By Kate Lambroza (Georgetown University ’18), Guest Contributor Graphic Design by Gabriella Mas (Georgetown University ’18) Introduction Defining terrorism plagues organizations, agencies, and states alike. While terrorism dates back to the French revolution, the new tactics of international terrorist organizations have forced definitions to be modified. The problem with...
By Bryce Wachtell (PO ’21) Last December, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v Colorado Civil Rights Commission, a case that has regularly made headlines for its potentially widespread impact on the strength of LGBTQ civil rights law. While many view this case as a landmark for religious liberty, the defendant’s primary arguments revolve around the freedom a...
By Jacob Wang (PO ’21) The year 1995 was a turning point for the relationship between the United States and North Korea; prior to 1995, both countries refused to have any substantial contact with each other. The Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea (DPRK, or North Korea) constantly and vehemently criticized the U.S. for imperialist capitalism and its support for South Korea. On the...
By Daisy Ni (PO ’21) The mantra of “America First” has come to symbolize President Trump’s commitment to America’s businesses and manufacturing industries. In January, Trump took the first step in fulfilling his promise of protectionism by implementing tariffs on washing machines and solar products after complaints from multiple companies that cheap, artificial prices from abroad were hurting...
By Elinor Aspegren (PZ ’20) The police chief of Tehran, the Iranian capital, announced Dec. 29 that Tehran police would no longer detain and punish women seen without a proper hijab in public—an offense commonly called a “bad hijab.” Instead, the women will be forced to attend Islam educational classes. The decision to lift this ban, at least in the capital, may appear inconsequential, yet...
By William Zheyuan Shi (CMC ’20), Staff Writer I. Introduction Accompanying the wave of populism, black swans, or perceived highly improbable events, have been confounding Western democracies. Matteo Renzi, Italy’s Prime Minister, gambled his political career on the referendum deciding whether to curtail the power of the Senate in order to enhance the efficiency of the government.[1]...
By James Dail (CMC ’20) Republicans are still reveling over their passage of the new tax bill, as they should. It is the first major legislative victory of the Trump era. Reception for the bill among the general public has been mixed, and it largely falls alongside partisan lines. Only time will tell if the bill is broadly helpful or harmful to the U.S. economy. What the bill does make...
By Blake Plante (PO ’18) “Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) are the new frontier in school choice”, says Nat Malkus as he introduces Jeb Bush at the American Enterprise Institute on Friday, January 26th. General disillusionment with the American K-12 system (according to Gallup’s most recent poll, dissatisfaction with nationwide K-12 schools is at 53%) is manifesting itself in growing...
Conducted by James McIntyre (PO ‘19), Washington D.C. Correspondent (Fall 2017) and Staff Writer Co-transcribed with Delaney Hewitt (SCR ‘20), Staff Writer Dr. Darrell West is the director of Governance Studies and a vice president at the Brookings Institution. As a highly respected political scientist, Dr. West’s recent research has focused on the interplay between technology and politics...
Conducted by John Nikolaou CMC ’19, Digital Content Editor and Stanley Fan CMC ’20, Staff Writer Christine Loh is a former Hong King Legislative Councilor and Under Secretary for the Environment. Through her distinguished career, she has held roles in the business world as a commodities trader, government as a legislator, and the NGO sector as the founder of Civic Exchange, a public policy think...
