Trump's Struggling Campaign, A Lifeline for Essential Workers, and More

July 18, 2020

Why now? Understanding Beijing's new assertiveness in Hong Kong

"The task ahead for the United States and others is to find ways to protect what is left in Hong Kong that makes the city special, to reassure allies and partners of America's commitment to defending values, and to give Beijing pause from considering any further steps to infringe upon Hong Kong's governance or conclude that it can afford to extend its adventurism to Taiwan," writes Ryan Hass.

Local governments employ most essential workers. Why isn't Congress doing more?

Though essential workers are seen as heroes during the pandemic, the single largest group of these workers—those employed by state and local governments—may go without a paycheck at the end of the month. Joseph Kane and Adie Tomer argue that as these governments tighten their budgets, Congress needs to step in and provide a fiscal lifeline to protect essential workers.

Read in The Hill

President Trump's campaign is in freefall

Four months before the general election, President Trump fired his campaign manager and is trailing behind Joe Biden in both key states and in national polling. William Galston explains how the president's handling of the COVID-19 crisis is hurting both him and other Republicans in the polls.

Must-listen podcasts

Why we still use fossil fuels. It is well known that humanity's use of fossil fuels is damaging the planet's climate, but replacing them with other sources of energy has proven difficult. On this week's Brookings Cafeteria podcast, Samantha Gross provides context on the history, science, and politics of fossil fuels and offers a way toward cleaner energy.

Will China's debt bubble ever pop? China's buildup of debt to fuel economic growth has raised fears of an eventual collapse. On an episode of the Dollar & Sense podcast, Bloomberg Economics Chief Economist Tom Orlik sits down with David Dollar for a conversation on China's economic growth model, the potential for reforms, and how the economy has responded to the trade war and COVID-19.

The anxieties surrounding AI. Brookings President John R. Allen and Vice President and Director of Governance Studies Darrell West join the Lawfare podcast to discuss how we should govern artificial intelligence systems, ethical uses of the technology, and the fears associated with it.

For more on AI, see Allen and West's new book "Turning Point: Policymaking in the Era of Artificial Intelligence."

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