HE SAID WHAT?! GROUP THREAT AND EXPLICIT RACIAL RHETORIC IN AMERICAN POLITICS Leah R. Christiani A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Political Science. Chapel Hill 2020 Approved by: Frank R. Baumgartner Timothy J. Ryan Candis W. Smith James Stimson Ismail White