“We should hope that the United States is not resolved to risk major catastrophe in an exchange in which a victory only produces marginal gains. In this case, an adage from another early 1980s movie, ‘WarGames,’ applies: ‘The only winning move is not to play,’ ” writes political scientist Kyle Beardsley.
Read More in The Cleveland Plain DealerCategory: Politics-Public Policy
French Voters Have Rejected The Establishment
Political scientist Herbert Kitschelt says the terms of political competition in France are shifting: Voters are increasingly gravitating toward either liberal positions on both economics and societal issues (immigration, LGBTQ rights, the place of Islam, etc.) or authoritarian positions on both sets of issues.
Read More in The Washington Post
U.S. Cyber Defense ‘Terrible,’ Former NSA Director Says
“Over the last decade cyber has become an element of national power used by us and by our adversaries. We need the defensive architecture that allows industry to defend itself long enough for government to (then) come in and help,” Gen. Keith Alexander, former commander of U.S. Cyber Command and former director of the National Security Agency said in a speech at Duke.
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How Will Trump Draw Immigrant Scientists to The US?
This question comes from Duke’s “Glad You Asked” podcast. Molecular biologist Raphael Valdivia wonders if the country’s legacy of welcoming scientists and experts from all over the world is at risk because of the new administration’s crackdown on immigration and rejection of certain scientifically accepted concepts, like man-made climate change.
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GOP Keeps Obamacare ‘Fragile’ as Trump Nears 100 Days
It’s unlikely any repeal or replacement of the Affordable Care Act can be achieved anytime soon, leaving markets where Americans buy individual Obamacare policies in a “fragile” state, perhaps for another year or longer. “The fragility (of the market) will continue for some time,” says Dr. Mark McClellan, director of Duke’s Margolis Center for Health Policy and a former top health official in the George W. Bush administration.
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Will The March For Science Backfire By Politicizing Science?
“The science community’s effort to more actively engage in the public sphere could backfire. If science begins to be seen as a “liberal” pursuit, it risks losing public favor and the ability to attract the best talent,” writes Megan Mullin, associate professor of environmental politics. “If, however, science advocates keep the focus on supporting scientific research in all its forms, scientists may be able to protect their work from cuts in funding and support — even if the broader goals of evidence-based policy-making must take a back seat.”
Read More in The Washington Post
Khizr Khan: ‘The Country Remains Divided’
Khzir Khan is a lawyer whose son was killed while serving in the Iraq war. He and his wife, Ghazala, entered the national spotlight when he addressed the Democratic National Convention in July and offered to lend Donald Trump his personal pocket Constitution. Since then, he has continued to speak out on behalf of Muslim-Americans and veteran families. “Now, as we continue to speak, the country remains divided,” Khan told Zach Fuchs, managing editor of Duke Political Review.
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Trump Reverses Course on Iran Deal; Free Speech on Campuses
Sanford School professor David Schanzer and Scott Briggaman of WPTF/NCN News in Raleigh discuss the deepening political crisis in Venezuela and President Trump’s admission that the Iran deal is working. In light of another student protests of a right-wing speaker, Schanzer offers his insight on the state of the First Amendment on college campuses across America.
Listen at On Security
Scrutiny Over Terrorism Funding Hampers Charitable Work
“Women’s rights and their defenders are really often caught in the cross-hairs of these very risk-averse banks and overzealous regulatory authorities,” says law professor Jayne Huckerby, an author of a study that found institutional donors such as Western governments and large foundations — as well as banks — are increasingly neglecting human-rights organizations that focus their work on women’s issues and operate in areas such as Syria and Iraq.
Read More in The Washington Post
Amazon Echo Plays A Role in Finding Political Truths
A team at the Duke Reporters Lab has been developing a fact-checking app for the Amazon Echo. Owners of the Echo can “ask the fact-checkers” about claims they hear on the news and social media. The development team is led by Bill Adair, professor of the practice of journalism and public policy and founder of the Pulitzer Prize-winning site PolitiFact. Student researcher Julia Donheiser and project manager Rebecca Ianucci join Adair to talk through the promise and pitfalls of the project.
In N.C., As In Kansas, Trickle-Down Tax Cuts Are Just a Trick
“To build a stronger economy we need to fund our government, and ensure that those most able to pay, put forth their fair share. For one, we need to reinstate a progressive income tax. Second, we must raise the corporate income tax, not cut,” writes Mark Paul, postdoctoral associate at the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity.
Opposing Immigration Wasn’t Always Racist
“Trump, no doubt, played to racial sentiments. But he also saw something his opponents didn’t: that even if Democrats refuse to acknowledge some of the complexities of immigration, many voters still see a need for limits,” writes Peter Skerry, a senior fellow at the Kenan Institute for Ethics.
Read More in The Boston Globe
