Newswise — What: American University professors are available to discuss the tariffs and the ongoing trade war, and their political ramifications. 

When: April 7, 2025 – ongoing  

Where: On campus, in-studio, virtual 

Background: American University experts who are available for interviews: 

Dr. W. Joseph Campbell is a professor emeritus at the School of Communication. He joined the AU faculty in 1997, after 20 years as a professional journalist. Assignments in his award-winning journalism career took him across North America to Europe, West Africa, and parts of Asia. Campbell is the author of seven books, including most recently Lost in a Gallup: Polling Failure in U.S. Presidential Elections. His media-myth busting book, Getting It Wrong (2010, 2017), won the national Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi award for research about journalism. Campbell has taught 19 different courses at AU and is a past recipient of the Morton Bender Prize (which recognizes scholarly achievement by an associate professor) and Faculty Member of the Year award. Campbell also has written for a variety of scholarly and trade journals and has lectured at the Library of Congress, the National Press Club, and the Newseum. He is available to comment on the political ramifications of the tariffs and trade war. 

Matthew Foster is a professorial lecturer of government at the School of Public Affairs. His research focuses on campaigns and voting behavior both domestically and internationally. He is available to discuss issues related to US and foreign politics, in addition to political campaigns, polling, voter attitudes, and campaign finance and fundraising. He has contributed insight to numerous media outlets, including CBS News, AFP, The Hill, and The Baltimore Sun. 

Thomas Kahn is a Distinguished Faculty Fellow and adjunct professorial lecturer at AU’s Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies. Prof. Kahn worked in Congress for 33 years and is the longest serving staff director in history for the House Budget Committee—20 years. He also held senior posts for two other House Committees. While at the Budget Committee, he played a critical role on the following budget negotiations: Simpson/Bowles, the Biden talks, the Super Committee, the successful Balanced Budget agreement of 1997 and the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. 

Robert Koopman is Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer and Distinguished Practitioner in Residence in the School of International Service. Prior to joining AU, Prof. Koopman served as Chief Economist and the Director of the Economic Research and Statistics Division of the World Trade Organization (WTO). He is available to comment on the short term and long-term economic effects on the US and partner countries, as well as on the impact on economic agreements such as FTAs and the WTO.  

Garret Martin is the co-director of the Transatlantic Policy Center at American University. He has written widely on transatlantic relations and Europe, security, U.S. foreign policy, NATO, European politics, and European foreign policy and defense. He is a frequent media commentator, providing analysis and interviews, among others, to NPR, the BBC, CNN, Voice of America, and USA Today. Prof. Martin is available to discuss the security and foreign policy implications of the tariffs, especially for transatlantic relations. 

Ayman Omar is associate dean for Graduate Programs and Student Services at the Kogod School of Business. His research interests focus on global supply chain management, specifically targeting areas such as supply chain integration and responsiveness, cyber risks in global supply chains, and sustainability in global supply chains. Prior to receiving his Ph.D., Prof Omar worked in the oil industry and conducted several consulting projects for a wide range of corporations including many Fortune 100 companies as well as small privately owned firms. He is available to discuss how tariffs will disrupt the supply chain. 

Kara Reynolds is a professor in the College of Arts and Sciences and chair of the Department of Economics, where her research interests include the political economy of trade protection, particularly antidumping protection, and the impact of trade liberalization on workers and firms. She joined American University in 2003 after completing her PhD at the University of Virginia, and she has taught courses on microeconomics, international economics and communicating economics. Dr. Reynolds received the Harry Johnson Prize for the Best Article in the Canadian Journal of Economics for The Returns from Rent-Seeking: Campaign Contributions, Firm Subsidies, and the Byrd Amendment, has been published by publications including the European Economic Journal, World Trade Review, and World Economy. Prof. Reynolds is available to discuss how tariffs work and how they will impact the U.S. economy. 

Michael Stanaitis is a senior professorial lecturer in the School of International Service. His research focuses on political economy, human rights, and the future of global order.  Prof. Stanaitis is an expert on trade and tariff policy. He has developed an innovative  for understanding Trump Tariffs 2.0, which he has highlighted in a  for The Daily Conversation and which will be featured of his forthcoming publication in the Texas International Law Journal.  Prof. Stanaitis has been quoted by numerous media outlets, including , , and .  He is available to discuss his framework, Trump's tariffs, and the implications of US trade policy for international trade openness, government finance, and global order. 

Filippo Trevisan is associate dean for Faculty Affairs and associate professor of Public Communication at American University's School of Communication. His research examines how political organizations use media to reach, activate, and organize people, especially those from traditionally marginalized and disenfranchised backgrounds. His work has focused on multiple countries including the U.S., the UK, Australia, and Italy. Prior to completing his PhD at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, he was a reporter at the English desk of Italy's largest private news agency in Rome. His research has been published in journals such as New Media & Society; the Journal of Communication; Information, Communication and Society; the International Journal of Communication; Social Media & Society; the Journal of Information Technology and Politics; and Disability and Society. He has been interviewed, among others, by the New York Times, the Washington Post, the BBC, Al-Jazeera, Germany's DW and ZDF, Italy's Corriere della Sera and RAI - Radiotelevisione Italiana. Prof. Trevisan is available to discuss U.S. and E.U relations, as well as the political impacts of the trade war. 

Amb. Earl Anthony Wayne is Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer and Distinguished Diplomat-in-Residence. In addition to his role at AU, Wayne is a Public Policy Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and Co-Chair of its Mexico Institute Advisory Board. He is a member of the Board of the Public Diplomacy Council of America. Amb. Wayne is a Senior Non-Resident Adviser at the Atlantic Council and at the Center for Security and International Studies. He served as a U.S. diplomat from 1975 to 2015, including as Ambassador to Argentina (2006-2009), Coordinating Director for Development and Economic Affairs and Deputy Ambassador in Kabul, Afghanistan (2009-2011), and Ambassador to Mexico (2011-15). He was Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs (EB) under three Secretaries of State (2000-2006) and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe (1997-2000). The U.S. Senate confirmed him as a Career Ambassador, the highest rank in the US Foreign Service, in 2010. Ambassador Wayne can discuss the current state of play in US disputes with Mexico and Canada as well as with others.  

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