On May 22, 2015, the U.S. Senate passed the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act, better known as Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), by a vote of 62–37. At the same time—and in the same vote—the Senate passed the Trade Adjustment Assistance Enhancement Act (TAA). The bills were passed, respectively, as Title 1 and Title 2 of H.R. 1314, or the “Trade Act of 2015.”(1)
Given its diverse cultural, linguistic and religious mosaic, nationalism is always lurking beneath the surface in Asia. The competition for natural resources has only exacerbated the tendency for nationalist sentiment to emerge, threatening the concept of Pan Asianism. Natural resource nationalism is evident in a variety of countries and has manifest itself in a number of ways, ranging from more restrictive foreign investment and trade policies, to militarism.
The last several months have been a turbulent time for President Enrique Peña Nieto. Perceptions of a lack of urgency on the part of the federal administration following the disappearance of dozens of students in the state of Guerrero in September 2014, and evidence that police and political figures affiliated with the governing PRI colluded with drug gangs to murder the students have sent the president’s approval rating tumbling since mid-2014.
The grand coalition of the Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right CDU/CSU and the center-left SPD has been troubled by internal disagreements, but there is little chance that either the Merkel’s bloc or the Social Democrats might force an early election. The results of state elections held since the government was formed after the 2013 elections have highlighted a growing tide of euroskepticiscm.
The surprise announcement by President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raúl Castro of an agreement to pursue the normalization of relations has significant positive implications for Cuba’s risk profile. However, policy changes unveiled by Obama in mid-December 2014 do not include a near-term lifting of the trade embargo that has been in place for more than five decades, which will require congressional approval.
The Founding Fathers of the United States warned against the perils of dynastic succession in American politics. In 1786, Thomas Jefferson wrote to George Washington that "... a hereditary aristocracy will change the form of our Government from the best to the worst in the world." At that time, he called ancestral political rule a "scourge" that had condemned the overwhelming majority of France to a "cursed existence."
China’s gradual political, economic and military rise continues to be a primary focus among many decision making bodies throughout Asia and beyond. But often lost in the discussion is India, its strategic objectives, its political influence in Asia and the world. As India continues to gain its footing on the global stage, it continues to revise the manner in which it approaches bilateral, regional and international relations.
On March 2nd, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission. In simple terms, the case is about who has the authority to control political redistricting in the states — the state legislature or an independent commission. In even simpler terms, the case is about legislative entitlement — in this case, the entitlement to gerrymander.
A snap parliamentary election will be held on March 17, triggered by the collapse of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ideologically eclectic coalition less than halfway through its four-year mandate. The political marriage in which Netanyahu’s center-right Likud teamed up with both moderate nationalists and staunch right-wingers was troubled from the start by disagreements over budget issues, and was left weakened in the aftermath of a 50-day military operation in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.
Tip O’Neill, former politician and Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1977 through 1987, coined the phrase “all politics is local.” This belief, which encapsulates the principle that a politician's success is directly tied to his or her ability to satisfy the needs of local constituents, is still repeated in the halls of the U.S. Capitol. But politics may be the only thing that’s still local.
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