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Peter Sparding

@psparding.bsky.social
1K followers 1.8K following 400 posts

SVP Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress (CSPC) in DC. Working on technological competition, economic security, and transatlantic relations. Previously fellow at GMF. Book “No Better Friend?” on US-German relations (Hurst and OUP).

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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 12h
Ahem global.oup.com/academic/pro...
global.oup.com
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 12h
Thank you. So that means they favor which side?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 13h
Wait, can you explain what your suspicion means?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Can you say something (or have you already done so and can point me to it) what all of this will do to congressional Dems attitudes and willingness to cooperate on upcoming budget debates, the NDAA etc in the lame duck and beyond?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Oh I agree
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Someone won’t be happy
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Yeah seems about right. Sooo… where does that leave us going forward?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
What do you think are the drivers?
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Henry Farrell @himself.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
My first take (from work with @abenewman.bsky.social on the EU-US privacy wars) is that this is likely very stupid. ECJ judges are absolutely political, but are relatively insulated from electoral politics and raison d'etat. US interference makes a strong ruling vs Musk more politically attractive.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
In which direction?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Quick check-in: how strange are people who would have Medieval II and any Madden version on their list? Asking for a friend…
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
What’s your general view of how pollsters have adapted to previous problems and whether “this time is different” just from a technical polling point of view? I feel like pollsters have not very actively explained how they addressed challenges or at least not in a way anyone heard much about it.
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Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Georgia’s second-largest school district has abruptly banned Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye” from school library shelves
gpb.org
Georgia school system abruptly bans Toni Morrison’s ‘The Bluest Eye’
Georgia’s second-largest school district is once again at the center of a political controversy over the appropriateness of school materials.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Has there been any good analysis on what pollsters have done to avoid previous polling errors?
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Jonathan Ladd @jonathanmladd.com · 23/09/2026
These are still some of the most amazing graphs ever published in a political science book. From: Edward Tufte. 1978. Political Control of the Economy. Princeton University Press.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Also was and is much of DC discourse, I think.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Wrote a piece for a German outlet where I warned precisely of this becoming the public narrative because seat numbers won’t be as impressive as they were in 2018. A bit stunning to see this misunderstanding of the starting point already making an appearance before the elections…
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
A good explainer of one of the problems with a Diesel export ban, namely that it would hit New England states hard. One can assume this would also have consequences for Senate races in Maine and NH.
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John Gramlich @johngramlich.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Lots to absorb in this chart, but look at the changes in Republicans' views of data centers since January. Far more Republicans now see them as bad for the environment, home energy costs and local quality of life. www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/...
Chart showing how Americans' views of data centers have changed in recent months, including among various demographic and political subgroups. The chart is based on two Pew Research Center surveys of U.S. adults, one conducted in January 2026 and the other in August 2026.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Got it. Has there been recent high-quality polling in NH or places like MN?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Which ones currently don’t have it?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Got it. Just always learned that in surveys where one number is significantly below 50 and the other only barely above, there’s usually a good chance that many will return. But even then, this would still be a pretty decisive Dem win in the +8 range or such
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Isn’t the fact that GOP is in the mid-30s usually an indication that a number of these people will in the end return to vote for them? It’s not like the Dems are polling close to 60 in these.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
What happened?
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Nikkei Asia (Official) @asia.nikkei.com · 18/09/2026
Takaichi seeks Trump meeting early next week ahead of US-China summit asia.nikkei.com/politics/internatio…
asia.nikkei.com
Takaichi seeks Trump meeting early next week ahead of US-China summit
Japan prime minister hopes to keep Washington engaged on China deterrence
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Agree, but be careful what you wish for... it could always be something more annoying... or noisy
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
I think many researchers and analysts could (should?) say the same about a range of issues unrelated to the conflict right now…. if we are honest.
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Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
A Philadelphia family just bought their first home with a $10,000 first-time homebuyer grant funded by a group of Quakers It’s part of the congregation’s racial justice plan to redistribute wealth to Black residents in the Germantown area as a form of reparations
inquirer.com
A Philly family bought their first home thanks to reparations from Quakers in Germantown
Green Street Friends Meeting, a Quaker congregation in Germantown, pledged to spend $50,000 a year for 10 years as part of its reparations work. It’s helping Black Philadelphians become homeowners.
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Mike Walker @newnarrative.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Germany to send more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, warns of stepped-up Russian winter attacks www.straitstimes.com/world/europe...
straitstimes.com
Germany to send more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, warns of stepped-up Russian winter attacks
Sept 8 - Germany will send Patriot air defence missiles to Ukraine from its national stocks, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said on Tuesday, warning that Russia was likely to intensify its air campa...
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Got it.
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Cecilia Muñoz @ceciliamunoz.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
This is terrible news, not just for the Smithsonian, but for the country. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/08/a...
nytimes.com
Smithsonian’s Secretary to Resign as Trump Tries to Rule the Institution
In the face of escalating White House attacks about how museums present American history, Lonnie G. Bunch III has announced his decision to depart.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Congrats. What issue did the reviewer have?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Thanks!
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Eric Columbus @ericcolumbus.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Happy 72nd Birthday to Ruby Bridges, who at the age of 6 desegregated the New Orleans public schools. She’s younger than 30 senators and our last two presidents—and only 7 years older than Barack Obama. The past isn’t past.
Ruby Bridges, age 6Ruby Bridges flanked by three U.S. Marshals on the steps of her schoolNorman Rockwell’s painting depicting the event, “The Problem We All Live With,” originally published as a centerfold in the January 14, 1964 issue of Look magazine. Ruby Bridges talking with President Obama as they look at Rockwell’s painting while it was temporarily displayed at the White House in 2011.
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Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 08/09/2026
Students who don't use AI chatbots for schoolwork are scoring better grades than those who do, according to a new report. It's some of the widest-ranging evidence yet that the technology could be hurting young people's learning. bloom.bg/4gHVbZY 📷: Jean-François Fort / Getty Images
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
bsky.app/profile/bloo...
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The first two of those issues may have something to do with falling test scores. Not an expert so just guessing here
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Can you explain what comprehensive education is?
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Gesundheit!
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Hard to quantify but I’d add two things: increased uncertainty due to frequent policy shifts and even more difficult to quantify but I think the lasting effects of the deterioration of US standing in the world will also have consequences (believe the latter under appreciated in DC and more broadly)
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
If you had to put years to the terms medium and long term, what would you say?
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John Burn-Murdoch @jburnmurdoch.ft.com · 03/09/2026
I hereby declare the "learn to code" era officially dead: Big declines in the number of people studying computer science in the last year or two 📉 Chart from this week’s edition of our newsletter on AI and the labour market www.ft.com/content/9183...
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Alright, I think that means you get to call it a day ;)
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Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 03/09/2026
President Donald Trump’s defense and trade policies are prompting the Philippines to look beyond its longstanding alliance with the US.
bloom.bg
Philippines Looks Beyond US Ties as Trump Tests Alliances
President Donald Trump’s defense and trade policies are prompting the Philippines to look beyond its longstanding alliance with the US and build ties with non-traditional partners, Manila’s top diplomat said.
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Politico @politico.com · 02/09/2026
EXCLUSIVE: The White House pressured U.S. space companies to skip French President Emmanuel Macron’s space summit in Paris next week. It's a surprise move that left company executives confused about what they should do.
politico.com
White House pushes companies to ditch Macron’s space summit
More than 120 countries are attending the symposium in Paris.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
The expansion of the trade deficit with China is also interesting (imports up nearly 9%). Given the speed at which this transformation of the relationship is occurring and its impact, I’m still a bit surprised that there doesn’t seem to be more urgency or pressure in Germany/Europe to act faster.
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Matt Grossmann @mattgrossmann.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Our new Michigan survey has 55% of likely voters saying a Trump endorsement makes them less likely to support a candidate (vs. 27% more likely). That is hard for Republicans to overcome. ippsr.msu.edu/news/msu-pol...
ippsr.msu.edu
MSU Poll Shows Democrats Lead, Republicans Coalesce Behind Rogers | Institute for Public Policy and Social Research
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John Gramlich @johngramlich.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Upper-income Republicans are just as likely as lower-income Republicans (61% vs. 62%) to say the term "working class" describes them well. That's not the case among Democrats. Fascinating chart from new @pewresearch.org analysis: www.pewresearch.org/politics/202...
Chart showing demographic differences within each political party in the percentage of adults who say the term "working class" describes them well. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to identify as "working class," regardless of education, income, financial situation or type of work. The chart is based on a January 2026 Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults.
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Peter Sparding @psparding.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
This is despite data center buildout?
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The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 01/09/2026
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal Party swept three special elections, in a test of whether voters supported his tough stance against President Trump's trade war. One Liberal lawmaker described the election results as a “message” to the U.S.
washingtonpost.com
Canadian special elections indicate voters backing Carney’s stand against Trump
Prime Minister Mark Carney had vowed to match U.S. tariffs "dollar for dollar," unlike other longtime U.S. partners who had raced to cut deals when faced with tariff threats.
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