Michael G. Roskin (1939 – May 2, 2023) was an American political scientist best known for his multi-edition textbook, ''Countries and Concepts''.

Background

Roskin received his A.B. at the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

and M.A. at the University of California at Los Angeles. He served as a journalist and foreign service officer for the U.S. Information Agency before earning his Ph.D. in international relations at The

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

Career

Roskin began teaching at Lycoming College in 1972. Roskin served as Visiting Professor of Foreign Policy at the U.S. Army War College from 1991 to 1994. He is the author of five political science textbooks. In 2008, Roskin retired from teaching, after being named a Fulbright Scholar; he continued to lecture. In 2020, Roskin wrote that "anti-Russian accusations have switched parties" from Republicans denouncing Democrats in the 1950s and 1960s to Democrats bashing Republicans in the 2010s and 2020s as traitors under the influence of Moscow (then USSR, now Russian Federation). He compared the McCarthyist attack in the 1950s on " China Hands" to

Steve Bannon Stephen Kevin Bannon (born November 27, 1953) is an American media executive, political strategist, and former investment banker. He served as the White House's chief strategist for the first seven months of president Donald Trump's first ...

's "deconstruction of the administrative state." He noted that Kennan declined to judge if Alger Hiss was a spy. (He probably was.)" He compared the Hiss case to President Donald J. Trump's "operative"

Paul Manafort Paul John Manafort Jr. (; born April 1, 1949) is an American former lobbyist, political consultant, and attorney. A long-time Republican Party campaign consultant, he chaired the Trump presidential campaign from June to August 2016. Manafo ...

's own "deep contacts" with Russian intelligence agents. However, he contrasted with the past a current "willingness of many career officials to resign."

Death

Michael Roskin died on May 2, 2023, at the age of 84.

Works

According to the Library of Congress, Roskin has published: * ''Other governments of Europe: Sweden, Spain, Italy, Yugoslavia, and East Germany'' (1977) * ''Countries and concepts: an introduction to comparative politics'' (1982, 1986, 1989, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001) * ''Political science: an introduction'', Prentice-Hall (1974, 1985, 1988, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2008) * ''IR, an introduction to international relations'' with Nicholas O. Berry (1990, 1991, 1993, 1997, 2002) * ''National interest: from abstraction to strategy'' (1994) * ''Rebirth of East Europe'' (1994, 1997) * ''Hard road to democracy: four developing nations'' (2001)

References

1939 births 2023 deaths American political scientists University of California alumni Lycoming College faculty People from Williamsport, Pennsylvania American University alumni {{US-political-writer-stub