Between the Headlines

What are President Biden's main priorities and goals in his foreign policy; how does he envision America and the world?

First, he wants to re-engage with the international community, once again have a seat at the table, and in fact, the most important seat.

Second, he wants to re-create the liberal democratic bloc, or the "free world" as it's more commonly known, in opposition to rising authoritarian powers like China; go back to a more traditional web of friends and adversaries.

Third, he wants to place a priority on human rights in discussions with other countries, and in his immigration policy.

Fourth, he'll have to decide whether he's for or against military intervention abroad.

Restoring American credibility, reputation, and status will be a big feat, in this challenging time for America in the world. We will see how Biden lives up to the moment and his agenda, but for now, this episode should be a good framework.

Information taken from the Council on Foreign Relations.

Since the inauguration on Wednesday, Joe Biden is officially the president of the United States. So what does that mean? Well, his White House is a refreshing and inspiring return to a normal, competent operation, not a game show, as new press secretary Jen Psaki and the return of Dr. Anthony Fauci has shown us. We've reached the elusive goal of a White House that feels like what a White House should be. It's a completely new government that's immediately overturning a lot of the previous administration's policies, from rejoining the WHO and Paris Climate Accord, to ending the Muslim ban; they're also instituting a lot of measures to actually respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, like a mask mandate, the Defense Production Act, working on increasing vaccine access and so on. His plan for the pandemic, and his economic proposals, most notably his trillion-dollar stimulus bill, are viable plans addressing the core problems underlying crises. Finally, and it's a high bar to reach, but Biden needs to have the moral leadership of MLK and the political leadership of Lyndon Johnson to truly step up to the moment and restore unity in such a fractured time.

My final episode before the end of the Trump presidency — I explore the major themes of his chaotic final weeks by re-examining my episodes from season 5 in light of recent developments. Topics include: Joe Biden's cabinet picks; the state of the COVID-19 pandemic; the political theory behind Trumpism, the sequence of lies to anger to authoritarianism; economic stimulus and vaccine rollout; applauding political courage from Republicans and Biden's encouraging naivete when it comes to unity; why Christianity as a right-wing tool of identity politics upsets me; why Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock won the Georgia Senate runoffs; understanding the January 6 Capitol Hill riots through the lens of grievance conservatism; the positions of Trump, Republican congresspeople, and Republican consensus regarding the peaceful transfer of power; and finally, Trump's historic second impeachment. 

A lot happened in politics this week, but none more shocking than a violent mob storming the Capitol building while congressional Republicans objected to counting the electoral votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania. This domestic terrorism was incited by Donald Trump, who encouraged supporters to march down Pennsylvania Avenue and expressed sympathy for them, in addition to his weeks of falsely claiming voter fraud before that; he is responsible for this culmination. He used extralegal means to help his authoritarian cause, an overthrow of legitimate results and American democracy itself. Unfortunately, too many House Republicans also stood by him simply because of political calculations. We are lucky to have survived, as many other countries would not have and haven't. And remember: president-led rioters attacking their own democratic government isn't normal.

On January 5th, the stakes will be just as high as on November 3rd. Mitch McConnell, the self-proclaimed "Grim Reaper" and Senate majority leader, will almost certainly adopt an obstructionist strategy similar to in the Obama administration, making it difficult for Biden to get anything done — that is, if he retains control of the Senate. The fate of the entire US government rests in the hands of Georgian voters, who will decide whether Democratic challengers Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock flip the seats blue, or Republican incumbents David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler defend the state.

The Republicans are trying to remain (somewhat) firmly beside by Trump, who is making their lives difficult; running a top-down national-style campaign; and playing the politics of tribalism and fear, by portraying their opponents as radicals. The Democrats are running a local, bottom-up campaign, and portraying their opponents as elitists who don't care about their constituents, helped by the insider trading scandal and the COVID-19 stimulus bill. In the end, the election will come down to a few key questions — to find out what those are, listen to the full episode.

And what does it say about the 'evangelical Christian' or 'religious right' vote? There is so much irony and hypocrisy: that they worship Donald Trump, who is of low moral dignity and most anti-biblical; that they invoke religion to support stances, often hateful, that do not align with religious values; that they value life in the womb but not outside; that their own rhetoric would ostracize Jesus if he was revived today. Christianity is just another part of identity politics for the religious right, another way to feel threatened. They don't follow the fundamental principles of 1 Corinthians 13:13 — not only faith, but also hope and love. I hope Reverend Raphael Warnock's version of Christianity is the one that America carries forth.

2020 has been a dark year, both in politics and in our society, and I've talked extensively about everything that went wrong. But there are still positives—sources that provide optimism. Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, the past week has brought the authorization and rollout of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, as well as negotiations over a $900 billion economic stimulus bill in Congress. Regarding Trump's refusal to concede, the Electoral College upheld Biden's victory without any faithless electors, and Mitch McConnell congratulated Biden and Harris; democratic institutions stood up again and again, reaffirming the results, and political courage on behalf on many election-related state officials should be congratulated. Regarding the political landscape as a whole, Biden will put behind the era of Trumpism—the politics of fear and anger, of demonization, division and tribalism—and instead focus on uniting, strengthening and healing America. I analyze his acceptance speech to demonstrate this.

This episode attempts to understand Trumpism, the divisive rhetoric that has dominated the past few years: triggering a fear-based instinct against a totem of the other side. I analyze the negative language used in Donald Trump Jr.'s speech at the RNC regarding 'Joe Biden and the radical left Democrats,' and how it creates tribalism.

Also: the two Senate runoffs in Georgia (Jon Ossoff against David Purdue, Raphael Warnock against Kelly Loeffler); Trump's continued denial of the election results; the state of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is, by far, the worst the COVID-19 pandemic has been. Cases, hospitalizations and deaths are peaking. Yet, the incompetence of Trump's response, along with Republican governors and senators who surely know better, remains. He wants to create a fake reality where the virus doesn't exist, through misinformation (about masks and social distancing) and conspiracy theories; by politicizing a non-partisan public health crisis. Be cautious in daily life. 

Also: a bipartisan economic stimulus bill waiting for Mitch McConnell's approval for a vote on the Senate floor; promising news of a vaccine, though prioritizing, distributing and administering it will be a major challenge itself for the Biden administration; Trump's continued denial of the election results, worrying about his future post-presidency, and certifications in spite of him.

Joe Biden has announced his Secretary of State and Treasury Secretary, along with other Cabinet and administration posts. From his Cabinet, what can we learn about his policies and priorities? I explore five areas: involvement in foreign policy, a progressive-moderate balance in economic policy, a priority on climate change, listening to the science on Covid-19, and being conscious of racial justice. Other topics covered include the initiation of transition protocol after Trump's disruption, and the Georgia runoffs.