RoozCast

Let's start the week with three questions.  

Will US Voters show up on Tuesday?

Will wealthy countries compensate or pay poor ones for climate change?

What is going on with Elon Musk and Twitter?

Most Americans already have firm views of the Republican and Democratic parties, and their midterm votes have been set in stone for some time. In close races, however, the difference will be decided by whether the politically indifferent demographic chooses to vote. 

On COP27, rising inflation has forced governments to cut back on fossil fuels, making the International Energy Agency optimistic that COP27 might be a "turning point" in the global transition to clean energy.

And there is a possibility that Elon Musk might have a shorter tenure than former British PM Liz Truss. Also, for Russia, buying a few thousand verified Twitter accounts at $8/pop to promote disinformation feels like a no-brainer."

Pakistan's former PM Imran Khan — aka "Kaptaan" for his cricket awards and lead-from-the-front style of populist politics — survived an assassination attempt on Thursday during his "Long March" to Islamabad. Mr. Khan, who was removed from office last April, has been demanding snap elections, but he's been ignored so far. Despite his party-sweeping by-elections, mass rallies, and his summoning of exceptional support against the military, the political establishment hasn't blinked. Will this attack force their hand?   On another topic, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made a very controversial trip to Beijing on Friday as the first prominent European leader to visit China since Russia invaded Ukraine. It was a swift one – Scholz's team didn't even spend the night in Beijing due to China's zero-COVID policy. For the leader of the EU's largest economy (that's Germany), the trip is all about business (people), which explains why top German CEOs accompanied Mr. Scholz. But for the rest of Europe, going to Beijing right after Xi Jinping's coronation at the 20th Congress of China's ruling Communist Party sends the wrong political message right when Brussels wants to reduce its economic and trade dependence on China — like it's done with Russian fossil fuels over Ukraine.

Last but not least, In the final stretch of the midterm race, Democrats and Republicans are pushing hard in Pennsylvania. On the blue side, President Joe Biden and his old boss Barack Obama will hold an event in Philadelphia on Saturday (Today) to get out the vote due to fears that turnout could lag, particularly among communities of color. Meanwhile, on team red, former President Donald Trump will also stop in southwest Pennsylvania over the weekend to campaign for Senate candidate Mehmet Oz and state Senator Doug Mastriano, trailing Democrat Josh Shapiro in the race for governor.

American voters are getting ready for the mid-term elections. President Biden blamed former President Donald Trump's "big lie" about the 2020 election being stolen and called out the violent attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, Paul. In response to the speech, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell tweeted that the President was "desperate to change the subject from inflation, crime, and open borders."  We'll find out exactly what Americans think after next Tuesday. In recent years views on court bias and whether it plays an outsized role in politics reached fever-pitch for many this summer with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, a move disapproved by 57% of Americans. While Republicans seem to have understood these dynamics for some time, Democrats have caught up with the trend in recent years. In the 2019-2020 election cycle, a collective $97million was spent on state court races nationwide. This cycle, parties are investing heavily in partisan judicial races in Ohio, Illinois, and North Carolina. With an increased number of election deniers on Republican ballots, debates over the nature of American democracy will gain steam over the next few years – and those battles will be waged in state courts. Prepare to see a lot more money enter state judicial races. So buckle up!

Bad news in Asia. China’s manufacturing sector is in a tailspin this week after several enormous production lines were shut down due to the country’s restrictive zero-COVID policy.   North Korea released its largest-ever, one-day flurry of missiles on Wednesday, firing 23 ballistics into the sea. Why? Supreme leader Kim Jong Un detests being forgotten. To get attention! Some good news in Europe and Africa. Russia has (again) reversed itself on a deal allowing Ukrainian food exports to cross the Black Sea toward international markets, this time by reaffirming its support for safe passage. The government of Ethiopia and rebels from the Tigray region agreed on Wednesday to “permanently” end their civil war.

We are Back! 

In this episode of RoozCast, we will examine the recent lunch date between Venezuela and Columbia. We then move to Israel to see what Bibi Netanyahu is doing, and he is getting closer to political victory.  We then move to another tense spot, Saudi Arabia, which is being threatened by Iran.  Last but not least, we moved to Brazil, where the country held its presidential election, and Mr. Balsenaro had some hard choices. 

In this episode, I discuss how India is dealing with the second-highest confirmed COVID cases in the world.  India is competing with China in its vaccine diplomacy and struggling to protect a sizable portion of its 1.4 billion population. 

Could China succeed where other outsiders (British, Russian, and American) have lost – and without a costly and dangerous military occupation? Is the hope of profitable trade and investment enough to guarantee a power-sharing deal among Afghanistan's fighting factions?  Over the years, China's rulers have seen other major powers stuck in Afghanistan without an exit strategy. Those are mistakes no one in Beijing is keen to repeat.

The most ambitious global immunization drive in history is in action. Over the past three months, more than 250 million COVID shots have been administered in over 100 countries, and the vaccination rate is gradually increasing. At the current rate, around 6.3 million doses are being administered daily. It's a rare moment of good news after over a year of collective suffering, grief, despair, and anxiety. So where do things stand, and what's preventing the world from getting to herd immunity sooner?

It's not just about that vacation you've been dreaming of since the pandemic shut down travel. Many organizations, institutions, and employers could begin requiring proof of vaccination before they hire you — or even to let you in the office for an interview.  Are vaccine passports a good idea? People, governments, and businesses need to know who might set off a new COVID wave and who is safe. But are we moving toward a  New World where the holders of vaccine passports become an unjustly privileged class of people?

Donal Trump continues to be a powerful political force. Even in defeat, he won 74 million votes for president last year, the second-highest total of any candidate in US history.  In this episode, I discuss the future of the GOP.  What does this mean for the party? The GOP has plunged into an all-out civil war that will rage for years to come.