This course will explore major public policy issues and challenges facing American democracy that have been placed in stark relief by the COVID-19 pandemic, using the pandemic and related issues as a case study for exploring the issues. Each session will consider a different theme. We will draw heavily on insights from the COVID States Project, a monthly survey of all 50 states on attitudes and behaviors around COVID and various other issues that have arisen during the pandemic. Some candidate themes include (but are not necessarily limited to): public trust, public health infrastructure, health communication, partisan polarization, socio-economic inequality, racism, the urban-rural divide, executive leadership, misinformation, the proper role of federalism, fiscal policy during crises, and the mental health challenge. The course is predominantly focused on the US experience during the pandemic, though we will address some international aspects.