In The News

Washington and the Argentine Default

R. Viswanathan August 29, 2014
Argentina wants to pay bondholders who agreed to a restructuring settlement and withhold full payment to a few holdouts, but a US judge ruled that all or none must be paid. “Argentina has now taken the matter to the International Court of Justice, complaining that the decision of the U.S. judiciary is arbitrary, abusive, and beyond its jurisdiction besides ignoring the sovereign immunity of...

Globalization's Old “Race to the Bottom” Finds Unlikely Winners

Kenneth Rapoza August 27, 2014
Globalization has oft been described as a race to the bottom, but as with any race, there is much jockeying for position. The nations in the lead may surprise some corporations and nations, suggests a report from the Boston Consulting Group. China is not necessarily the big winner as demonstrated by expanded auto production in the United Kingdom, and Mexico is emerging as an alternative...

Companies Fear Radical Turn in Argentina

Benedict Mander August 25, 2014
Argentina has defaulted on its bonds twice since 2001. The country had settled with most bondholders, but the terms of some loans required disputes settled in US courts. A US judge sided with the minority, ruling that Argentina could not avoid the holdouts. A defiant Argentina swiftly responded with a swap plan to continue paying most creditors, but not the holdouts. Foreign firms doing business...

How America’s Police Became an Army: The 1033 Program

Taylor Wofford August 15, 2014
The US devotes 23 percent of its budget to defense purposes and veterans benefits – more than the next 13 countries combined. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan cost $4 trillion alone. Even before the country pulled back from wars, the Department of Defense has distributed surplus equipment to willing takers, including allies and local police at home, many untrained: The weapons can fall into...

Banks Cash In on Inversion Deals Intended to Elude Taxes

Andrew Ross Sorkin August 6, 2014
Big investment banks are financing merger deals that encourage US corporations to relocate headquarters overseas to dodge US taxes. The banks anticipate “nearly $1 billion in fees over the last three years advising and persuading American companies to move the address of their headquarters abroad (without actually moving),” reports Andrew Ross Sorkin, editor of DealBook for the New York Times....

America Is Two Different Political Countries These Days

Chris Cillizza July 29, 2014
The United States, so severely polarized, is increasingly deemed as a less-than-reliable partner for the rest of the globe. However, Republican and Democrat voters are not uncertain and instead embrace the respective stances and leaders of their parties, explains Chris Cillizza for the Washington Post. “[W]e are increasingly moving toward two entirely separate Americas, a liberal one and a...

Illegal Immigration Illogic

Joseph Chamie July 22, 2014
Countries are torn over tough enforcement for immigrants who enter without authorization: employers welcome flexible, low-cost labor while workers and taxpayers resent competition over limited jobs and community resources. The influx of children crossing into the United States from Central American states with high poverty, unemployment and fertility rates underscores the problem for nations with...