Brian Waddell

Professor

Political Science

Brian Waddell received his PhD in American Politics and Political Theory in 1993 from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York. He has published numerous articles on the New Deal and World War II, especially regarding the dramatic changes in governance that accompanied the rise of the U.S. national security state. He has also published articles on the disciplinary biases in American political science. He has published four books, the first on the politics and institutional changes of World War II and their impact and legacy (The War Against the New Deal). The second book explores civil-military relations during the first half of the twentieth century, and how World War II transformed these relations and led to the national security state (Towards the National Security State). The third is an edited and annotated manuscript, recently discovered, by the nation’s last Secretary of War, Robert Patterson. It has been published by the University of Tennessee Press under the title Arming the Nation for War.  And the fourth is a co-authored historical review and critical analysis of the twentieth century rise of the various functions and responsibilities of the U.S. national government. Entitled What American Government Does, it was published by the Johns Hopkins University Press in 2017.

Specialization

American political development, American political economy, American political thought, the national security state, the American welfare state.