Boris Johnson's Election Victory, Biases in AI Hiring, and More

December 14, 2019

Britains Prime Minister Boris Johnson waves after delivering a statement at Downing Street following winning the general election, in London, Britain.

British voters back Boris and Brexit

This week, British voters went to the polls and handed U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Conservative Party a decisive victory. Amanda Sloat explains what the outcome means for Brexit, Scottish independence, and Northern Ireland moving forward.

Prefer an audio version? Listen to Sloat break it down in about 10 minutes in the latest episode of The Current podcast.

We have climate leaders. Now we need followers.

"The real test of leadership isn't 'stronger ambition,' a favorite phrase in the Madrid hallways, but the swifter diffusion of new technologies and approaches that will reduce emissions rapidly." David Victor reflects on COP25 and what it will take to make a difference on climate change.

Read in the New York Times

Assessing employer intent when AI hiring tools are biased

When it comes to gender stereotypes in occupational roles, artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to either mitigate historical bias or heighten it. As job recruitment processes move online, Caitlin Chin emphasizes the importance of including employer intent in the discussion on algorithmic bias.

Brookings experts on impeachment

Trump's trial should put the GOP on the spot. "The Senate must ask whether the wrongdoing revealed in the Ukraine episode is typical of the president's approach." In The Atlantic, Thomas Wright says the focus of a Senate impeachment trial should be on evaluating the trajectory of Trump's presidency, rather than his past mistakes.

For the Senate, a trial is an ordeal. Writing for the Wall Street Journal, William Galston offers some timely lessons from the last presidential impeachment for Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer to keep in mind.

Impeachment and the lost art of persuasion. "Pelosi understands the people her party needs to talk to. It's why she chose to answer partisanship with prayerfulness, and why she insisted that there is nothing she hates more than hate." In the Washington Post, E.J. Dionne reflects on the House Speaker's approach to the impeachment proceedings against President Trump.

The conclusions and recommendations of any Brookings publication are solely those of its author(s), and do not reflect the views of the Institution, its management, or its other scholars.

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