Green Ivies

Campus Report ^ | January 24, 2008 | Don Irvine

[bs9021]

Green Ivies

by: Don Irvine, January 24, 2008

According to a study of federal donation records 2008 presidential candidates by the Daily Princetonian faculty members at Princeton have overwhelmingly supported Democrats.

The total number of donations in the current election cycle who listed the University as their employer was $23,700 with $21,900 (92.4%) going to Democratic candidates. The remaining $1,800 went to Republican Ron Paul who is closer to a Libertarian than a Republican. And of the donations to Paul, one was from a graduate student and the other a Public Safety Officer.

Princeton employee’s support for the Democrats even tops that of their peers at Harvard which clocked in at 86 percent. That may well be the first time that Princeton out-liberaled Harvard.

According to electrical engineering professor Stuart Schwartz though he doesn’t think the numbers are representative of the faculty’s political make-up. He told the Princetonian that it is an unusual year “And maybe the Republican faculty are holding back and the Democrats are just so anxious to get their candidates in a good position. I don’t think [the lack of support for Republican candidates] will hold up. That’s not this faculty; there’s a mix. I think the majority are Democrats, but I think there’s a mix.”

I guess despite 42 years at the university Schwartz missed the Princetonian article from September 2004 that showed that John Kerry received $40,950 and President Bush just $250 from those identifying themselves as being affiliated with Princeton. That comes out to 99.4 percent support for Kerry which is even worse than this year, so maybe the faculty is moderating a bit.

Maybe the professor is right and the Republicans are holding back, but I doubt it...

[originalbuckeye]

I can’t say this surprises me. I remember a study of 200 profs at University of Colorado, Boulder, from a few years ago. Out of 200, 198 identified themselves as Democrats. There was really only 1 Republican, the other said he was just joking. So that would be 199/200 profs were Democrats. The deck is definitely stacked against us!

[AdaGray]

It’s easy to support Socialism when your hiding behind Ivy covered walls.