In 2024 we are once again faced with the prospect of either Joe Biden or Donald Trump back in the Oval Office. However, this time we have presidential track records to draw from as we prepare for the next administration. At this event, the United States Studies Centre launched its latest report Red Book | Blue Book 2024, a guide for decision-makers regarding the next US presidential administration.

Which policies will be most impacted by a change in leadership? What will a second Biden or Trump term mean for Australia? What should Australian decision-makers know and do under President Trump vs. President Biden?

The event featured authors of the report across two panel discussions.

Panel 1: How will a second President Trump or President Biden term impact AUKUS, relations with China and alliances in Asia?

• Dr Michael Green, Chief Executive Officer
• Professor Peter Dean, Director of Foreign Policy and Defence
• Hayley Channer, Director of Economic Security

Panel 2: How will political dynamics in Congress and the White House affect trade policy and relationships with the White House?

• Dr John Kunkel, Senior Economic Adviser
• Bruce Wolpe, Non-Resident Senior Fellow
• Victoria Cooper, Non-Resident Fellow
• Jared Mondschein, Director of Research

In 2024 we are once again faced with the prospect of either Joe Biden or Donald Trump back in the Oval Office. However, this time we have presidential track records to draw from as we prepare for the next administration. At this event, the United States Studies Centre launched its latest report Red Book | Blue Book 2024, a guide for decision-makers regarding the next US presidential administration.

Which policies will be most impacted by a change in leadership? What will a second Biden or Trump term mean for Australia? What should Australian decision-makers know and do under President Trump vs. President Biden? The event featured a number of the report's authors in a panel discussion:

• Dr Michael Green, Chief Executive Officer, United States Studies Centre
• Hayley Channer, Director of Economic Security, United States Studies Centre
• Professor Peter Dean, Director of Foreign Policy and Defence, United States Studies Centre
• Dr John Kunkel, Senior Economic Adviser, United States Studies Centre
• Jared Mondschein, Director of Research, United States Studies Centre

The United States Studies Centre hosted a launch event for the USSC major report, Aligning values and interests: Japanese and Australian democracy support in the Pacific and Southeast Asia.

No issues have aligned Japan and Australia more than the multi-faceted challenges China poses, particularly in the Pacific and Southeast Asia. Yet as Japan and Australia have drawn closer than ever in areas of security, trade and regional aid, there remains far more work to be done in response to China’s erosion of democratic norms.

How can Australia and Japan — two of the largest regional development partners — better support democracy in the region? How can they align their strategic priorities with the needs of a complex and emerging region? What role should the United States have in their efforts?

To answer these questions, USSC CEO Dr Michael Green moderated a discussion with report editor USSC Non-Resident Senior Fellow Dr Lavina Lee and report author Dr John Lee, Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute.

The Albanese and Biden governments are united in positing that climate change poses an existential threat and are modernising their alliance relationship to tackle it. Major efforts are underway to boost renewable technology innovation, harness critical minerals and bolster domestic manufacturing to accelerate the clean energy transition. Yet significant hurdles remain to realising bilateral climate ambitions.

Australia and the United States must navigate the simultaneous challenges of decarbonising, building their domestic industrial bases, supporting the energy transition across their region, and competing with China for new sectors.

Are Australia and the United States competing when it comes to the clean energy transition? What has Australia-US climate cooperation promised and can it deliver? How can Australia and the United States balance their international climate efforts with boosts to manufacturing at home?

To answer these questions, USSC hosted a live event with Australia’s Ambassador for Climate Change Kristin Tilley, USSC Women in the Alliance Visiting Fellow Jane Nakano, and USSC Non-Resident Senior Fellow Meg McDonald in conversation with USSC Director of Economic Security Hayley Channer.

This event was hosted by the United States Studies Centre’s Women in the Alliance initiative.

The Iowa caucuses on 15 January were the first test of whether any GOP challengers can make a dent on former president Trump’s dominating lead in the Republican race to be the presidential nominee. From February, the primary races will accelerate in the lead up to a climactic Super Tuesday set to occur around the same time as some of the pending Trump trials. In the midst of this, President Biden will deliver possibly his final State of the Union address, making a direct appeal to the American people about his accomplishments and vision for the future.

Can President Biden cut through the noise around the Trump campaign? Do any GOP challengers have a shot at dethroning Trump? What should we expect in the lead up to Super Tuesday?

To discuss these issues, USSC hosted a panel discussion with US politics USSC experts Associate Professor in American Politics and Foreign Policy David Smith, Director of Research Jared Mondschein and Research Editor Victoria Cooper who provided a readout on the Iowa caucus results and what it portends for the year ahead.

Although global attention is focused on the upcoming US presidential election in November 2024, a key regional election looms much sooner — the Taiwanese presidential election on 13 January. The contest to succeed the term-limited President Tsai Ing-Wen has already seen intrigue and drama, with four candidates vying for Taiwan’s highest office and, at one stage, two of them mulling a joint bid to unseat the ruling Democratic Progressive Party. Frontrunner and current vice president William Lai's views on independence have been the source of much discussion and, with high tensions in the Taiwan Strait and belligerent rhetoric from Beijing, the results of the election will hold significant implications for the entire region.

How might the election affect cross-strait relations? What are the possible implications of the election for Australia? How could the election shift Taiwan policies in Washington and other allied capitals?

To answer these questions, USSC hosted a panel discussion with Lowy Institute Senior Fellow for East Asia Richard McGregor, USSC Non-Resident Senior Fellow Dr Lavina Lee and USSC CEO Dr Michael Green in conversation with USSC Research Director Jared Mondschein, with opening remarks from Taiwanese Representative to Australia Douglas Hsu.

Douglas Hsu is Taiwan’s Representative to Australia. He was previously Director General of North American Affairs within Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and served in the Political and Congressional Liaison divisions of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States.

Richard McGregor is a Senior Fellow for East Asia at the Lowy Institute and a Senior Associate (Non-resident) at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in the United States. He is a former Beijing and Washington bureau chief for the Financial Times and the author of numerous books on East Asia.

Dr Lavina Lee is a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the United States Studies Centre and a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University, Sydney. Prior to joining Macquarie University in 2007, she was a political risk consultant with Control Risks Group.

Dr Michael Green is Chief Executive Officer at the United States Studies Centre. Previously Dr Green was Senior Vice President for Asia, Japan Chair, and Henry A. Kissinger Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and served on the staff of the National Security Council from 2001 through 2005.

One year out from the presidential election, and less than three months until the first of the Republican primary contests, the coming year is set to be a whirlwind of political drama — primaries, debates, conventions, the unprecedented legal trials of a former president and the US Constitution being tested as never before. With Joe Biden looking to cement his legacy as president, Republican candidates crisscrossing the country to shore up support, and Donald Trump ploughing his own path back to the Oval Office, on-the-ground insights are key to understanding a presidential race like no other.

What are the key issues and trends to watch as we head into an election year? What happens if Donald Trump wins his party’s nomination, but is convicted of a crime? What does the future of US politics look like?

To answer these questions, USSC hosted a live event with Politico Chief Washington Correspondent Ryan Lizza, and New York Magazine Washington Correspondent Olivia Nuzzi in conversation with USSC Director of Research Jared Mondschein.

Ryan Lizza is Politico’s Chief Washington Correspondent. He was formerly Senior Political Analyst for CNN and The New Yorker’s Washington correspondent from 2007 to 2017.

Olivia Nuzzi is Washington Correspondent for New York Magazine. She has also written for Politico Magazine and The Washington Post. She was named in Forbes’ 2018 “30 under 30” list.

In August 2023, the United States Studies Centre conducted a public opinion survey in Australia, the United States and Japan to understand the public sentiment in each nation on a variety of issues one year out from the 2024 US presidential election. 

Jared Mondschein, Director of Research and Victoria Cooper, Research Editor at the United States Studies Centre discussed findings of the poll during a presentation to the Sydney International Strategy Forum. This is the second of two presentations. 

The Sydney International Strategy Forum brought together prominent thought leaders, policymakers and industry experts to tackle the big issues confronting Australia, the United States and the Indo-Pacific. From bolstering supply chain resilience to turning AUKUS into reality, the forum discussed the enormous opportunities and risks posed by such cross-cutting challenges and what they mean for the future of our region. 

The forum was held at the Four Seasons Sydney on 1 November 2023.

Moderated by Dr Michael Green, CEO at the United States Studies Centre, this session of the Sydney International Strategy Forum features panellists Professor Peter Dean, Director, Foreign Policy and Defence at the United States Studies Centre; Rep. Akihisa Nagashima, a member of the Japanese House of Representatives; Dr Zack Cooper, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; and Dr Gorana Grgić, Senior Lecturer in US Politics and Foreign Policy at the United States Studies Centre. 

The Sydney International Strategy Forum brought together prominent thought leaders, policymakers and industry experts to tackle the big issues confronting Australia, the United States and the Indo-Pacific. From bolstering supply chain resilience to turning AUKUS into reality, the forum discussed the enormous opportunities and risks posed by such cross-cutting challenges and what they mean for the future of our region.

The forum was held at the Four Seasons Sydney on 1 November 2023.

Professor Peter Dean, Director, Foreign Policy and Defence at the United States Studies Centre; Dr Zack Cooper, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; and Hayley Channer, Director, Economic Security at the United States Studies Centre provided insights from an international strategy simulation that was hosted by the Centre to test how political thresholds, perceptions of risk, and national strategic assumptions might affect collective responses to a multi-faceted contingency in the Indo-Pacific. 

The Sydney International Strategy Forum brought together prominent thought leaders, policymakers and industry experts to tackle the big issues confronting Australia, the United States and the Indo-Pacific. From bolstering supply chain resilience to turning AUKUS into reality, the forum discussed the enormous opportunities and risks posed by such cross-cutting challenges and what they mean for the future of our region. 

The forum was held at the Four Seasons Sydney on 1 November 2023.