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Photograph of Jeffrey Crouch

Jeffrey Crouch Assistant Professor Washington Semester

Degrees
B.A., Hope College
J.D., University of Michigan Law School
Ph.D., The Catholic University of America

Bio
Areas of Expertise: Federal Executive Clemency/Presidential Pardons
Dr. Jeffrey Crouch is an assistant professor of American politics at American University. He is an expert on federal executive clemency, or the presidential pardon power. Dr. Crouch's commentary on pardons appears in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Atlantic, the Los Angeles Times, Politico, NBC News, Newsweek, The Hill, and other media outlets. He is also Editor of Congress & the Presidency journal, Co-Editor of the Congressional Leaders book series for the University Press of Kansas, and a Fellow at the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies (CCPS). The University Press of Kansas has published all three of his books: The Presidential Pardon Power; The Unitary Executive Theory: A Danger to Constitutional Government (co-authored with Mark J. Rozell and Mitchel A. Sollenberger); and Newt Gingrich: The Rise and Fall of a Party Entrepreneur (co-authored with Matthew N. Green). Among the many courses that Dr. Crouch has taught are The U.S. Presidency, The Presidency and the Executive Branch, and Presidential Scandals.
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Teaching

Fall 2024

  • CORE-107 Complex Problems Seminar: Presidential Scandals

  • WSEM-050 Topics in Washington DC: Presidential Elections

  • WSEM-050 Topics in Washington DC: U.S. Presidency

Spring 2025

  • GOVT-320 The Presidency

  • WSEM-050 Topics in Washington DC: U.S. Presidency

Scholarly, Creative & Professional Activities

Selected Publications

BOOKS

Green, Matthew N. and Jeffrey Crouch. 2022. . Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.

Crouch, Jeffrey, Mark J. Rozell and Mitchel A. Sollenberger. 2020. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2009. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.

POLITICAL SCIENCE JOURNAL ARTICLES

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2022. "The Law: President Trump's Clemency Record: Extraordinary or Just Ordinary?" Presidential Studies Quarterly52 (3): 692-708.

Crouch, Jeffrey, Mark J. Rozell and Mitchel A. Sollenberger. 2017. “The Law: The Unitary Executive Theory and President Donald J. Trump.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 47 (3): 561-573.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2015. “The Law: Barack Obama and the Clemency Power: Real Reform on the Way?” Presidential Studies Quarterly 45 (4): 778-795.

Crouch, Jeffrey, Mark J. Rozell and Mitchel A. Sollenberger. 2013. “The Law: President Obama’s Signing Statements and the Expansion of Executive Power.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 43 (4): 883-899.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2011. “The Toussie Pardon, ‘Unpardon,’ and the Abdication of Responsibility in Clemency Cases.” Congress & the Presidency 38 (1): 77-100.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2008. “The Law: Presidential Misuse of the Pardon Power.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 38 (4): 722-734.

LAW REVIEW ARTICLES

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2021. "The Office of the Pardon Attorney: What Comes Next?" Federal Sentencing Reporter33 (5): 337-340.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2016. “The President and the Pardon Power: A Bibliographic Essay, 1989-2015.” University of St. Thomas Law Journal 12 (3): 413-445.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2012. “The President’s Power to Commute: Is It Still Relevant?” University of St. Thomas Law Journal 9 (3): 681-697.

BOOK CHAPTERS (SINCE 2015)

Crouch, Jeffrey and Mark J. Rozell. 2021. "Presidential Statesmanship in the New Media Era." In American Statesmanship: Principles and Practice of Leadership. Joseph R. Fornieri, Kenneth L. Deutsch and Sean D. Sutton, Eds. Notre Dame, IN: Notre Dame Press, 699-719.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2020. “Resolved, Congress Should Have the Power to Override a Presidential Pardon By a Two-Thirds Majority Vote of Both Houses.” “Con” Essay. In Debating the Presidency: Conflicting Perspectives on the American Executive, 5th Ed. Richard J. Ellis and Michael Nelson, Eds. Thousand Oaks, CA: CQ Press/Sage Publications, 205-222 (includes Sharece Thrower's "Pro" Essay).

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2019. “President Donald J. Trump and the Clemency Power: Is Claiming ‘Unfair’ Treatment for Pardon Recipients the New ‘Fake News’”? In Presidential Leadership and the Trump Presidency: Executive Power and Democratic Government. Charles M. Lamb and Jacob R. Neiheisel, Eds. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 91-120.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2016. “Gerald Ford and the Constitution.” In The Presidents and the Constitution: A Living History. Ken Gormley, Ed. New York, NY: NYU Press, 507-520.

Crouch, Jeffrey and Elise Tollefson. 2015. “President Jimmy Carter and the Press.” In A Companion to Gerald R. Ford and Jimmy Carter. V.S. Kaufman, Ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell, 364-378.

Crouch, Jeffrey. 2015. “Pardons and Politics.” In Encyclopedia of American Political Culture, Volume 3. Michael Shally-Jensen, Ed. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 775-779.

OP-EDS (SINCE 2017)

Crouch, Jeffrey. September 15, 2023. Newsweek.

Crouch, Jeffrey. August 2, 2023. Newsweek.

Crouch, Jeffrey. September 5, 2022. Ford Leadership Forum, Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.

Green, Matthew and Jeffrey Crouch. August 22, 2022. The Hill.

Crouch, Jeffrey. January 20, 2021. Washington Post.

Crouch, Jeffrey, Mark J. Rozell and Mitchel A. Sollenberger. January 20, 2021. The Hill.

Crouch, Jeffrey. January 12, 2021. Newsweek.

Crouch, Jeffrey. December 3, 2020. NBC News.

Crouch, Jeffrey. November 24, 2020. Newsweek.

Crouch, Jeffrey. November 6, 2020. The Hill.

Crouch, Jeffrey. June 11, 2020. The Hill.

Crouch, Jeffrey. February 21, 2020. The Atlantic.

Crouch, Jeffrey. August 28, 2017. Los Angeles Times.

Crouch, Jeffrey. August 23, 2017. The Hill.

Crouch, Jeffrey. July 27, 2017. Take Care Blog.

Crouch, Jeffrey. July 23, 2017. The Hill.

Crouch, Jeffrey. February 1, 2017. University Press of Kansas Blog.

MEDIA APPEARANCES (SINCE 2023)

Bekiempis, Victoria. November 12, 2024. Vulture.

Cohen, Marshall, Donie O'Sullivan and Curt Devine. November 12, 2024. CNN.

Barber, C. Ryan, Sadie Gurman and Corinne Ramey. November 7, 2024.Wall Street Journal.

Lewinski, John Scott. October 25, 2024.Washington Examiner.

Lotz, Avery. July 13, 2024. Axios.

Cercone, Jeff and Louis Jacobson. June 11, 2024. PolitiFact.

O'Neill, Madeleine. May 1, 2024. Baltimore Sun.

Contorno, Steve. March 21, 2024. CNN.

Rabinowitz, Hannah and Holmes Lybrand. January 6, 2024. CNN.

Dreisbach, Tom and Noah Caldwell. January 4, 2024. NPR.

Reinhard, Beth, Manuel Roig-Franzia and Clara Ence Morse. December 2, 2023. Washington Post.

Farley, Robert and D'Angelo Gore. September 20, 2023. FactCheck.org.

Commander, Anna and Nicholas Mordowanec. September 14, 2023. Newsweek.

Murphy, Kate. June 22, 2023. Yahoo News.

Jacobson, Louis. June 20, 2023. PolitiFact.

Watson, Kathryn. June 18, 2023. CBS News.

Davis, Susan. June 14, 2023. NPR.

Mordock, Jeff. June 13, 2023. Washington Times.

Boyer, David. June 10, 2023. Washington Times.

AU Experts

Area of Expertise

Federal executive clemency/presidential pardons

Additional Information

Jeffrey Crouch is an assistant professor of American politics in American University’s School of Professional & Extended Studies. He is the Editor of Congress & the Presidency journal. His first book, The Presidential Pardon Power, was published by the University Press of Kansas in 2009. Prof. Crouch’s research focuses primarily on federal executive clemency, also known as the presidential pardon power. He has taught the American Presidency, the Presidency and the Executive Branch, and Law and the Political System, among other courses.

For the Media

To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

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