Clayton S. Rose, Ph.D., is the fifteenth president of Bowdoin College. He assumed the position on July 1, 2015, having been elected by a unanimous vote of the Bowdoin College Board of Trustees in January 2015, following an eight-month international search.
Clayton previously served as a member of the faculty at the Harvard Business School (HBS), where he taught and wrote on the responsibilities of leadership, managerial values and ethics, and the role of business in society. His courses at HBS included, among others, an elective course exploring business engagement with society’s larger problems (Reimagining Capitalism), a required course on ethics (Leadership and Corporate Responsibility) and an elective titled "The Moral Leader." He was also engaged administratively at HBS, dealing with issues of community values and standards and the school’s honor code, and was part of a faculty group advising on improving the experience of women faculty and students. He was recognized at HBS for innovation in teaching and for service to the community.
Originally from San Rafael, California, Clayton earned his undergraduate degree (1980) and M.B.A. (1981) at the University of Chicago. In 2003, following a highly successful 20-year leadership and management career in finance, he enrolled in the doctoral program in sociology at the University of Pennsylvania to study issues of race in America, earning his master’s degree in 2005 and his Ph.D. with distinction in 2007.
WE, the people, are getting ready to elect a President, a new leader for our country. Save perhaps George Washington, who everyone conceded would be the first, it’s always been tumultuous ever since.
Here to try and provide both a historical perspective and to partly unravel it all was Andrew Rudalevige, Bowdoin’s Thomas Brackett Reed Professor of Government. His talk was titled: “Sore Losers and Glass Ceilings: American Presidential Politics, and the Election of 2016.”
Andy started with some constitutional questions – How many votes does it take to win? We all knew that - 270, or half plus one of the electoral college. What are the requirements to run? Age 35+, natural born – no mention of parties. Who is the nominee? The one who receives the majority of delegates out of 4763 Democrats, or 2472 Republicans. Simple, right? Not so fast.
Our second President Jefferson was at first deadlocked with Aaron Burr, so a system needed to be worked out. It was named the 'King Caucus,' and it meant that delegates from the political parties would meet and nominate the Pres/VP with no input from the public.
King Caucus remained in place until the 1828 election. One cycle earlier in 1824, Andrew Jackson won the popular vote, but lost the election to John Quincy Adams due to lack of enough delegates. Thus began the “Sore Loser” syndrome. Jackson crowed that his loss was due to a “corrupt bargain” between Adams and members of the Senate. He ran again in 1828, and won. Jackson supporters are credited as founding the Democratic Party.
"Coining the phrase “sore losers” is partly to be a bit provocative," says Rudalevige, "and perhaps a more descriptive term would be activist or political movement. It's about being unhappy with the system and working to change it. It can certainly occur within both parties, and the ultimate goal is to create a change that helps your party win." This is politics. Don’t like the rules of the game? Change them.
Teddy Roosevelt led the progressive movement in the early 1900’s, with changes once again being made in the nominating process. The process of primaries came into play, with voting being put more into the hands of the people, rather than a small block.
Following the 1968 assassinations of MLK and Robert Kennedy, the ’68 Democratic Convention was marked with rioting, tear gas, and demonstrations. Nominee Humphrey lost to Nixon. Under the phrase, “The whole world is watching,” the party formed the McGovern- Fraser Commission to restore order within the Democrat party. McGovern resigned from the commission and earned the nomination under their new rules. He lost by a wide margin to Nixon in the ’72 election. Nixon would be brought down a year later due to the Watergate cover-up.
The examples discussed by Andy were summarized by saying that the system is essentially very open, is driven by a cycle of “sore losers,” aka people who want change, but state and party rules limit the speed of those changes.
Who will be the “sore loser” this election cycle? We’re already seeing signs of the very definition. Trump has expressed delegate concerns parallel to Andrew Jackson, using the term “Dirty Deal” instead of “Corrupt Bargain.” Bernie Sanders is winning state after state, but is far behind in his party’s delegate count to Clinton. Glass ceilings, from the time Kennedy became the first Catholic president, to the first black president, could lead the way to our first woman president.
A variety of questions concluded the program:
Will Maine go back to a primary instead of a caucus? There is talk of it. A caucus takes more time, turnout is low, but those that do attend can talk and discuss the candidates.
Could Romney or Ryan beat Clinton? The question for the Republicans is can they swing states from the past election.
Is polling reliable? It used to be all phone calls via published phone book numbers, but now it is random computer generated cell phone calling, so it is much more difficult. The data is fine….as long as people tell the truth!
Will voting turnout be higher? It will probably be consistent with 2008, about 55-60% of the eligible voters. Voters are driven more by anger than love.
Is there good demographic info on voters? It’s a little vague, but we know that voting tends to be about the same percentage as the age of the person, aka, 65% of 65 years olds vote. Whites tend to vote more than ethnic groups, and a lot depends on how well campaigns mobilize their supporters.
On the Bowdoin “Sombrero” controversy – no comment!
President Bowen Depke opened the meeting by welcoming 55 members, 2 Honorary and 3 guests.
David Small gave a humorous invocation, sharing a look into the dreams and potential nightmares as our new US president settles into the White House next winter. Visited by ghosts of presidents past, the new POTUS receives helpful and sage advice from the luminaries, but is taken aback when the ghost of Abe Lincoln suggests he (or she) “go see a play” while in office!
Mark Stimson led us in the pledge and Kathy Grammer led us in a rousing version of “America the Beautiful.”
Our “History Moments” have now entered the 1970’s, with Dick Hall recalling the country and world in 1971 and 1972. Tensions were high between India and the USSR; the "troubles” in Northern Ireland continued to blaze; The Democratic Republic of Congo became Zaire; at home, Richard Nixon won the 1972 election and traveled to China; the Academy Award for best picture went to “Patton” and “All the Family” debuted on TV. In our own club, the major fundraiser, the Sidewalk Art Show, led by Bob Patten, raised over $20,000 for Junior Achievement and we showed a rebel bent by canceling the meetings on December 24 and 31 in direct violation of Rotary International Bylaws.The weekly raffle was conducted by Lester Evans, who called up Mike Fortunato to draw the card and try to find the Queen of Hearts for $1388. Alas, Mike pulled the ten of clubs. The pot thickens!
While at the podium, Mike pointed out a group photo shot of the 1916 Portland Rotary Club and reminded us that our chance at posterity will come on June 3rd, when we will try to gather on the steps of City Hall before our meeting there to capture our humble group, so that we can be feted a century from now.
Tom Nickerson introduced our newest member, Leisa Collins, who has worked for the Maine Community College programs for many years. Now posted at SMCC and working with CMCC, Leisa, who hails from Aroostook County and received her Masters at UMaine, looks forward to joining our ranks as well as adding to the tension in our competition with the Portsmouth Club for new members. Welcome to Portland Rotary, Leisa!
Mark your calendar for the first annual 'BBQ Crawl,' which will be a social event held on May 21st, as reported by Rob Chatfield. This should be a great time to taste our way around Portland, with the added twist of a “poker run,” with the participants receiving a new card at each venue with the winner “playing his (or her) hand” at Binga’s Wingas at the end of our fun evening.
News heard around the room: Julie L’Heureux has co-authored a new book sharing insights from her career in the nursing field, proceeds to benefit the American Nursing Foundation. Both Rusty Atwood and Paul Gore are expecting grandchildren within the next few months.
Our efforts at Long Creek Youth Center continue, as Dave Putnam reminded us. Each month, we have a group head over to the Cedar Unit to play games, feed and chat with the incarcerated young men at the facility. We also offer opportunities to mentor these young men, with just one hour per week needed to make a huge difference. E-mail Jim Willey (jimandbarbarawilley@gmail.com) or Mike Fortunato (michael.k.fortunato@gmail.com) for details.
The 'Maine Outdoor Challenge' is just six weeks from now and the club needs 100% participation in our largest fundraiser of the year. We needs teams, raffle prizes, donations and for members to get involved. Please look for an e-mail from Kris Rosado asking for your help. Along this vein, Travis Parker requested volunteers to join teams to canvas the Greater Portland businesses in search of donors for raffle prizes to be used at the MOC lobster bake on Wednesday, June 8th. For more information or to volunteer, contact Travis at: travisrparker@gmail.com
If you weren't there, you missed a great social event at DiMillo's Restaurant. There was no meeting, just socializing with other Rotarians. Here are a few of the attendees:
Invocation:Peggy Wescott Program Reporter: Julie L'Heureux Bits & Pieces Reporter: Alan Nye Registration/Greeter: Katie Brown Sell Meal Tickets: Loretta Rowe Raffle: Dick Giles Badge Box: David Lee Collect Meal Tickets: Jerry Angier Rotary Moment in History: Amy Chipman Song Leader: Alan Nye Pianist: Kathy Grammer Sgt-at-Arms (Early): Jim Willey Sgt-at-Arms (Late): Peter Ingram
As we receive applications for prospective members to join our Portland Rotary Club, the names of the applicants will be included in our Windjammer. Any information and/or comments you would like to share will be handled confidentially. Please contact Loretta Rowe: lrowe@maine.rr.com. Your input will be appreciated.
PROSPECT BUSINESS SPONSOR(S) Vantiel Duncan American Red Cross Laura Young
Our “History Moments” have now entered the 1970’s, with Dick Hall recalling the country and world in 1971 and 1972. Tensions were high between India and the USSR; the "troubles” in Northern Ireland continued to blaze; The Democratic Republic of Congo became Zaire; at home, Richard Nixon won the 1972 election and traveled to China; the Academy Award for best picture went to “Patton” and “All the Family” debuted on TV. In our own club, the major fundraiser, the Sidewalk Art Show, led by Bob Patten, raised over $20,000 for Junior Achievement and we showed a rebel bent by canceling the meetings on December 24 and 31 in direct violation of Rotary International Bylaws.
