Republicans have solidified their control of Washington by retaining control of the House of Representatives. President-elect Donald Trump’s overwhelming victory in the presidential race, coupled with GOP control of the […]

The post Breaking: Republicans Retain Control Over House of Representatives, Handing Trump the Keys to His Agenda appeared first on The Western Journal.

National security and transatlantic unity top Biden’s agenda Expert comment NCapeling 1 February 2023

The timing of the State of the Union address is significant as Joe Biden tries to maintain focus on Ukraine and China while navigating partisanship at home.

Although primarily a domestic affair, the president’s remarks in the annual State of the Union (SOTU) telegraph the US’s foreign policy priorities to the rest of the world. They reveal the prism through which the US understands its national security and its role in the world.

The 2023 address comes as the first anniversary of the Ukraine invasion rapidly approaches, and the US is also trying to build international support for tough economic measures towards China. Domestically, Republican control of the House of Representatives will exert new pressure on US foreign policy choices. Electoral pressures are also around the corner and Joe Biden should announce soon whether he plans to run for president in 2024.

Alliances and partnerships are a driving force for Biden. As pressure to end the war in Ukraine intensifies, maintaining transatlantic unity on Ukraine will be a key priority for the president. And as US electoral politics rise to the fore, ensuring the visibility of Europe’s role as a security provider in its own backyard will be essential.

For a US president who sees China and the Indo-Pacific as America’s most significant long-term geopolitical challenge – and the only peer competitor to the US – transatlantic unity on China will also come under pressure.

Ukraine, China, and controlling domestic division

Republican leaders who now chair key committees in the House of Representatives continue to signal support for Ukraine, and polling shows a majority of US public opinion (54 per cent) favours sending either weapons or air defence systems.

But recent polls also reveal a growing gap between Democrat and Republican supporters with a slight majority of Republicans (52 per cent) now opposing further support for Ukraine.

Biden’s ability to demonstrate that America and its European partners remain unified in their policy towards Ukraine and Russia will help him ward off partisanship at home. Congressional approval of $45 billion for Ukraine in its end of year spending budget will help the president remain above the fray of partisan politics for now. But if there is an absence of clear signs Ukraine is succeeding in its war aims, the challenge of maintaining domestic support could become more difficult.

A greater US focus on China, India, and on the Indo-Pacific in 2023 is also likely. Bipartisanship is strong on China, Republicans are more singular and hawkish in their approach to China than the US president, and the public support tough measures. At a time of war in Europe, the president will place great emphasis on the need to maintain transatlantic unity and to work with a broader coalition of partners in the Indo-Pacific.

The groundwork for focus on China has already been laid. Throughout 2022, the Biden administration worked steadily, but quietly, to set out its China policy. Just before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the US released its new US-Indo Pacific Strategy stressing regional partnerships – especially the Quad and ASEAN – and it’s determination to shape essential norms for the region.

It stated boldly – albeit in a document which was largely unnoticed – that the objective is not to change China but to ‘shape the strategic environment in which it operates’, a policy which signifies a clear departure from the more ideological approach pursued by the US during Donald Trump’s final year in office. And in May, the US announced its economic strategy for the region, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.

Now the terrain for competition with China and alignment with US partners and allies is heavily focused on technology and the daylight between national security and economic strategy in US China policy is rapidly disappearing. Biden’s policy focus of ‘invest (at home), align (with allies and partners), and compete (with China)’ has overshadowed earlier talk of cooperation between the US and China.

But as China opens its doors and Europe looks to bolster its economies, the US will have to work far harder to maintain transatlantic unity. Japan and the Netherlands embracing the US adoption of export controls on semiconductor chips is a positive sign, but the US’s economic strategy towards China may present harder choices to come for Europe. If China leans into its diplomacy, the pressure on transatlantic unity will also grow.

The new US Congress will only sharpen the president’s tough stance on China. Some Republican leaders still deny climate change and have demonstrated little interest in cooperating with China on debt relief for developing countries. The prospects for addressing critical global challenges appear dim without China’s collaboration, and the UK and Europe should work with the US president and Congress to correct this.

President Biden has clearly recognized that diplomacy will be critical in the months ahead. At a time of growing tensions, the potential for misperceptions or misunderstandings to create conflict will also increase, and so a US – and also European – commitment to broadening and deepening diplomacy with China is urgent but it also needs to be patient and sustained.

A new American industrial policy?

Those listening carefully to the State of the Union and who have followed US policy will also note the unchallenged hegemony of neoliberalism is rapidly vanishing. The American state appeared to be disturbingly absent in the early months of the US pandemic response – but now it is back and, in a surprising turn of events, is being cast as a solution not a problem.

Expert

Moving Food up the Political Agenda 14 December 2020 — 3:00PM TO 4:30PM Anonymous (not verified) 8 December 2020 Online

How can food system transformation be woven into high level biodiversity, nutrition and climate forums in 2021?

Adverse impacts on food security are expected to worsen as global temperatures continue to rise. As well as feeling the impacts of climate change, food systems drive it in a number of ways. Not only do food systems contribute more to greenhouse gas emissions than any other parts of our lives, they are also the leading driver of biodiversity loss, the largest cause of deforestation and occupy the most land globally.

On our current trajectory, 1.5°C of warming could become a reality in the next 5-10 years. Transforming food systems to meet climate, biodiversity and food security goals is crucial. If left to continue, food alone could take us over 1.5°C this century – even with maximum efforts in the energy sector.

Unprecedented levels of action to transform food systems is required over the next decade. The coming year is described as a ‘super year’ given the numerous high-level global events taking place that cover climate, biodiversity and food security. The year ahead has also been identified as the final opportunity to bring global commitments in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

What can be achieved in the super year? How can food system transformation be woven into high level biodiversity, nutrition and climate forums during the super year? How can momentum from the super year be built upon, to ensure meaningful action is taken over the next decade?

Economic Recovery and Anticorruption in South Africa: Assessing Progress on the Reform Agenda 4 December 2019 — 3:00PM TO 4:00PM Anonymous (not verified) 25 November 2019 Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE

South Africa has significant economic potential based on its resource endowment, quality human capital and well-developed infrastructure compared to the region. However, the country’s economic growth rate has not topped 2 per cent since 2013, and in 2018, was below 1 per cent. This has put a strain on citizens and communities in a country that still suffers from structural inequality, poverty and high unemployment. Economic recovery and anti-corruption were the central pillars of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2019 electoral campaign and he has set an investment target of $100 billion. However, voters and investors alike are demanding faster and more visible progress from the country’s enigmatic leader who has a reputation for caution and calculation.

At this event, Professor Nick Binedell will discuss the progress of and opposition to the president’s economic reform agenda and the opportunities for international investment to support long term inclusive and sustainable growth in South Africa.

Attendance at this event is by invitation only.

The [...]

Mr Chairman,

I wish to convey, through you, to the Committee on Fisheries, the considered views of the FAO Secretariat on the item on the proposed Fisheries University.  

So far, the [...]

Across Canada, there’s a growing number of political leaders proposing to force people into treatment for drug addiction, despite inconclusive evidence about its effectiveness.

World's largest annual 3D CAD event will feature special guest Steve Wozniak this year

Marc Tucker looks at what the world's top performers tell us about the school choice agenda likely to be pursued by President Trump and his Education Secretary nominee Betsy DeVos.

Argentina’s copper and lithium projects are rich in opportunities for Australian mining equipment, technology and services providers.

[African Development Bank (AfDB)] The world's largest annual climate conference opens in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Monday, with African nations ramping up efforts to tackle climate change. At COP29, the African Development Bank aims to mobilize additional resources for climate action in Africa and launch a bold new approach to assessing African economies by including their "green wealth."

RFK Jr., a lawyer-politician, could replace lawyer-politician Xavier Becerra as Secretary of Health and Human  Services. Or RFK Jr could be the next Secretary of Agriculture, replacing  Tom Vilsack, a lawyer. Deputy FDA Commissioners are sometimes lawyers. Dr. Robert Califf, a cardiologist, is the outgoing FDA Commissioner. The fact that... Continue Reading

Among the topics INVEST will highlight are AI in life sciences, the investor perspective in healthcare and strategic priorities for hospitals.

The post A Sneak Peek of INVEST 2025 Agenda appeared first on MedCity News.

Faulty diagnostic tests can compromise both patient care and the nation’s response to infectious diseases—as made all too clear earlier this month when the Food and Drug Administration issued a safety alert about a COVID-19 test that carries a high risk of false negative results.

Jun 30, 2022

The Learning Agenda is an unprecedented effort by the Department to institutionalize evidence-based learning and implement the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (“Evidence Act”). The Evidence Act requires federal agencies to develop a “learning agenda” – a systematic plan to answer a set of policy-relevant questions critical to achieving the agency’s strategic objectives. It will guide the Department’s efforts over the next four years across eight questions to increase the impact of U.S. foreign policy and bolster the Secretary of State’s modernization efforts.

This event featured a keynote address followed by a panel of foreign policy and evidence-building experts for a thoughtful discussion on addressing Learning Agenda Questions 1 and 2: How can the State Department improve the effectiveness of its diplomatic interventions to better advance foreign policy objectives? How can the Department improve the effectiveness and sustainability of its foreign assistance efforts?

America has not been attacked like this since 9/11. Six unelected people forcing their christian nationalist agenda on a population of three hundred and forty million is not a Democracy. It is tyranny.

Politicians say we're living in dangerous times, and Trump is a lot less willing than Biden to pay for Europe's defence.

China has set out the priorities of the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Mechanism (BRITACOM) Council over the next five years, at the 36-country grouping's second forum.

The newly instated German presidency of the European Union will focus on introducing internationally agreed tax rules for digital companies, according to the presidency's policy agenda.

China has set out the priorities of the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Mechanism (BRITACOM) Council over the next five years, at the 36-country grouping's second forum.

Experts speaking at the UN's Economic and Social Council's annual Special Meeting on International Cooperation in Tax Matters concluded that the international community must do more to tackle tax base erosion and profit shifting and offshore tax evasion.

World Water Day dialogue stresses need for public and private sectors to work together for water-secure growth.

The post Press Release: Sustainable job creation tops water agenda first appeared on International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Disrupt is turning 12 years old. If it were a human, it would be addicted to technology (which it is) and starting to get an attitude (again, yes). But after a couple of years coming to you virtually, the world’s most impactful tech startup conference is coming back to real life. The Moscone Center will […]

© 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

Australia is facing a growth problem, and the best way to spark growth is to create a bedrock for innovation and support businesses to disrupt themselves and take risks.

PwC has today been announced as the first employer partner for a new Pathways in Technology (P-TECH) style pilot at McCarthy Catholic College, Emu Plains.

The PAC has MPs from both the ruling party and the opposition. Congress leader KC Venugopal is the current chairman of the PAC.

Bristol : Bristol University Press, [2023]

The assault on the Right to Education Act and government schools is motivated. It is definitely not in the interest of India’s children, especially those from less privileged households

PM Modi makes open challenge at the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance to make Congress leaders including Rahul Gandhi to praise Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Hindutva scion Bal Thackeray.  

PM to attend BRICS summit in Kazan on October 22-23 at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin

Montreal : National Film Board of Canada, 2019

Agenda disputes are common at UN climate conferences but this one is especially significant as countries have limited time to agree on a new climate finance goal.

New Delhi described the accusations as baseless and politically motivated, claiming they serve Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s domestic vote-bank agenda.

Delegates at the conference must adopt the summit agenda by consensus as their first task when the COP29 talks begin on Nov. 11 in Baku, Azerbaijan

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath has set an 11-point agenda for drawing up a roadmap for economic revival of the state.The details of the agenda were finalised after a high-powered meeting chaired by the CM on May 4.

This edited volume develops a pragmatic approach to the engagement of highly skilled members of the diaspora for the benefit of their countries of origin. The book, edited by a World Bank senior economist, is based on empirical work in middle-income and high-income economies.

Personal Agenda with Ricky Kej: “Best thing about lockdown? My dog is really happy!”  Hindustan Times

It’s been a big news day in the U.S. Senate, with Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid announcing he won’t run for another term.

ISLAMABAD: Government’s top adviser on civil service reforms Dr Ishrat Hussain unveils the variety of changes being made in the country’s bureaucratic structures and systems from civil servants’ induction, recruitment, training, performance, promotion, compensation and retirement...

ISLAMABAD: Government’s top adviser on civil service reforms Dr Ishrat Hussain unveils the variety of changes being made in the country’s bureaucratic structures and systems from civil servants’ induction, recruitment, training, performance, promotion, compensation and retirement...

The new Local Government Acts approved by Punjab and KP assemblies would strengthen the local bodies whose heads would be directly elected by the people and operate with the assistance of the civil servants

The 2011 annual report on the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises focuses on adhering countries' committment to new, stronger standards of corporate behaviour in the updated OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

The OECD received a strong endorsement from both the G20 Leaders and Finance Ministers to work on solutions to support certainty in the tax system with the aim to promote investment, trade and balanced growth. As part of a wider project, the OECD launches a Business Survey to invite businesses and other stakeholders to contribute their views on tax certainty.

As the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) approach their expiry date, we must focus our efforts on ensuring a brighter, more inclusive and sustainable future for all. We face a plethora of common issues: growing inequalities; changing consumption patterns and population dynamics; increasing natural resource scarcity; and ongoing illicit financial flows.

The OECD’s latest Environmental Performance Review of Spain finds the country has decreased the energy and carbon intensity of its economy, reduced industrial pollution and cut per-capita waste generation since 2000.