Think Tanked

Mauricio Cardenas at Brookings on Latin American Policy

AM Briefing: 6/30/10

What did Saudi Arabia expect? (Washington Post)

Think tanks weigh in on Russia spy case (AP)

The Myth of Modern Jihad (New York Times)

Can Petraeus salvage Afghanistan? (NPR)

Marc Thiessen and Fouad Ajami are on the same page (AEI)

Daybook: 6/30/10

Improving the U.S. Response to Internal Displacement (Brookings) As the single largest donor of humanitarian aid, the United States' response is critical to determining how effectively internally displaced persons (IDPs), refugees and other affected populations are dealt with in humanitarian crises. Although the United States has taken important steps over the past decade to integrate the needs of IDPs into its policies and programs, there remain significant ways to improve its response.

Human Rights and Obama's Policies in the Arab World (CEIP) Michael Posner, assistant secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, will discuss the role of human rights in the National Security Strategy at an event cosponsored by the Carnegie Endowment and Heinrich Boll Foundation. Two leading Arab human rights advocates—Bahey El Din Hassan of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and Amal Basha of the Sisters' Arab Forum for Human Rights in Yemen—will discuss the human rights situation in the region. Carnegie's Michele Dunne will moderate.

A Good or a Bad START? (Heritage) The United States Senate has held more than eight hearings considering the New START Treaty, signed by President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on April 8. The Obama Administration would like to see the treaty given consent as soon as possible, preferably before the November elections. Unfortunately, some key experts and U.S. Senators are concerned the treaty has serious flaws, which undermines U.S. national security. Is this so?

For more events, see the calendar in the sidebar.

AEI's Marc Thiessen on the Afghanistan Deadline

In today's Washington Post, AEI fellow Marc Thiessen points out that perhaps Obama should learn lessons from setting deadlines he hasn't met (remember Gitmo?) when insisting on a deadline to begin withdrawal in Afghanistan. 

He writes:

The deadline is more than a tactical error; it is a strategic miscalculation that undermines almost every element of our efforts in Afghanistan. A withdrawal date undermines the very premise of a counterinsurgency strategy -- that by protecting the population, you can earn their trust and get them to help you root out the terrorists and insurgents. As columnist Charles Krauthammer has explained, Afghans will not risk joining us in the fight if they think America will soon be leaving them to the mercy of the Taliban.

The damage goes even deeper than that. The stated purpose of the deadline is to put pressure on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to eliminate corruption and increase the legitimacy and effectiveness of the Afghan government. Instead, it has had the opposite effect -- creating a perverse incentive for Karzai to make overtures to the Taliban, and cut deals to stay in power, so that he can cover his bets when the Americans leave.

AM Briefing: 6/29/10

Is Turkish resistance going to be short-lived? (AEI)

Robert Kagan counts out 5 Obama foreign policy victories (Washington Post)

A Cato view on gun control (NPR)

Can the G-20 live up to the rhetoric? (New York Times)

More Afghanistan deadline talk from Marc Thiessen (Washington Post)

Daybook: 6/29/10

Latin America and the Obama Administration: A New Partnership? (Brookings) On June 29, the Latin America Initiative at Brookings and the Corporación Andina de Fomento (CAF) will bring together experts from the region to discuss the significance of this renewed hemispheric partnership and will feature a keynote address from Arturo Valenzuela, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs.

Mongolia: Challenges Facing Women and Children with the First Lady of Mongolia (Asia Society) Join Mongolian First Lady and children's advocate Bolormaa Khajidsuren for a candid talk about the unique challenges facing women and children in Mongolia. Since her husband's election as President in May 2009, the Soviet- and US-educated first lady has notably launched a number of major national initiatives. A mother of five, Bolormaa and her husband are also foster parents to some two dozen Mongolian orphans.

Statesmen’s Forum with Dr. Rajiv Shah, USAID Administrator (CSIS) USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah will speak at CSIS on global health issues. Introductions by Lisa Carty, Deputy Director, CSIS Global Health Policy Center.

For more events, see the calendar in the sidebar.

CSIS: Implications of the Gulf Spill

Third Way's Kagan Memo

Progressive think tank Third Way released a memo on Elena Kagan today that discusses her merits as a moderate nominee for the Supreme Court. What separates this memo from a number of other think tank memos and blog posts on the subject is that it's a collection of other--and mostly conservative--individuals' words. 

A couple of particularly interesting ones include:

Former Bush administration lawyer Brad Berenson said that Kagan “sent a strong signal to conservative alumni that, despite her own party affiliation, she was committed to intellectual diversity and meritocracy at [Harvard Law School], and was determined to serve the long-term best interests of the institution rather than any narrow ideological agenda.”

And:

Even conservative author Dick Morris has said that within the Clinton White House, Kagan “was a moderate and conservative . . . she would be a moderate on the court. She’d be a little bit like Sandra Day O’Connor.”

AM Briefing: 6/28/10

Heritage, Brookings weigh in on the administration-McChrystal camp divide (Washington Times)

The links between militancy and education (Asia One)

Conservatives to make peace with the welfare state? (AEI)

Labor lending a hand to immigration reform (Washington Independent)

Is the U.S. getting a handle on wartime contracting? (Wired)

Daybook: 6/28/10

Using APEC and Trade Agreements to Advance U.S. Interests in the Asia-Pacific (CSIS) Mr. Kurt Tong Economic Coordinator for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs and U.S. Senior Official for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)Kurt Tong will address the utility of APEC and trade agreements (KORUS FTA) in the current Asia-Pacific environment.

In Search of Secure Borders (Center for American Progress) Expert speakers from the current administration, the Bush administration, the Arizona state house, and leading think-tanks will assess the federal government's effort to control illegal migration and chart a path forward.

Larry Summers on Technological Opportunities, Job Creation and Economic Growth (New America Foundation)  As the economy shifts from rescue to recovery, the importance of the government facilitating the private sector as an engine of job creation and economic growth has heightened. One area where government policy can enable economic growth is the ongoing development of the Internet ecosystem, which continues to transform markets and our society. Lawrence Summers, Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and Director of the National Economic Council, will address the Administration's views on the importance of unleashing private investment, job creation and economic growth through ongoing technological development in the Internet ecosystem.

For more events, see the calendar in the sidebar.