Tim Talks Politics - The Weekly Brief, September 28, 2018
The Weekly Brief - September 28, 2018
Seeing the Person Behind the Mask
If you did not watch the testimonies of Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh yesterday, you should absolutely read the transcripts of their respective statements.
Both are powerful, emotional and profoundly human. Read them, reflect on them, and then say a prayer for them… and the rest of us.
Kavanaugh and Consequences
Much of the commentary on the hearings yesterday was pretty much rehashing what have become entrenched ideological positions. Now, attention shifts to considering the consequences.
With enthusiasm running high for the coming midterms, it’s easy to draw a line from the Kavanaugh hearings to potential election reverberations.
More concretely, the Supreme Court granted certiorari to five cases that could be first evaluated by Kavanaugh should his nomination win through. Politico takes a historical perspective and speculates on the long term consequences for the Democrats should they continue what appears to be a strategy of weaponizing the judiciary and confirmation hearings.
“In the Red Corner….”
As the trade war with China intensifies with Beijing exiting trade talks seeking to repair the breach, more attention is now being paid to China as a contender for control of the international system.
That attention is seeking to ask questions regarding the continued growth of China (Hoover Institution suggests a premature peak); the growing authoritarianism that oppresses minorities; demographic challenges; and future security cooperation with Russia.
Taken together, each of these stories points to individual challenges to the development of Chinese power vis a vis the US and the rest of the world. That China is seeking to challenge America for leadership on the world stage would seem beyond doubt, but what is doubtful is the possibility of a successful challenge.
The Middle Class FTW
Huge news coming out of the Brookings Instituted this week: More than half of the world’s population now qualifies as middle class or rich. The authors of the study say this is the first time something like this has occurred since the agricultural revolution. The social magnitude of such a global achievement is hard to understate as it indicates that social-economic mobility is moving upwards, not downwards.
These findings are in contrast to the more muted tone of pessimism in the American middle class of late, but some recent research could shed light on that: middle class norms in the US may contribute to downward mobility.
Trump and the UN
Donald Trump attended the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York this week, where much was made over the audible laughter that accompanied his opening lines. However, that reportage left much of the rest of Trump’s General Assembly speech unreported, something The Federalist points out is not just unfair, but irresponsible.
AEI presents a more balanced commentary on Trump’s speech with a list of things Trump got both right and wrong.
And common to this annual event Providence Magazine takes the opportunity of the UNGA meeting to consider the ongoing relevance of the institution.
Ahead of the UNGA meeting, Trump had indicated that he’d be willing to reengage in talks with Iran over its nuclear missile program. However, no such meeting occurred. Al-Monitor indicates that this may, in part, be due to Iran itself being divided over whether to to engage in such talks.
Revisiting “Old” Stories
Several news stories that the Weekly Brief has discussed over the last several months require an update:
A year after their entry into the German Bundestag, the far right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has apparently succeeded in changing the rules of debate in the German parliament as the leading opposition party. So what does the future hold? Der Spiegel unpacks that question by looking at AfD’s ongoing grassroots efforts.
In the Middle East, a tenuous cease fire in Idlib seems to be holding, and Iraq appears to have settled its constitutional crisis with a newly agreed upon government. However, the tragic war in Yemen continues unabated, evermore complex.