John J. Pitney

Pitney was born in 1955, the son of a milkman and a homemaker.[2][3][4] He grew up on the west side of Saratoga Springs, New York, where his grandfather told him stories of local political corruption and he volunteered for Richard Nixon's 1968 presidential campaign.[3] He attended Union College, graduating in 1977 as co-valedictorian.[5] He received his doctorate in political science from Yale University in 1985; his dissertation focused on government handling of toxic waste.[5]

From 1978 to 1984, Pitney worked as a legislative assistant for three Republicans: New York state senator John R. Dunne, Alfonse D'Amato (R‑NY), and future vice president Dick Cheney (then R‑WY AL).[5]

In 1984, he joined the U.S. House Republican Research Committee as a senior domestic policy analyst.[5] In 1986, he joined the faculty of the government department at Claremont McKenna College (CMC).[5] From 1989 to 1991, he took a leave to serve as the deputy director and then acting director of the Republican National Committee's research department.[5]

Pitney is a frequently quoted and interviewed in the political media.[3]

He is also an expert on the politics of autism and wrote a book on the subject.[3]

Pitney was a loud critic of former president Donald Trump and renounced his membership in the Republican Party the night he was elected.[3][6]

• Connelly, William F.; Pitney, John J., Jr. (1994). Congress' Permanent Minority?: Republicans in the U.S. House. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-0-8226-3032-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• The Art of Political Warfare. University of Oklahoma Press. September 2001. ISBN 978-0-8061-3382-9.
• Ceaser, James W.; Busch, Andrew E.; Pitney, John J., Jr. (2009). Epic Journey: The 2008 Elections and American Politics. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4422-1144-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Bessette, Joseph M.; Pitney, John J. (2011). American Government and Politics: Deliberation, Democracy and Citizenship (2nd ed.). Belmont, Massachusetts: Wadsworth. ISBN 978-1133587897.
• Ceaser, James W.; Busch, Andrew E.; Pitney, John J., Jr. (2013). After Hope and Change The 2012 Elections and American Politics. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4422-4745-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Pitney, John J., Jr.; Levin, John-Clark (November 2013). Private Anti-Piracy Navies How Warships for Hire are Changing Maritime Security. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books. ISBN 978-0-7391-7332-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• The Politics of Autism: Navigating The Contested Spectrum. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. August 2015. ISBN 978-1-4422-4960-8.
• Un-American: The Fake Patriotism of Donald J. Trump. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. April 2020. ISBN 978-1-5381-2925-8.

Pitney is married and has two children.[3] His wife works for Disney.[3]

• Official website
• Claremont McKenna College faculty page