David M. Anderson
Senior Advisor, Government Relations, Office of the President, The Washington Center
Areas of Expertise:
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About David
Anderson's research focuses on polarization, pragmatism, bipartisanship, family policy, and public philosophy. Overarching themes in Anderson's writing include understanding the role played by three concepts of leveraging in social and political life, leveraging uncertainty to create bipartisanship and community, providing all families with economic and ethical support and developing a new centrist public philosophy. Anderson served as the Director of the National Task Force of the Institute of Politics, Democracy and the Internet and Executive Director of Youth04. Anderson regularly contributes op-eds on new centrist politics, family policy, leveraging and society, international relations and polarization, dysfunction and American democracy.
Contributions
In the News
"A 21st Century Strategy To End the Russia-Ukraine War," David M. Anderson, Opinion, Stars and Stripes, November 18, 2022.
"Peace Summit Needed To End Ukraine War, Bring US-Russia Peace," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Jerusalem Post, October 27, 2022.
"Is Peace Possible Between Russia, Ukraine and the West?," David M. Anderson, Opinion, Jerusalem Post, October 12, 2022.
"Ukraine War: Help Putin Save Face, Recognize Russian WW2 Victory," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Jerusalem Post, October 3, 2022.
"The Post-Elizabeth US-UK Relationship: A Prism on Democracy, Domination," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Jerusalem Post, September 18, 2022.
"Schools Should Teach Both Progressive and Conservative Views on Race Relations," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, September 7, 2022.
"Anderson: America Too Often Views Politics Through Two Lenses. In Fact, There Are Three," David M. Anderson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 4, 2022.
"Maryland: America in Miniature Giving Birth to a New Center," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, July 18, 2022.
"Freedom Isn’t the Only Value: Ukraine’s Quest To Save Its Democracy," David M. Anderson, The Jerusalem Post, July 9, 2022.
"The US Should Have a Say in Ending the War in Ukraine," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Jerusalem Post, June 27, 2022.
"How Zelensky and Biden Can Avoid Tragedy," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Jerusalem Post, June 11, 2022.
"If Democrats Show Respect for the 2nd Amendment, Republicans Will Compromise on Gun Safety Legislation | Guest Commentary," David M. Anderson, Op-Ed, The Baltimore Sun, June 2, 2022.
"The U.S. Has Been Seeking the Center Since the Days of Teddy Roosevelt," David M. Anderson, Home/Centrism, Fulcrum, May 23, 2022.
"Democrats Need To Break Out of Struggle Between Moderates and Progressives," David M. Anderson, Opinion/Campaign, The Hill, May 21, 2022.
"Understand the Complex Origins of the Russia-Ukraine War," David M. Anderson, Opinion, Stars and Stripes, May 4, 2022.
"Western Rationality's Irrelevance to Putin’s Thinking," David M. Anderson, Global Policy Journal, May 4, 2022.
"Putin’s War Is More Than Just a Military One - Opinion," David M. Anderson, The Jerusalem Post, April 18, 2022.
"We Must Address Both of Russia’s Obsessions," David M. Anderson, Washington Jewish Week, April 6, 2022.
"NATO Coalition Adopts a Pragmatist Position," David M. Anderson, Global Policy Journal, March 25, 2022.
"A United Effort Against Russia and Our Dysfunctional Domestic Politics," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, March 8, 2022.
"We Are Nearing the Final Stage of Our Capitalist Reformation," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, January 25, 2022.
"The Truth Is That Our Citizens Are Not Polarized," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, December 24, 2021.
"Democratic Agenda in Congress Is Too Narrow," David M. Anderson, The Free Lance Star, December 20, 2021.
"Paid Leave Drama Is Interesting, Absurd and Ironic," David M. Anderson, St. Louis Post Dispatch, November 25, 2021.
"Paid Parental Leave, a Tax Credit for Stay-at-Home Parents Belong in Bill," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Dominion Post, October 29, 2021.
"How Democrats Can Unite Their Moderate & Progressive Camps," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, October 27, 2021.
"The Legislative Stalemate Is Not a ‘Sanders vs. Manchin’ Issue," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, October 14, 2021.
"Three Mistakes the Dems Are Making in Trying To Pass Two Big Bills," David M. Anderson, Guest Commentary, The Baltimore Sun, October 6, 2021.
"Traditional Leverage Won’t Get the Democratic Party Through Its Current Crisis," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, September 30, 2021.
"The Emerging Biden Doctrine Seeks a New Way To Promote Democracy," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, September 16, 2021.
"We Live in a Post-Truth and Post-Ethics World," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, August 3, 2021.
"Moral Progress Harder To Come by Than Scientific Progress," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, July 19, 2021.
"Sen. Manchin, Do You Love the Senate More Than Your Country?," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Baltimore Sun, June 24, 2021.
"What Does It Mean To Be a Centrist in the Mideast and the U.S.?," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, June 15, 2021.
"To Change Manchin’s Mind, We Must Appeal to His Heart," David M. Anderson (with ), The Fulcrum, June 11, 2021.
"$6 Trillion Spending Plan Exemplifies Our Communication Disorder," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, May 24, 2021.
"Nine in 20 of Us Identify As Independents. So How Can We Be Polarized?," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, April 29, 2021.
"Nation Split on Ways To Achieve Criminal, Distributive Justice," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, April 27, 2021.
"Forget FDR and LBJ; Meet JRB, Biden Is the Progressive President of Our Times ," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Baltimore Sun, April 16, 2021.
"Family Policy That Could Appeal to the Right and the Left," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Hill, April 13, 2021.
"National Opinion: Gun Owners Fear Dems. Dems Need To Affirm Their Rights," David M. Anderson, Arizona Daily Star, March 29, 2021.
"Gridlock’s Awful, Especially for a Nation Much Less Polarized Than Its Politicians," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, March 26, 2021.
"Guide to Reviving the Center: First, Realize How Half the Electorate Isn’t Polarized," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, February 26, 2021.
"Raskin’s House Impeachment Team Sought Two Verdicts," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, February 17, 2021.
"Joe Biden’s Lincolnesque Start to His Presidency," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, January 25, 2021.
"Polarized’ Doesn’t Describe Us Accurately, Because There’s a Third Force To Reckon With," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, January 13, 2021.
"Biden Should Focus on Three Kinds of Leverage, Not One," David M. Anderson, The Hill, January 2, 2021.
"Even Before Trump, Politicians Had a Loose Relationship With the Truth," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Baltimore Sun, December 8, 2020.
"The Public Needs to Put Polling in Proper Perspective," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, December 3, 2020.
"Pandemic Reveals a Clash of Political Values," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, November 23, 2020.
"Democrats Fell Into the Language Trap — Again," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Hill, November 21, 2020.
"Joe Biden Is No Socialist; Donald Trump Is No Capitalist," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, October 20, 2020.
"The Media Needs to Do Better Explaining Differing Political Values," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, October 5, 2020.
"A Surfeit of Distinctions Gives False Impression of Electorate," David M. Anderson, Commentary, The Free Lance Star, September 29, 2020.
"Presidential Election Is Not Really When You Think," David M. Anderson, Opinion, Newsday, September 14, 2020.
"A Presidential Win Is No Slam-Dunk for Biden-Harris Ticket," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Baltimore Sun, August 21, 2020.
"We Should Apply Leveraging Strategy to the Fight Against the Pandemic," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Hill, August 8, 2020.
"A ‘Declaration of Interdependence’ Also Needed," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Hill, July 4, 2020.
"A country in Crisis Needs to Call a Truce with it's Government," David M. Anderson, Opinion, The Fulcrum, June 22, 2020.
"Science Alone Can't Tell Us Whether to Open Up Our States," David M. Anderson, The Hill, May 23, 2020.
"Pandemic Can Unite the Generations out of Necessity," David M. Anderson, Stars and Stripes, May 5, 2020.
"If a Bipartisan Stimulus Felt Good, Washington, Just Try for More of That," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, April 21, 2020.
"This is What Democrats Need to do to Win the Presidency," David M. Anderson, The Baltimore Sun, February 18, 2020.
"A Presidential Longshot Poised to Claim the New ‘Sentrist’ Mantle," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, January 7, 2020.
"There's No Reason Moderate Presidential Candidates Can't Show Passion," David M. Anderson, The Baltimore Sun, December 5, 2019.
"On Teddy Roosevelt's Birthday, A Look at His Role in Modern Progressivism," David M. Anderson, Des Moines Register, October 24, 2019.
"Sentrism: A New Word for a Needed Brand of Politics ," David M. Anderson, The Fulcrum, October 3, 2019.
"Memo to 2020 Democrats: You’re Campaigning Wrong," David M. Anderson, Baltimore Sun, August 27, 2019.
"Capitalist? Socialist? Democrats Need a Terminology Intervention," David M. Anderson, Baltimore Sun, July 1, 2019.
"Who Should Determine Whether Trump Is Removed from Office?," David M. Anderson, Baltimore Jewish Times, May 22, 2019.
"Here's Why We Don't Need a Vision for the Future," David M. Anderson, Washington Jewish Week, February 13, 2019.
"It's Up to the People to End the Shutdown," David M. Anderson, The Baltimore Sun, January 25, 2019.
"Government Shutdown Impasse Is a Leveraging Crisis," David M. Anderson, The Hill, January 16, 2019.
"Lack of Clarity at the Center of the Wall Debate," David M. Anderson, Baltimore Jewish Times, January 16, 2019.
"How to Break the Government Shutdown Impasse," David M. Anderson, The Frederick News-Post, January 9, 2019.
"Applying the Eisenhower Principle to Paid Family Leave," David M. Anderson, The Baltimore Sun, December 11, 2018.
"George H.W. Bush — The Statesman We Needed," David M. Anderson, Carroll County Times, December 8, 2018.
"My Fellow Democrats Should Watch Their Language: Economic Equality Is Not a Rational Societal Goal," David M. Anderson, The Hill, November 17, 2018.
"American Democrats: Not Capitalists, Not Socialists," David M. Anderson, The Hill, August 28, 2018.
"The Democratic Party Doesn't Need Unifying, Factions Are Fine," David M. Anderson, The Baltimore Sun, July 26, 2018.
"How Trump Lost His Leverage in the North Korea Negotiations," David M. Anderson, The Hill, May 29, 2018.
"The Key to Solving Our Mass Murder Problem," David M. Anderson, Richmond Times-Dispatch, March 25, 2018.
"Define Extremists in Terms of Centrists, Not The Other Way Around," David M. Anderson, The Hill, January 3, 2018.
"Why the 'Radical Center' Must be the Future of American Politics," David M. Anderson, The Hill, May 16, 2017.
"The Role of 'Idealist' Interventionism in a Dangerous World," David M. Anderson, Frederick News-Post, April 27, 2017.
"The Latest Leveraging Phenomenon," David M. Anderson, GP Opinion, Global Policy Journal, March 28, 2017.
"In the Quest to Know What's True, Facts are Not Better than Values," David M. Anderson, Frederick News-Post, January 8, 2017.
"Trump Has Two Infrastructures to Fix, Not One," David M. Anderson, Baltimore Sun, December 21, 2016.
"We Have Fact Checks-- How About a Value Check?," David M. Anderson, Frederick News Post, November 2, 2016.
"No Such Thing as a Third Term in the Presidency ," David M. Anderson, Frederick News Post, September 4, 2016.
"The U.S. Watches the U.K. Declare Its Independence," David M. Anderson, Frederick News Post, July 5, 2016.
David M. Anderson quoted on entering the Democratic primary in Maryland’s 8th Congressional District by Rachel Weiner, "New Candidate Enters Maryland Congressional Race" The Washington Post, August 5, 2015.
David M. Anderson quoted on running for office by John Fritze, "David Anderson to Enter 8th District Race" Baltimore Sun, August 5, 2015.
"Two Kinds of Leverage in Iran Deal," David M. Anderson (with ), The Baltimore Sun, December 24, 2013.
"Is Business Ethics Separate from Political Ethics?," David M. Anderson, Roll Call, January 8, 2009.
"Oversimplification of Capitalism Has Role in Crisis," David M. Anderson, The Hill, November 8, 2008.
"Replace Opinion Polls with Problem-Solving," David M. Anderson, The Baltimore Sun, November 18, 2002.
"Family Unity Act Needs – And Deserves – Sponsor," David M. Anderson, The Hill, February 8, 2000.
Publications
Leveraging: A Political, Economic, and Societal Framework (Edited Volume, Springer, 2014).
Introduces an explanatory and normative framework for a three part-concept of leveraging in the economy, politics, international relations, and family life.
"The Age of Leverage," Brookings Institution’s Issues in Governance Studies Series, October 31, 2010.
Argues that leveraging – bargaining, resource, and investment – is the dominant theme of our time, as a result of a range of causal factors, including the dismantling of the Cold War and the modern family and the rise of the information technology.
Youth04: Young Voters, the Internet, and Political Power (W.W. Norton, 2004).
Outlines a practical program for young people and politicians to develop relationships in both campaign and issue politics.
The Civic Web: Online Politics and Democratic Values (edited with ) (Rowman and Littlefield, 2003).
Presents one of the first anthologies of articles about the internet and civic engagement and political participation.
"Toward a Progressive Family Policy: The Family Unity Act" in Progressive Politics in the Global Age, edited by Henry Tam (Polity Press, 2001), 108-123.
Unites feminist and communitarian themes to support a national family policy that would provide paid parental leave, tax-credits for stay-at-home parents, and subsidized day care for middle-class families.
"Communitarian Approaches to the Economy" in Merits and Limits of Markets, edited by Herbert Giersch (Springer, 1998), 29-52.
Explains the communitarian and socio-economic arguments of Amitai Etzioni and contrasts this approach with some chief themes from the writings of William A. Galston and Michael Sandel.