Natalie Wenzell Letsa's Avatar

Natalie Wenzell Letsa

@natalie-letsa.bsky.social

Assistant Professor, PhD political science, Department of International & Area Studies, University of Oklahoma. African Politics - Political Behavior - Authoritarianism - Historical Legacies

142 Followers  |  148 Following  |  5 Posts  |  Joined: 29.01.2025  |  2.2961

Latest posts by natalie-letsa.bsky.social on Bluesky

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Your regular reminder that you can’t leapfrog a working state: www.npr.org/sections/goa...

19.04.2025 18:01 β€” πŸ‘ 156    πŸ” 52    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 7

Thank you!

15.04.2025 20:43 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Thanks, Erin!

15.04.2025 20:11 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

While I'm thrilled to be joining a dynamic and growing department full of amazing new colleagues, I am also so sad to be leaving incredible people at OU! I've had a momentous 8 years here and am so grateful to everything that's been given to me here ❀️

15.04.2025 19:27 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Very excited to announce that in the Fall I will be joining the Political Science Dept. at the University of South Carolina as an Associate(!!) Professor! πŸŽ‰

15.04.2025 19:27 β€” πŸ‘ 6    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

More in No, Other People:

New poll:

β€œAmerica would be better off if more people worked in manufacturing.”

β€’ 80% of Americans agree
β€’ 20% disagree

β€œI would be better off if I worked in a factory.”

β€’ 25% of Americans agree
β€’ 73% disagree
β€’ 2% currently work in a factory

13.04.2025 17:06 β€” πŸ‘ 26624    πŸ” 6920    πŸ’¬ 1132    πŸ“Œ 863
University of Chicago Press Journals: Cookie absent

Very happy to see that my paper with Ken Scheve and @stasavage.bsky.social is online! it's about democracy, inequality and antitrust: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...

08.04.2025 22:03 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

The latest crazy just proves what we all know. They are discussing everything on Signal to avoid any discovery or FOIA or archival laws. So illegal but here we are.

24.03.2025 18:56 β€” πŸ‘ 47775    πŸ” 11820    πŸ’¬ 819    πŸ“Œ 546

Maybe stuffing university board of directors with businesspeople was not a great idea.

22.03.2025 01:20 β€” πŸ‘ 37    πŸ” 8    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
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Unchecked discretion in spending money appropriated by Congress transforms the Executive into a pipeline of patronage:

Drastic cuts in services, then exceptions in exchange for loyalty.

Which is precisely why the framers, with care and vision, guarded the power of the purse for Congress.

08.03.2025 11:02 β€” πŸ‘ 183    πŸ” 67    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 11

The "End of History", but in the end it's not liberal democracy but Russia's oligarchy-kleptocracy that wins.

05.03.2025 02:09 β€” πŸ‘ 59    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 9    πŸ“Œ 0
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Excited to share my new article in the American Journal of Political Science (@ajpseditor.bsky.social)! "Endogenous Opposition: Identity and Ideology in Kuwaiti Electoral Politics" explores how authoritarian elections generate opposition to incumbent autocrats. Link: www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ukrer...

21.02.2025 21:36 β€” πŸ‘ 39    πŸ” 11    πŸ’¬ 6    πŸ“Œ 1

Institutions are not self-executing. Enough people must be willing to do the right thing by the rules.

11.02.2025 21:12 β€” πŸ‘ 59    πŸ” 20    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 1

Imagine if @aoc @sanders.senate.gov , every dem, SIMULTANEOUSLY held Town Halls where they allowed grant and contract recipients to explain to the country what it is they do and why it's important

Invite all media. Including RW podcasters. @spaces Flood the zone

Call it a Day Of Transparency

11.02.2025 18:51 β€” πŸ‘ 96402    πŸ” 20149    πŸ’¬ 3744    πŸ“Œ 1640
11.02.2025 22:00 β€” πŸ‘ 14166    πŸ” 1698    πŸ’¬ 517    πŸ“Œ 76
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Is Elon Musk taking over the US government? Here’s how β€˜state capture’ works – and why we should be concerned Elon Musk has been accused of attempting a coup or hostile takeover of the US government. His actions could better be described as a form of β€˜state capture’. Here’s what that means.

PUBLISHED! Forget talk of a coup or self-coup, Musk's siege of America's vast federal bureaucracy is a form of state capture. It fits seamlessly with Trump's authoritarianism.

I suspect this will be the most important thing I ever say about American politics.

theconversation.com/is-elon-musk...

12.02.2025 03:08 β€” πŸ‘ 157    πŸ” 70    πŸ’¬ 6    πŸ“Œ 8
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Fabulous πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡ΈπŸ’₯

10.02.2025 01:47 β€” πŸ‘ 19557    πŸ” 2653    πŸ’¬ 196    πŸ“Œ 232

Getting mighty close to a full-throated endorsement of apartheid...

08.02.2025 15:53 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Research universities are often the largest employers in their region. They are often the primary health care providers to communities. This funding shift will not only reduce US research leadership, it will put working people out of work and reduce healthcare access.

08.02.2025 01:40 β€” πŸ‘ 5121    πŸ” 2065    πŸ’¬ 100    πŸ“Œ 116

@natalie-letsa is following 20 prominent accounts