The referendum for southern Sudan’s independence, which began on January 9, reached the necessary 60% participation a few days ago. Official results will not be released for a couple of weeks, but an overwhelming “yes” vote is a safe assumption. The referendum is a momentous step; as the capstone to the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement ending the two-decade civil war, it will create the world’s newest country. While southern Sudanese are celebrating their almost certain independence, the challenges ahead are daunting. Southern Sudan will be one of the most poorly …
As Presidents Hu Jintao and Barack Obama meet in Washington, DC, it is important to note that this is different from Cold War era summits, as the United States and China share far more common interests, including economic concerns, than the US and the USSR ever did. At the same time, however, it is also important to recognize that there are major security areas that remain of concern, and nuclear weapons is one of those areas. China fields a far smaller nuclear arsenal than the USSR did, but it is …
In the latest efforts to promote school choice for the nation’s children, Pennsylvania state Senators Anthony Williams (D–Philadelphia) and Jeffrey Piccola (R–Dauphin and York) have introduced a plan to provide opportunity scholarships for low-income Pennsylvania students to attend a school of their choice. Said Senator Piccola: We know we have a group of schools that have been persistently failing, unsafe and falling short in meeting the needs of our kids and families who cannot afford to move to a better school district. … Our plan targets these schools and those …
There’s a new regulatory skeptic in town, and his name is Barack Obama. At least that’s the image the President tried to paint today in a bylined opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal. The message was clear: Forget the War on Business. That’s so 2010. Say hello to the War on Regulation. But is Obama really a born-again regulatory reformer? That, of course, would be good news. After breaking records over the last year in terms of new regulations imposed, a reassessment would be welcome. In his op-ed, the …
On January 14, the White House unveiled further liberalization of its Cuba policy. New changes alter rules to allow easier American citizen visits, permit non-family remittances (up to $500 per quarter), and broaden the number of U.S. airports able to send charter flights to Cuba. The measures, the White House trumpeted, “will increase people-to-people contact; support civil society in Cuba; enhance the free flow of information to, from, and among the Cuban people; and help promote their independence from Cuban authorities.” Liberals proponents of enhanced Cuba ties have applauded the …
The popular uprising in Tunisia that overthrew the authoritarian regime of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali has created tremendous uncertainty in the North African Arab country and raised expectations that political instability could also engulf other countries in the region. Ben Ali, 74, ruled with an iron hand for 23 years before his police state was swept away by anti-government riots that claimed the lives of at least 78 people. Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi unveiled a new government of national unity on Monday and promised that all political parties would now …
At the 2009 Sino-American summit, President Obama committed the US to dispatching the head of NASA to China, in return for a reciprocal visit by his “appropriate Chinese counterpart,” i.e., a player to be named later. A year later, NASA Administrator Bolden has visited China (although it remains unclear to what end), yet there is no sign that an “appropriate Chinese counterpart” has even been designated. This should be a warning sign, since China’s presence in space has been steadily improving. In 2010, China launched a record 15 satellites, the …
This week the House will pass a bill to repeal Obamacare. Congressional experts will argue that the Senate won’t pass a full repeal. They are correct to argue that full repeal will not be passed by both the House and Senate in the next few months, but they may be wrong that a full repeal bill will not pass in this Congress within the next two years. If Senators don’t take two procedural steps this week, they will make it virtually impossible to ever get a vote on the House-passed …
Shortly after the establishment of a federal holiday honoring the life of Martin Luther King, Jr., in 1986, Kimi Gray was among the first to urge that he be honored by celebrating a “day on” rather than a day off. She felt that a day aptly commemorating Dr. King’s legacy would be one in which all the engines of community investment and service are moving with full force. At that time, Kimi was a young single mother with five children living in D.C.’s Kenilworth-Parkside public housing projects. She took Dr. …
Chinese President Hu Jintao is set to arrive in Washington, D.C., today, the first leg of a four-day trip to the United States that includes a lavish black-tie White House state dinner tomorrow night. The full “state visit” treatment that Hu will receive, including a joint reviewing of U.S. troops, is being used by the People’s Republic of China to cap Hu’s career as the PRC transitions power to Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang. Beijing is hoping that this trip can celebrate Hu’s career while avoiding any real substantive issues. …
