Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday opened talks at the White House with U.S. President Donald Trump, seeking to nurture economic ties while avoiding tensions over issues such as immigration on which the two are sharply at odds. “You don’t have to be a genius to see there are some stark differences between them,” says Sanford School professor Stephen Kelly, former U.S. deputy chief of mission to Ottawa.
A Government Jobs Guarantee?
Should the federal government provide a guaranteed jobs program? Mark Paul, a postdoctoral associate at the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity, argues for such an investment on FOX News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight.”
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Examining Violent Extremism in the U.S.
Public policy professor David Schanzer, director of the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security, talks about his organization’s recent report examining Muslim-American involvement in violent extremism in the U.S.
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Judicial and Media Independence After the Next Attack
“At the moment, the judiciary and media are functioning well. But these institutions will inevitably become more vulnerable after an attack, especially a significant attack. Trump has already given specific indications that, in the event of such an attack, he will blame these institutions,” write law professors Curtis Bradley and Neil Siegel.
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Trump’s New Math on Old Regulations
Rather than weigh the pros and cons of individual rules as they come, President Trump’s executive order directs federal agencies to adhere to a simple trade-off: For every new regulation finalized, two old ones must be phased out. Andrea Renda, a senior fellow at the Kenan Institute for Ethics, comments on the potential pitfalls with this approach.
Read More in Bloomberg
Is Trump Getting Too Personal With Judicial Branch?
Law professor Ernest Young says federal judges’ lifetime tenure means they should be ready for protests and criticism, but he adds that tone is important. “The judiciary can take it. That’s why we give them life tenure,” says Young, who clerked for Supreme Court Justice David Souter in the mid-1990s. But “you’d like it to be more substantive and respectful in its tone,” he adds. “I would take the president’s Twitter account away if I could.”
Read More in U.S. News & World Report
Media Fact-Checking More Aggressive Under Trump
Journalism/public policy professor Bill Adair, who helped start the PolitiFact.com website, notes the growth of fact-checking during the fall campaign and challenged journalists to keep it up. Since Election Day, Adair says they have.
Read More in The New York Times
President Trump’s Mix of Politics and Military
President Trump was right to try to build a relationship with the military he now commands, but it’s a mistake for the president to speculate about its voting behavior, says political scientist Peter Feaver. “The military, the intelligence community and the foreign service jealously guard their professional identity of being nonpartisan and apolitical,” he says.
Read More in The New York Times
The Establishment Clause and Genocide
“As we make hard (and, indeed, heartbreaking) decisions as how best we might alleviate refugee suffering consonant with our own security, we must not turn our backs on the victims of genocide – even if that victimization is based on religious belief – as genocide victims are clearly the most in need of a priority,” writes law professor Charles Dunlap.
Read More in Lawfire
Benefits of a Federal Job Guarantee
“Not only would a federal job guarantee bring justice to the millions who desire work, but it would also address the long-standing unjust barriers that keep large segments of stigmatized populations out of the labor force,” write public policy/economics professor William “Sandy” Darity, postdoctoral associate Mark Paul and a colleague.
Read More in Jacobin
Is News of Terror Attacks Underplayed?
Peter Feaver, a political scientist who studies public opinion on national security issues, says he saw no basis for the White House claims. “I don’t think there’s evidence of the press underreporting terrorism. The corporate incentives run the other way.”
Read More in The New York TimesIn Trump’s Orders, a Test of Checks and Balances
“What we’re seeing is a salutary operation of checks and balances,” says Ernest Young, a constitutional law professor. “A lot of presidents come into office with a very broad view of what they’re going to be able to do. It’s not that uncommon (to be blocked by the courts), but that’s how the system is supposed to work.”
Read More in The Christian Science Monitor
