BLOG Post #215: On Dealing with China 18 Sep 201826 Sep 2018 (Note: A slightly different version of this article has been published as "The China Conundrum" at https://www.chinausfocus.com/foreign-policy/the-china-conundrum.) A Self-Confident China Ever since China’s economic reforms began in 1978, the goal…
APB Another Week Under Trumpocracy 21 Aug 201820 Aug 2018 Some takeaways from another week under He Who Would Be Emperor: “All politics is local.” Speaking to local issues rather than echoing the official mantra may be the only way…
BLOG Post #214: Saving Democracy 15 Aug 2018 Writing on democracy, I’m reminded of a great old Stevie Wonder song, “Love’s In Need of Love Today.” Democracy is in need of love today: It is taking a beating…
BLOG Post #212: Some Dare Call It Treason 19 Jul 201819 Jul 2018 Is Donald Trump not merely gullible, uninformed, and indifferent but actually treasonous when it comes to Russia? More and more high-profile people are saying so. He’s acting like “a Russian…
BLOG Post #151: Trump, Europe, and Chaos 20 Feb 201727 Feb 2017 Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of Defense James Mattis went to the Munich Security Conference with reassurances about the US commitment to NATO. But their visit was anything but…
BLOG Post #150: The Honeymoon is Over 14 Feb 201727 Feb 2017 President Trump is often depicted as “unconventional” and his actions “unprecedented.” But his novelty exposes him and his administration to closer scrutiny than any previous presidency. Turns out the emperor…
BLOG Post #146: How to Make Enemies 26 Jan 201727 Feb 2017 About two weeks ago I wrote a blog, “Unfit to Command,” which argues that Donald Trump lacks the temperament, intelligence, and leadership qualities to be in charge of US…
American Politics and the World… Post #144: Donald Trump’s Lies and Team Trump’s Headaches 19 Jan 201727 Feb 2017 We are all aware that Donald Trump lies—repeatedly, and without remorse. That is outrageous enough; but equally outrageous is the insistence of some of his handlers that truth no longer…
BLOG… Post #136: The Trump Team: Loyal and Dangerous 15 Nov 201627 Feb 2017 Personnel appointments provide a useful glimpse into what policy will be. Senior-level appointees are the policy shapers, and from what we have seen thus far, we are right to have…
American Politics and the World… Post #135: Our Worst Nightmare Has Come to Pass 9 Nov 201627 Feb 2017 The American people voted for Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump by nearly 800,000 votes.* But Trump was right: the system is rigged, meaning that thanks to our outdated and illogical…
American Politics and the World… Post #133: Left Unsaid at the Third Debate 21 Oct 201627 Feb 2017 Donald Trump waited one day before delivering the punch line to his sad joke, “I will keep you in suspense” about respecting the election results. “Unless I win,” he said…
American Politics and the World… Post #131: The Final Days of Donald Trump 9 Oct 201627 Feb 2017 Heading Into the Second Debate Until a few weeks ago, historians of the US presidency were fixed on Donald Trump’s meteoric and unpredictable rise. Now they will have to focus…
American Politics and the World… Post #130: Notes from the First Debate 28 Sep 201627 Feb 2017 Now that a few days have passed since the first Clinton-Trump debate, I want to offer a few evaluations. Prior to the debate, pundits said that Trump needed to moderate…
BLOG… Post #129: Carrots or Sticks? Addressing North Korea’s Fifth Nuclear Test 20 Sep 201627 Feb 2017 As many experts predicted, North Korea (DPRK) followed another ballistic missile test with its fifth nuclear-weapon test on September 9. The event continues a pattern of testing increasingly sophisticated weapons…
American Politics and the World… Post #118: Cowgirl Diplomacy? Foreign Policy Under Hillary Clinton 24 May 201627 Feb 2017 America’s mainstream media, ever attracted to the splashy rather than the serious, has a new topic to occupy the time until Election Day: President Trump. What will he do first? …
