewhat from the third point, evangelicals tend to emphasize "holistic" alleviation mea-sures while at the same time still embracing a fairly robust appreciation of free markets as anti-poverty institutions.

Luke Nelessen ’18 How did your faith inform your view of poverty and subse-quent solutions to poverty?

Several times I have been forced to a position of surrender where I admit that I will never fully comprehend all of the

issues facing people. Only the Triune God really knows it all! Despite my difficulties, the Christian faith provides a foun-dation for efforts to alleviate the nastiness of material and spiritual poverty; essential doctrines like the Imago Dei and important principles from tradition like Catholicism’s subsid-iarity or Abraham Kuyper’s sphere sovereignty are corner-stones for motivating and guiding us in caring for our neigh-bors. The most persuasive authors have constantly stretched my faith and understanding to grasp a more complex and nuanced theological framework.

Alice Zhang ’18What is one approach you researched that holds promise in the fight against poverty?

One approach to poverty alleviation is transformational development, a holistic approach where practitioners seek to transform the economic, mental, and spiritual states of the individuals living in impoverished communities. I would like to see organizations use this practice because it not only focuses on equipping them with enough resources to compete in their local economies, but it also emphasizes mental change and spiritual renewal, which are both integral for complete healing.

Abby Guidera ’17What is one aspect of poverty, previously unknown to you, which your research uncovered?

Evicted, by Matthew Desmond, was an eye opening read. I had no idea how significantly the low income housing market works against those who are poor, nor how frequently the families in these markets actually move. Not only are they profoundly limited in their ability to develop roots in an area and make connections with individuals that could actually save them from economic emergencies, but the system itself ultimately pits the landlord against the tenant in a manner that nearly always leaves the tenant’s future in the hands of a landlord that takes advantage of their poverty. «

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Iron Sharpens Iron 2017EASTERN EUROPE/BALTIC STATES Czech Republic | Poland | Germany | Lithuania | Latvia | Estonia

Explore the interaction between public policy and the economy in a post-communist era.

Date: May 8-July 1, 2017Cost: $7,500 (includes 8 credits and a month of travel)Application Deadline: January 13, 2017More details: wheaton.edu/fpe/Opportunities-for-Students

Upcoming Events

BOOTLEGGERS AND BAPTISTS:

THE MATTER OF TEXAS V. WAL-MART

Kenneth G. Elzinga, the Robert C. Taylor

Professor of Economics at the University of Virginia

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 4:30 pm

Blanchard 339Wheaton College

THE STATE OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTIES IN AMERICA

PANELISTS INCLUDE:

Kassie Dulin, Director of Legal Communications for First Liberty Institute

Rich Baker, Esq., partner at Mauck and Baker, LLC

Al Gombis, Esq., Foreign Affairs Officer, former Team Lead, Office of International Religious Freedom, U.S. Department of State

Jennifer Marshall, Vice President for the Institute for Family, Community, and Opportunity, The Heritage Foundation

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 67:30 pm

Barrow’s Auditorium, Wheaton College

Kassie Dulin Rich Baker Jennifer Marshall Al Gombis

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Campaign 2016: Defying Conventional Wisdom

By Amy E. Black, Professor of Political Science, Wheaton College

This fall, I will teach a seminar on Campaigns and Elections. My students and I will explore classic texts and discuss what scholars and practitioners have learned about campaign politics. And then we will watch together as Campaign 2016 defies almost all of the well-established rules of the game. What are some of the elements that make this election season so distinctive?

Presidential contests usually attract party veterans. This year, however, strong party connections and impressive political resumes were liabilities. Donald Trump likely has less experi-ence with politics and government than any presidential candi-date in history. After decades of service as the only Socialist in Congress, Bernie Sanders joined the Democratic Party just in time to seek (and narrowly lose) the presidential nomination.

In a typical presidential election, campaign advisers panic if their candidate’s negative ratings climb above 40%. This year, nominees Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are both rated unfavorably by more than half the voters. Trump’s average unfavorable rating is hovering near 60%; Clinton’s is just a few points lower. By March 2016, Trump and Clinton’s negatives had reached the highest levels ever recorded since pollsters started measuring candidate favorability. In other words, the 2016 presidential election is shaping up to be a referendum on which candidate the voters dislike least, not which one the voters like best. Voters are frustrated, angry, and lashing out.

This negative political climate has been building for several decades, as increasing numbers of voters align with parties less for what they promise to do and more in reaction against policies and personalities they oppose on the other side. Political scientists Alan Abramowitz and Steven Webster describe this growing trend as “negative parti-

sanship.” In a June 2016 Pew Center poll, 55% of Trump supporters said their vote choice was primarily against Clinton; 50% of Democratic supporters say their vote was primarily against Trump.

The tumultuous primaries also reveal significant internal battles inside both political parties. The 17-person primary battle and difficulty narrowing the field revealed major rifts within the GOP. Some prominent Republican insiders and donors actively campaigned against frontrunner Donald Trump, but they could not coalesce in support of a single competitor. The two living Republican past presidents and many other notable Republicans were conspicuously absent from their party convention.

Although the Republicans are the most deeply divided, Bernie Sanders’ strong showing in the Democratic primaries revealed significant rifts among Democrats as well. Sanders drew unexpectedly strong support, especially from younger voters. He competed throughout the entire primary season and only conceded weeks before the convention. Party leaders on both sides will need to make major changes to ensure their survival long term.

Even though the party conventions are over, there is a small but real chance that a third-party challenger could gain momentum during the general election. Even as I write, activists frustrated with the major party options are attempting to open ballot access for an outside candidate. Such high levels of voter dissatisfaction suggest political room for a strong alternative.

In this most unpredictable of political seasons, I can make one prediction with confidence: the final months of the campaign will include even more surprises that defy conventional wisdom. «

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Table of Contentsfall 2016 edition

1 Friendship Across the Aisle

2 Director’s Welcome

3 How the Immigration Debate Affects the U.S. Presidential Elections

4 FPE Interns

5 FPE Scholars

7 Campaign 2016: Defying Conventional Wisdom

mission statementThe Wheaton Center for Faith, Politics and Economics exists to advance the training of Wheaton College students and the greater community in the understanding of market economies, representative democracies, limited government and the redeeming effect of the Christian worldview on the practice of business, government and politics.