Ornstein (top) and Mann

Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein, both noteworthy scholars and political commentators, will present a coversation as part of the Mary Elizabeth Babcock Lecturship in the American Conservative Tradition at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 2, in Denison University’s Herrick Hall (500 West Loop). The two Washington insiders will share their insights on the upcoming presidential election, addressing both the conservative and liberal point of view in a program titled “Two Sides: One Election. Perspectives on the 2008 Election.” The event is free and open to the public.

A noted congressional scholar, Mann writes and speaks widely on issues related to campaigns, elections and the effectiveness of Congress. He has conducted polls for congressional candidates and has overseen national public opinion studies. Mann recently co-authored “The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How to Get it Back on Track.”

Ornstein is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, a private, non-partisan, not-for-profit institution dedicated to research and education on issues of government, politics, economics and social welfare. Ornstein frequently contributes commentary about the election cycles to CBS News, The Washington Post and The New York Times.

The late Mary Elizabeth Babcock, a Denison alumna and Johnstown (Ohio) philanthropist, endowed the Babcock Lectureship to “bring prominent conservative speakers to campus and thus interpret the genesis, the philosophical undergirding and policy manifestations of the American conservative heritage.”