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. There is scant evidence that there are many if any Republicans on campus and even when donations are made they pale in comparison to what the Democrats receive.
And why don’t the Republicans receive more donations besides the fact that there numbers at Princeton are few? How about intense political pressure and the possibility of being denied tenure if you support the wrong cause?
In an era of increasing political correctness it’s not as far fetched as it sounds.
Don Irvine is the chairman of both Accuracy in Media and Accuracy in Academia.
