In The News

Kim Hjelmgaard December 20, 2019
The House of Representatives voted to impeach Trump on two articles, abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Only one Republican congressional representative has criticized Trump’s behavior and he left the party. Otherwise, all Republicans in the House opposed impeachment. Removing the president requires 67 votes in a Senate. The Republican majority probably will not convict Trump. Hence,...
Nayan Chanda December 18, 2019
US President Donald Trump seeks partners in his push to rebalance global trade, reduce global agreements with environmental and other constraints, and build US influence based on power rather than cooperative alliances. He views the UK’s Boris Johnson as a likeminded leader, after an overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections all but ensures Britain’s speedy exit from the European Union....
Teddy Ng December 12, 2019
Candidates who support democratic rights for Hong Kong swept district elections in November, and protesters continue to remind the government about their expectations. More than 800,000 marched on December 8. China wants to bring Hong Kong under its control and blames foreign interference, with diplomats expressing frustration. The Chinese vice foreign minister spoke at a human rights forum: “...
Jeffrey Gettleman and Suhasini Raj December 12, 2019
India’s parliament has approved a Citizenship Amendment Bill, expected to be signed into law soon.The bill “uses religion as a criterion for determining whether illegal migrants in India can be fast-tracked for citizenship” and “favors members of all South Asia’s major religions except Islam,” reports the New York Times. Muslim leaders regard the measure as discrimination; up to 15 percent of the...
Craig Whitlock December 9, 2019
The war in Afghanistan has been underway since 2001, and confidential documents suggest that US officials hid evidence that the longest war in US history was unwinnable, reports Craig Whitlock for the Washington Post. Those documents entitled "Lessons Learned" were obtained after a three-year legal battle and include assessments from generals, diplomats, aid workers and Afghan officials...
Kate O’Neill December 5, 2019
China once accepted half the world’s plastic trash, and recycled much of that. Increased waste and sloppy cleaning encouraged China and other Asian nations to reject massive shipments from wealthy nations. “Until recently, these countries had been guilty of ‘distancing’, the practice of shifting waste ‘out of sight, out of mind’, both literally and in people’s imaginations,” explains Kate O’...
Philip Ewing December 5, 2019
Constitutional law experts offered context on the impeachment inquiry that investigates the Trump administration’s delay in distributing congressionally approved military aid to Ukraine while requesting that country’s president to announce investigations of a political rival. Donald Trump and his supporters deny there was pressure. Three professors testified about holding deep concern over the...