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Welcome to the Deep State Daily. Our intention with this newsletter is to highlight the top news stories that you need to be paying attention to. We pull stories from major news outlets, but we also try to call attention to niche websites, think-tanks and media outlets that we think you’ll enjoy whenever possible. If you enjoy our newsletter, please forward to a friend by clicking the forward link above. If you’re not already a member please consider supporting us by becoming a member.
From Deep State Radio
1-ON-1 WITH MIEKE EOYANG: THE NIKKI HALEY DEPARTURE IS ANOTHER STEP TOWARD A COMING BIG SHIFT IN US FOREIGN POLICY
Nikki Haley’s sudden resignation as US UN Ambassador was not just a shock to the foreign policy community. It’s also another sign that post November 6th, the Trump foreign policy team is likely to be further transformed and to shift further in the direction of the hawkish views of National Security Advisor John Bolton, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the White House team closest to Donald Trump. Will that change include the departure of SecDef Jim Mattis? And what if the Dems win the House? What new fault-lines in US foreign and national security policy might that create? We discuss with Mieke Eoyang, VP for National Security at Third Way. Join us! Listen
Values, I’ll Show You Values. . .How Much Will You Pay Me to Set Aside My Values?
Values matter. Well, at least the appearance of having values matter. Well, at least they always did until Donald Trump came along. Now, around the world foreign leaders know that the US is in it for whatever Donald Trump thinks is best for Donald Trump. Our panel of Kori Schake, Kelly Magsamen and Max Boot discuss what that means from North Korea to China, from attacks on members of the press to climate change. Tune in for a great discussion. Listen
In Case You Missed It: Hisham Melhem: Do the Administration’s Curious Moves Against Iran Amount to Much?
This week, the US pulled out of a 1955 treaty of amity with Iran. They did it to send a signal that the two countries, that haven’t been friends since 1979, still aren’t, apparently. They also pulled out of a second important agreement, an amendment to the Vienna Convention, in protest of a case brought under it against the US by the Palestinians. Both acts were linked to actions in the International Court of Justice—one a loss on a case regarding Iran sanctions that was tied in part to the 1955 treaty, the other due to a pending case from the Palestinians. And both were part of recent U.S. pushback against multilateralism and international legal institutions in particular…as well as on-going efforts to turn up the heat on Iran and Palestine.
Middle East expert Hisham Melhem joins us to discuss. Tune in. Listen
Stories We’re Watching
Jamal Khashoggi: still missing, disappearance exacerbating regional tensions
Khashoggi’s disappearance is testing President Trump’s Middle East “policy,” which has rested primarily on his stellar, personal relationship with the house of Al Saud. Trump has been less enthusiastic about the Erdogan administration; though he did allow Turkish security forces to assault US citizens during Erdogan’s official DC visit in 2016. One of Turkey’s strongest allies is Qatar. Qatar also happens to be Saudi’s latest regional foe. Khashoggi’s disappearance is complicating this already tenuous relationship, and the fallout from Khashoggi’s disappearance could be far reaching for regional politics.
Al Bawaba: How Middle Eastern Media Are Covering the Jamal Khashoggi Disappearance
Foreign Policy: The U.S.-Saudi Relationship: Too Faustian to Fail?
The Globalist: Jamal Khashoggi Reshapes the Middle East
Press TV: Saudi Arabia’s dark history of abduction and killing dissidents
China legalizes re-education camps for 1M+ Uighurs
In August, China denied allegations that millions were being held in state-run internment camps. Yesterday, China officially recognized & legalized re-education camps for ethnic minorities in the region of Xinjiang. Officials claim that the camps are designed to prevent extremism & acts of terror through re-education.The US bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China released its annual report yesterday. The report highlights the repression of ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). Reports indicate that individuals in these camps are made to swear loyalty to President Xi Jinping and renounce their faith.
Vox: China just legalized “reeducation” camps for Uighur Muslims
BBC: China Uighurs: Xinjiang legalises ‘re-education’ camps
Congressional-Executive Commission on China (official): Congressional-executive Commission on China Annual Report 2018 (full report)
The Guardian: China ‘legalises’ internment camps for million Uighurs
The most important thing about USMCA that literally no one is talking about: Data Localization
While many have called out USMCA’s copy/paste plagiarism from TPP, one significant difference is USMCA’s ban on data localization requirements. Article 19.12 specifically bars requirements “to use or locate computing facilities in that Party’s territory as a condition for conducting business in that territory.” USMCA is also the first & only trade agreement to explicitly promote the publication of open government data. It also requires anti-spam laws & prohibits source code disclosure requirements. Some analysts predict these provisions will significantly impact emerging tech companies as data localization requirements tend to inhibit the flow of data across borders.
Center for Data Innovation: Here’s What the USMCA Does for Data Innovation
Center for Strategic & International Studies: From NAFTA to USMCA: What’s New and What’s Next?
Council on Foreign Relations: The Coming North American Digital Trade Zone
Inside Trade: USMCA incorporates new digital trade chapter, cybersecurity provisions
Brexit updates: Will the UK exit Brexit?
With less than 6 months until the finalization of Brexit, negotiations over managing the UK’s European Union departure have been tense. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair has called for a referendum to reverse the 2016 Brexit referendum. And, despite Prime Minister May’s insistence that there will be no new referendum, opinion polls indicate an uptick in support for reversing Brexit. Among the chief concerns are the North Ireland border, trade relations with EU states, & freedom of movement for scientific researchers.
Deutsche Welle: Hard Brexit could trigger ‘massive crisis,’ warns German industry
The Irish Times: Rights of Irish citizens in North a thorny post-Brexit problem
The Royal Society: Brexit and UK science
Financial Times: The fix for the Irish border: solving the Brexit backstop
Israel detains US grad student on border
Israel has detained Lara Alqasem, a US citizen with an Israeli student visa, due to facebook posts & information obtained from Canary Mission, a right-wing blacklist used to screen potential dissidents. Israeli authorities claim that Alqasem’s support & participation in the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) makes her a threat to national security.
Haaretz: Israel’s Ministry of Silly Affairs
PressTV: US student challenges Israeli ban on entry of activists
Buzzfeed BDS (Official): An American Grad Student Has Spent A Week Detained In An Israeli Airport
BDS (Official): What is BDS?
Global Market Setback: pay no attention to the man behind the trade war
Yesterday’s sharp drop in US stocks (Dow plunged 3.2%) continues to upset global markets, particularly in Asia and Europe. Indexes in Germany, the UK, & France fell more than 1% this morning. Yesterday’s crash continued to put downward pressure on regional markets in Asia, which were sent reeling earlier this year. President Trump has blamed the US Federal Reserve for this week’s market turmoil. But, according to market analysts, Trump’s trade war with China better explains the Dow’s crash.
The Economist: The next recession
Market Watch: Stock-market carnage has slashed almost 1,600 points from the Dow in a week
Vanity Fair: Donald Trump Blames “Crazy” Fed For Market Plunging 800 Points
