Norman Ornstein will deliver the fourth Docking Lecture in Leadership and Public Affairs at Southwestern College on Friday, Oct. 5.  The Docking Lecture will be in the Richardson Performing Arts Center at 11 a.m.  Previous Docking Lectures have been presented by Sen. Pat Roberts, NBC political correspondent Chuck Todd, and Professor Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia.

Norman Ornstein is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C.  He earned a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Michigan.  A noted scholar on Congress, elections, and campaign finance, Ornstein is co-author with Thomas Mann of the new book “It’s Even Worse Than It Looks:  How the American Constitutional System Collided With the New Politics of Extremism.”  He writes widely for both scholarly and popular publications and is a frequent commentator on American politics. His lecture at Southwestern will examine the sources of Washington’s current gridlock and the dangers it poses for the country.  Ornstein’s lecture “Dysfunctional Politics and the 2012 Elections: Where Do We Go From Here?” will be followed by questions from those in attendance.

Devices to assist those with hearing problems are available in the box office, and an area is reserved for handicapped patrons and their companions in the rear of the hall.

At 2 p.m. the same day the college will host the first Docking Symposium on Kansas Politics.  The event will be held in the Messenger Recital Hall in the Darbeth Fine Arts Center on the SC campus.  Speakers will be professor Burdett Loomis of the University of Kansas and professor Edward Flentje.  Loomis has published widely on interest group politics, campaign finance, and Kansas politics.  Flentje is co-author, with Joseph Aistrup, of the 2010 book “Kansas Politics and Government:  The Clash of Political Cultures.”  Both Loomis and Flentje will offer brief introductory remarks and will then engage with each other and with audience members in discussion about current issues in Kansas politics and the political culture of the state.

Both the Docking Lecture and the Docking Symposium are free and open to the public.

The Docking Lecture and Symposium are underwritten by Union State Bank and by William and Thomas Docking.  The Docking family has played a prominent role in Kansas government and politics for over half a century.  In 1956 George Docking was elected governor of Kansas.  He served two terms, leaving office in 1961.  His son, Robert Docking, was elected governor in 1966 and served four two-year terms, more than any other Kansas governor, leaving office in 1975.  Robert Docking’s sons have continued the family’s commitment to public service.  William Docking was appointed to the Kansas Higher Education Board of Regents in 1995, and served as its chair.  Thomas Docking was lieutenant governor of Kansas from 1983 to 1987, during the governorship of John Carlin.

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