Tuesday, January 26, 2010

[RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, January 26, 2010

 

From the Council on Foreign Relations

January 26, 2010

View this newsletter as a web page on CFR's website.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

- Obama Addresses Deficit
- Iran Opposition Supports Ahmadinejad
- Dalai Lama's Envoys in China for Talks
- France Proposes Partial Veil Ban

Top of the Agenda: Obama Addresses Deficit

U.S. President Barack Obama proposed (WSJ) a three-year freeze on $447 billion in federal spending, an attempt to rein in the country's $1.4 billion deficit and emerge from the global downturn. The plan--expected to be a major part of the State of the Union address and Obama's budget proposal--would propose limits on discretionary spending outside military, veterans, homeland security, international affairs, and entitlement programs. The freeze would apply to 17 percent of the total federal budget, which some consider minor compared to other areas of spending.

Administration officials acknowledged the freeze only applies to only a small part of overall spending, but it eliminates the 7.3 percent increase Obama requested last year in the areas he now seeks to freeze. Obama also plans to propose a deficit commission to seek solutions for longer-term spending. The White House said it will continue to push its 2009 goals but that Congress might scale back its healthcare legislation after Democrats lost their sixty-vote super-majority.

Perceptions of reckless government spending have cost (NYT) Obama support among independent voters. Many economists feel the national debt undermines the country's longer-term prosperity, putting upward pressure on the interest rates it pays to borrow from countries like China.

Analysis:

In the Washington Post, Dana Milbank says partisan wrangling is undermining efforts to tackle the debt, and that the independent debt commission is expected to be voted down in Congress.

In Newsweek, Eleanor Clift says Obama needs to reassure his base in the State of the Union address by asserting more economic populism and a stronger vision, reasserting his differences, and standing his ground with Republicans.

MIDDLE EAST: Iraq Bombing

Al-Jazeera estimates that at least eighteen people were killed and eighty injured after a car bomb exploded in central Baghdad.

Iran: Two of Iran's opposition leaders, Mohammad Khatami and Mehdi Karroubi, said they accept (NYT) Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as head of state, according to Iranian news agencies.

In Newsweek, CFR's Richard Haass says the current opportunity for outsiders to promote regime change within Iran should not be missed.

PACIFIC RIM: Tibet-China Talks

Envoys of the Dalai Lama arrived in China to resume talks (AFP) on the political status of Tibet.

China: Five pro-democracy legislators in Hong Kong resigned (BBC) in an effort to pressure the Chinese government for full direct elections by 2012.

SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA: Sri Lankan Elections

Polls opened in Sri Lanka's first presidential elections (al-Jazeera) since last year's defeat of Tamil Tiger separatists. More than sixty-eight thousand police officers were dispersed amid fears of election-day violence.

Afghanistan: Britain and Japan have agreed to head (WashPost) an international fund to help lure Taliban fighters away from the insurgency with jobs, protection, and removal of their names from U.S. and NATO target lists.

AFRICA: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf for Second Term

Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first woman elected head of state in Africa, said she plans to seek a second term (allAfrica) during next year's elections.

Ethiopia: Lebanese and international search teams looked (Reuters) for victims of the Ethiopian Airlines plane crash carrying ninety passengers, which broke up in the air during a thunderstorm, officials say.

AMERICAS: Haiti Relief

Haitian President Rene Preval called for (BBC) two hundred thousand more tents to house Haitians left homeless by the quake, as donors met in Montreal to assess the aid effort and steps forward.

EUROPE: UK Out of Recession

Britain's economy returned to growth (FT) during last year's fourth quarter, but the economy grew a meager 0.1 percent compared to the 0.4 percent economists expected.

France: A French parliamentary committee is recommending a partial ban (Guardian) on anyone who refuses to uncover their face when using public services. Muslim women would be allowed to wear a full veil in the street.
 

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