Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig (@ThinkwingRadio) is now on Wednesdays at 11AM (CT) on KPFT-HD2, Houston’s Community Station. You can also hear the show:
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Welcome to Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig where we discuss local, state, national, and international stories. My co-host and show editor is Andrew Ferguson.
Listen live on the radio, or on the internet from anywhere in the world! Please take a moment to visit Pledge.KPFT.org and choose THINKWING RADIO from the drop-down list when you donate.
For the purposes of this show, I operate on two mottoes:
- An educated electorate is a prerequisite for a democracy.
- You’re entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts.
“There’s a reason why you separate military and police. One fights the enemy of the State. The other serves and protects the People. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the State tend t become the People.” ~ Commander Adama, “Battlestar Galactica” (“WATER”, Season 1 episode 2, at the 28 minute mark.)
POSSIBLE TOPICS: VOTETEXAS.GOV—Voter Information; Houston loosens taxicab regulations; Harris County Commissioners propose tax cuts at cost of Harris Health System funding; City of Conroe considering Texas Historical Commission Certification; 8 statewide propositions on Texans’ November 2021 ballot and what they mean; Texas reduces Black and Hispanic majority congressional districts in proposed map, despite people of color fueling population growth; Democrat’s Inept Messaging: It’s Not a $3.5 Trillion Bill But $350 Billion a Year; Janet Yellen Says U.S. Could Run Out Of Cash To Pay Its Bills In Less Than 3 Weeks; Following is an interesting example of why it pays to read more than one source for news; Could Britain stop Argentina from buying the JF-17 warplane?; China will likely fail in its CPTPP bid — but it’s a ‘smart’ move against the U.S., say analysts; More.
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- Make sure you are registered to vote! VoteTexas.GOV – Texas Voter InformationTEXAS SoS VOTE-BY-MAIL BALLOT APPLICATION (ALL TEXAS COUNTIES) HarrisVotes.com – Countywide Voting Centers, (Election Information Line (713) 755-6965), Harris County Clerk
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- Harris County “Vote-By-Mail’ Application for 2021
- Fort bend County Elections/Voter Registration Machine takes you to the proper link
- GalvestonVotes.org (Galveston County, TX)
- Liberty County Elections (Liberty County, TX)
- Montgomery County (TX) Elections
- Brazoria County (TX) Clerk Election Information
- Waller County (TX) Elections
- Chambers County (TX) Elections
- For personalized, nonpartisan voter guides and information, Consider visiting Vote.ORG. Ballotpedia.com and Texas League of Women Voters are also good places to get election info.
- If you are denied your right to vote any place at any time at any polling place for any reason, ask for (or demand) a provisional ballot rather than lose your vote.
- HarrisVotes.com – Countywide Voting CentersHARRIS COUNTY – IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED FOR VOTING: Do not possess and cannot reasonably obtain one of these IDs?
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- Fill out a declaration at the polls describing a reasonable impediment to obtaining it, and show a copy or original of one of the following supporting forms of ID:
- A government document that shows your name and an address, including your voter registration certificate
- Current utility bill
- Bank statement
- Government check
- Paycheck
- A certified domestic (from a U.S. state or territory) birth certificate or (b) a document confirming birth admissible in a court of law which establishes your identity (which may include a foreign birth document)
- You may vote early by-mail if:You are registered to vote and meet one of the following criteria:
- Away from the county of residence on Election Day and during the early voting period;
- Sick or disabled;
- 65 years of age or older on Election Day; or
- Confined in jail, but eligible to vote.
- Make sure you are registered:
- Ann Harris Bennett, Tax Assessor-Collector & Voter Registrar
- CHECK REGISTRATION STATUS HERE
- CLICK How to register to vote in Texas
- Outside Texas, try Vote.org.
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- Do make sure you’re registered to vote! Now is a great time!
- Texas has a constitutional amendments election this year. The last day to register to vote is Oct. 4. A statewide election on Nov. 2 will feature eight constitutional amendments that address topics ranging from religious freedom to taxes to judicial eligibility. Here’s what you need to know to vote. by Elvia Limón | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | Sept. 27, 202117 hours ago
- Houston loosens taxicab regulations; By Emma Whalen | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 3:38 PM Sep 21, 2021 CDT | Updated 6:36 PM Sep 15, 2021 CDT
- Facing decreased revenues from a lack of conventions and large events as well as competition from rideshare companies, the regulations aim to lower operating costs low for taxicab companies by reducing the price of permits and ending a requirement for all cabs to have the same paint style.
- The city will also no longer limit the number of permits it distributes, city documents state. Previously, the city only distributed a limited number of permits at a time. …
- Another provision incentivizes taxicab companies to increase their supply of electric vehicles and handicap-accessible vehicles by lowering the costs for these permits.
- The changes, approved by city council Sept. 15, reflect a new approach to the city’s relationship with taxicab operators.
- Prior to the pandemic, the city council approved a plan to sell off all of its remaining permits and to stop issuing permits entirely. …
- At the time, council members in support of the previous plan cited competition from rideshare companies as motivation to divest from the taxicab industry and no longer use the permits as a revenue source for the city. Others expressed concern that it would stifle the industry’s ability to grow in the face of the increased competition.
- ANDREW: I like the EV and accessibility incentives, but I’m not sure about the paint regulations. I like being able to identify taxis at a glance by their yellow paint. The new regulations might change that.
- Harris County Commissioners propose tax cuts at cost of Harris Health System funding; By Emily Lincke | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 2:54 PM Sep 22, 2021 CDT | Updated 2:54 PM Sep 22, 2021 CDT
- On average, Harris County homeowners may see lower tax rates in the next year, but it will come at the cost of $17 million in funding for the county’s hospital district, according to Harris County Administrator David Berry.
- At a Sept. 21 public hearing, Harris County Commissioners voted unanimously to propose a [tax rate 1.785¢ lower for the county’s overall fiscal year 2020-21 than the Democratic County Commissioners had proposed.]
- … This rate would provide less funding for the hospital district in the upcoming fiscal year than commissioners budgeted for earlier this year, Berry said.
- “You’re deep in hell to be poor in terms of health care, in Harris County,” Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis said. “Although I know, for homeowners, they will appreciate the [tax reduction] … those people who rent, which unfortunately is far too many here, won’t get this. … For those who are homeless, we have to find that money somewhere. They have tremendous unmet needs.”
- While [Republican] Precinct 4 Commissioner Jack Cagle and [Republican] Precinct 3 Commissioner Tom Ramsey voted against the previously proposed tax rates at the Sept. 14 Commissioners Court meeting, the commissioners accepted the new proposal Sept. 21 as a compromise.
- “If you are a homeowner, with a $100,000 home, and last year you paid $599.20, with this proposal … you’ll pay $581.35,” Cagle said. …
- Cutting the tax rates could impede the care the Harris Health System provides for 300,000 county residents annually, Harris Health System President Dr. Esmaeil Porsa said. The system includes two full-service hospitals, 18 community health centers and five school-based clinics, according to the hospital district’s website. …
- MIKE: So Republicans Cagle and Ramsey threatened to screw the County budget to save $17.85/yr per hundred thousand dollars valuation. For that saving, they screw Harris County’s poor and indigent out of essential medical care.
- [N]ot all who spoke at the Sept. 21 public hearing were supportive of higher tax rates.
- [Houston resident Merissa Hansen said,] “It doesn’t really make much sense to me why you want to raise our taxes when we’re in the middle of inflation. Where are you getting the numbers that these hospitals need help when they’re firing their own nurses and medical professionals because they refuse to take the [COVID-19] vaccine?”
- MIKE: The late Marvin Zindler used to close many of his segments by saying, “It’s HELL to be poor!”
- ANDREW: Is this the same proposal we talked about last week? Didn’t they say that home valuations would maintain the tax income despite the rate decrease? If that’s true, why is Harris Health funding being cut?
- City of Conroe considering Texas Historical Commission Certification; By Jishnu Nair | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 5:50 PM Sep 22, 2021 CDT | Updated 5:50 PM Sep 22, 2021 CDT
- At a Sept. 22 workshop meeting, the Conroe City Council was introduced to the idea of becoming a certified legal [sic] government through the Texas Historical Commission [THC]. …
- According to the Texas Historical Commission’s website, the Certified Local Government Program is a national initiative partnering local, state and federal governments in an effort to preserve historic resources in …
- Once a local government has been certified, it can apply for grants, which the THC website said are often used as seed money to attract further funding. …
- According to the THC website, the highest priority for grant funding is inventories and surveys. … The website says that grants typically range from $2,000 to $30,000, and require a dollar-to-dollar match from local funding. …
- The City Council was receptive …, but did not make a determination. Council Member Duke Coon suggested the council wait to hear the full presentation, which was not available at the Sept. 22 workshop.
- 8 statewide propositions on Texans’ November 2021 ballot and what they mean; By Jishnu Nair | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 3:54 PM Sep 24, 2021 CDT | Updated 3:54 PM Sep 24, 2021 CDT
- MIKE: I’ll point out that I don’t trust anything this Texas Legislature does or proposes, so keep an open mind while discussion on these amendments develops.
- Voters will find eight propositions to amend the state constitution on the Nov. 2 ballot. Community Impact Newspaper spoke with Brandon Rottinghaus, the University of Houston’s political science chair, to break down each proposition.
- Proposition 1: rodeo raffles, House Joint Resolution 143
What is it asking? This proposition allows voters to decide whether charities for teams sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association or Women’s Professional Rodeo Association can hold charitable raffles. According to Rottinghaus, these races need to be approved through a constitutional amendment to avoid falling foul of Texas’ gambling laws. - Proposition 2: county infrastructure bonds for blighted areas, House Joint Resolution 99
What is it asking? Proposition 2 will determine whether counties can authorize bonds or notes to finance development in blighted or underserved areas. Rottinghaus described the amendment as a “shortcut” for county funding and said it could help urban counties going through a population boom. - Proposition 3: religious services, Senate Joint Resolution 27
What is it asking? This proposition will decide if state or local governments can limit religious services. Rottinghaus said this measure likely stems from COVID-19 mitigation efforts in 2020, when in-person religious services were limited in parts of Texas, such as Harris and Fort Bend counties. - Proposition 4: judicial eligibility limitation, Senate Joint Resolution 47
What is it asking? This proposition would update requirements to serve on the Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the Texas Appeals Court or as a district judge. It would require 10 years of service as a practicing lawyer or a combined 10 years of service in legal practice and as a judge of a state or county court. - Proposition 5: judicial conduct limitation, House Joint Resolution 165
What is it asking? Voters can decide whether the Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct, which is responsible for disciplining sitting judges, can extend its powers to candidates for the office of a judge in Texas, allowing the commission to conduct investigations, accept complaints and disqualify candidates not in office. - Proposition 6: essential caregivers, Senate Joint Resolution 19
What is it asking? Proposition 6 asks voters to decide whether residents of facilities such as nursing homes have the right to determine an essential caregiver who can visit without restrictions. Rottinghaus said this proposition also stemmed from COVID-19 mitigation measures affecting some care facilities. - Proposition 7: homestead tax limitation for surviving spouses of people with disabilities, House Joint Resolution 125
What is it asking? This will determine whether surviving spouses of disabled people can receive limitations on the amount of property taxes they pay on their homesteads, provided they were age 55 or older when their partner died. - Proposition 8: homestead tax limitation for surviving spouses of armed service members, Senate Joint Resolution 27
What is it asking? Proposition 8 allows voters to decide whether surviving spouses of armed service members will be exempted from all or part of property taxes on homesteads, provided they were age 55 or older when their partner died. - REFERENCE — Texas 2021 ballot measures – BALLOTPEDIA.ORG. Click the title of each proposition under the Title column to visit the page explaining each proposition
- TAGS: November 2021 elections
- MIKE: Again, I’ll point out that I don’t trust anything this Texas Legislature does or proposes, so keep an open mind while discussion on these amendments develops.
- Texas reduces Black and Hispanic majority congressional districts in proposed map, despite people of color fueling population growth; The proposed congressional map also increases the number of districts where Trump would have had a majority of voters over Biden in 2020 and protects Republican incumbents who might have been vulnerable by packing their districts with more Trump voters. by James Barragán, Abby Livingston and Carla Astudillo | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | Sept. 27, 2021 Updated: 8 hours ago
- … The map reduces the number of districts dominated by people of color even though Texas gained two additional congressional seats, and the population of Asian, Black and Hispanic Texans outpaced white Texans over the last decade.
- Republicans constructed the map with incumbent protection in mind — a strategy that focused on bolstering vulnerable GOP seats rather than aggressively adding new seats that could flip from blue to red. However, the map does in fact strengthen Republican positioning overall in Texas, going from 22 to 25 districts that would have voted for Donald Trump in 2020. The number of congressional districts that voted for Joe Biden would have shrunk by one, from 14 to 13.
- While many incumbents appear safe in these maps, others were drawn into districts that overlap with one another — for example, the proposed map pits Houston Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw against Democrat Rep. Sylvia Garcia. It also pits two Houston Democrats — Reps. Al Green and Sheila Jackson Lee — against each other.
- Democrats, who have been out of power for decades, have attempted to make state elections more competitive but the redrawing of congressional maps gives the GOP an opportunity to lock in their advantage for another decade. …
- The redrawing of district maps is intended to reflect population growth captured by the latest census. People of color accounted for 95% of the state’s growth over the last decade, but in the new map there’s one less Hispanic majority district and zero districts with a Black majority. The latest census results show Hispanic Texans nearly match the number of white Texans. …
- [IMAGE] The first draft of the redistricted map adds two new congressional districts. Credit: Texas Legislative Council.
- “This map is clearly gerrymandered by politicians to protect incumbents and totally discriminate against Hispanic voters,” [said Domingo Garcia, national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens.] “LULAC has filed suit against the state of Texas every 10 years since 1970 and we’ve prevailed every 10 years. Unless there’s new maps drawn, we expect we will wind up in federal court again.”
- Gary Bledsoe, president of the Texas NAACP, called the proposal shocking, hurtful and outrageous. …
- The maps were proposed by state Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, who leads the chamber’s redistricting committee. This is only the first draft of the map, which is likely to change before it’s passed by the Texas Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott. …
- This will be the first round of political mapmaking in Texas since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down provisions to protect voters of color from discrimination. Previously, states with long histories of voting discrimination, like Texas, had to receive approval from the federal government before making any changes to election laws or political maps.
- But the Supreme Court essentially did away with that requirement in 2013, leaving no buffer for voters of color if lawmakers pass discriminatory maps.
- Since the enactment of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, Texas has not made it through a single decade without a federal court admonishing it for violating federal protections for voters of color.
- MIKE: It’s not just people of color who are disenfranchised by this gerrymandering. It’s also people of various political parties. If we ever are able to pass a comprehensive voting rights act, it should cover both of these contingencies.
- ANDREW: As predicted last week, these maps aren’t fair. Hopefully legal challenges will succeed against them, or the Fair Representation Act will make some headway in Congress to shake up districting.
- Democrat’s Inept Messaging: It’s Not a $3.5 Trillion Bill But $350 Billion a Year; Democrats are misrepresenting the size of their own reconciliation package to their own detriment. By Miles Mogulescu | COMMONDREAMS.ORG | September 28, 2021
- [T]he $3.5 Trillion number sounds astronomical, is scary to many voters, and gives Republicans and conservative Democrats like Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema a huge opening to attack the level of spending which the country allegedly can’t afford without disastrous consequences. To tell the truth, a number that large even scares me, a progressive Democrat, who believes the fear of deficits is overblown.
- What’s astounding, however, is that the Democrats are misrepresenting the size of their own reconciliation package to their own detriment. Democrats are promoting it as a $3.5 trillion bill—which is endlessly repeated by the media—which makes it sound like Democrats want to spend $3.5 trillion in one year. SCARY BUT FALSE!!! The Democratic bill is simply a blueprint for programs to be funded over 10 years. The actual cost of the bill is an average of $350 billion a year—it’s a big number, but less than half of what the U.S. spends a year on the military budget. … [and mostly paid for by higher taxes on the wealthy and corporations].
- ANDREW: Good point. The question is, why are Democrats letting the narrative jump out of their hands?
- Janet Yellen Says U.S. Could Run Out Of Cash To Pay Its Bills In Less Than 3 Weeks; By Scott Horsley | NPR.ORG | September 28, 20211:32 PM ET
- Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned lawmakers Tuesday that the federal government could run short of cash to pay its bills by Oct. 18 unless Congress acts quickly to increase the government’s borrowing authority.
- The warning, at an appearance before the Senate Banking Committee, comes amid a standoff in Congress over the so-called debt ceiling. Senate Republicans blocked a measure to increase or suspend the debt ceiling on Monday. …
- [S]he made it clear that failure to clinch a deal by mid-October would lead to the first default in U.S history, an event she has described as “catastrophic” for the economy. …
- Yellen cautioned that even flirting with a default could rattle financial markets. She recalled an earlier standoff during the Obama administration in 2011 when Congress waited until the last minute to raise the debt limit, resulting in higher borrowing costs for both the government and consumers. …
- Debt rating Interest rates, actual cost to government to close/open, American reserve currency strength, US Bond debt & the new cost of servicing old debt.
- ANDREW: Yet again, Republicans make life worse for everyone for the chance that they can trick their base and undecided voters into thinking a government financial crisis would be the Democrats’ fault. There would be no crisis if Republicans had voted to raise the debt ceiling.
- Following is an interesting example of why it pays to read more than one source for news:
- Here is the partisan perspective — Tom Cotton, Mariannette Miller-Meeks: Americans wanted Biden to end the war, not lose it; The Biden administration’s avalanche of incompetence has damaged our international reputation and humiliated the United States on the world stage. By Tom Cotton and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Guest columnist [sic] | DESMOINESREGISTER.COM | 2021-9-27
- Senator Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, are both veterans of the U.S. Army. Senator Cotton served in Afghanistan in 2008-09.
- The past month has been full of heartbreak, disappointment, and anger for thousands of veterans and Gold Star families. Through his actions, our commander-in-chief has disrespected 20 years of selfless American sacrifice in Afghanistan and has shown more interest in a photo-op than in honorably completing the mission our service members gave so much to accomplish. We are now more vulnerable to a terrorist attack planned in Afghanistan than we were on Sept. 11, 2001.
- Many in public life have been wrong about the war in Afghanistan, but few have been more consistently wrong than the president. Under the Obama administration, Joe Biden was wrong in opposing a counterinsurgency strategy to combat the Taliban, wrong about drawing down troops without a plan, and even wrong about killing Osama bin Laden. Joe Biden also stood by his boss when President Barack Obama, in exchange for an American traitor named Bowe Bergdahl, released five high-value Taliban commanders from Guantanamo Bay — four of whom now serve as senior officials in the Taliban “government” in Kabul. …
- Here is the common media narrative — Defense Secretary Austin admits in Senate testimony Afghan army collapse ‘took us all by surprise’; Amanda Macias@amanda_m_macias | CNBC.COM | Published Tue, Sep 28 20214:47 PM EDT, Updated Tue, Sep 28 20216:33 PM EDT
- The Pentagon acknowledged Tuesday that the stunning collapse of the Afghan army amid a rapid Taliban advance contributed to the Biden administration’s chaotic exodus from the war-weary country.
- “The fact that the Afghan army we and our partners trained simply melted away, in many cases without firing a shot, took us all by surprise,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told the Senate Armed Services Committee.
- “It would be dishonest to claim otherwise,” added Austin, a veteran of the wars in the Middle East.
- Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Army Gen. Mark Milley said that while many of the American- and NATO coalition-trained Afghan troops attempted to hold their positions against the Taliban, the majority did not. …
- Here is a right-of-center counterpoint — Opinion: Defense officials just debunked much of the criticism of Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal; Opinion by Jennifer Rubin, Columnist | WASHINGTONPOST.COM | 2021-9-28, Today at 4:15 p.m. EDT
- Testimony from Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark A Milley before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday … may not have persuaded those who wanted to continue an unwinnable war in Afghanistan, but they certainly put President Biden’s decision-making in context. …
- The idea that the administration did not prepare for the collapse of the Afghan government was false … Both Milley and Austin described the advance planning in detail, including the pre-positioning of troops and rehearsing a noncombatant evacuation. …
- The U.S. military could not secure both Bagram airfield and [Hamid Karzai International Airport] with the troops available. All together securing Bagram would have required approximately 5-6,000 additional troops assuming no indigenous partner force was available. …
- Austin also explained, “[Retaining Bagram] would have contributed little to the mission that we had been assigned: to protect and defend our embassy some 30 miles away. That distance from Kabul also rendered Bagram of little value in the evacuation.”
- Finally, the widespread declaration that the administration’s airlift was a “failure” was exaggerated and lacked context. Austin and Milley conceded there were a couple of days of chaos, but tens of thousands more Afghans were evacuated than thought possible. “We planned to evacuate between 70,000-80,000 people. They evacuated more than 124,000,” Austin said. …
- MIKE: How the US withdrawal from Afghanistan is being framed seems more-than-usually variable, depending on who is doing the framing. This is why it pays, as much as possible, to mix your news sources.
- ANDREW: From this, it looks like the right, center, and center-left are split as to whether the withdrawal was an unmitigated disaster or the best that could be done in the circumstances. Interesting. My perspective, as a single member of the far left, is that trying to judge the withdrawal alone is missing the point. The US has spent decades destabilizing the Middle East, and now people are complaining when that destabilization catches up with us. We should have taken our hands off the scales of power there long ago, or better yet, never gone in. Our policy of policing the world and acting like we were above consequences was never going to work, because international politics requires cooperation, not threat of punishment.
- Here is the partisan perspective — Tom Cotton, Mariannette Miller-Meeks: Americans wanted Biden to end the war, not lose it; The Biden administration’s avalanche of incompetence has damaged our international reputation and humiliated the United States on the world stage. By Tom Cotton and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Guest columnist [sic] | DESMOINESREGISTER.COM | 2021-9-27
- Could Britain stop Argentina from buying the JF-17 warplane?; By Usman Ansari | DEFENSENEWS.COM | Sep 28, 2021 08:40 AM
- Argentina insists reports the country is buying [12 JF-17 Thunder warplanes from Pakistan] are premature, but analysts believe it could still succeed where other fighter types failed — mostly as a result of British pressure. …
- Andrei Serbin Pont, the director of [an] Argentinean think tank … and a former adviser at the country’s Strategic Affairs Secretariat, said …[h]e believes the JF-17 is an attractive choice for Argentina because the aircraft is “out of reach of possible U.K. vetoing of parts, and at the same time it is the only new aircraft within the budgetary restraints of the Argentine Air Force.”
- The U.K. previously pressured suppliers to cancel deals with Argentina, or sabotaged them by embargoing critical British components. Britain has effectively maintained an arms embargo on Argentina since the 1982 Falklands War. …
- However, the JF-17 can operate with solely Chinese subsystems, effectively making it immune from British pressure.
- Still, Serbin Pont said, “the United States is making a push offering used F-16s, and another alternative being put on the table are modernized F/A-18s.” …
- Brazil-based defense analyst Alex Galante believes while “the Argentine government has a preference for the JF-17,″ it might be “awaiting a better offer from the U.S. or Russia.” …
- MIKE: Especially since the Falklands War (see “Falklands War”), the UK has had a grudge against Argentina. This attempt at a fighter jet embargo is at least in part to prevent Argentina from trying again to attack and occupy the Falklands (which the Argentinians call the Malvinas). From the US point of view, the idea of having a Western Hemisphere nation buying Pakistani-Chinese military equipment is a non-starter; this is probably why the US is offering American jets to Argentina.
- ANDREW: I’m leaning towards saying they should take the JF-17s. Newer hardware, affordable, and out of reach of the UK. Considering that the UK initially wanted to give the Falklands to Argentina, I’m not bothered by the possibility that they may try to take the islands again. If that does happen, I think the UK should accept Argentine rule over the Falklands and request permission to evacuate anyone who wants to leave.
- China will likely fail in its CPTPP bid — but it’s a ‘smart’ move against the U.S., say analysts; By Yen Nee Lee (@YenNee_Lee) | CNBC.COM | Published Sun, Sep 26 2021, 10:48 PM EDT Updated Mon, Sep 27 20218:26 PM EDT
- China will likely fail in its bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership [CPTPP] — but its move to submit an application highlighted the lack of U.S. economic policy in Asia-Pacific, said analysts.
- CPTPP is an 11-nation mega trade pact formed in 2018 after Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership a year earlier.
- President Barack Obama had negotiated the TPP to deepen U.S. economic engagement in Asia-Pacific and counter China’s growing influence in the region.
- All 11 signatories of the CPTPP must agree to China’s request to join before it can be admitted as a member. The countries in the CPTPP are: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
- Beijing’s strained diplomatic relations with some member countries would hurt its chances, said analysts. China will also likely face difficulties in meeting the trade pact’s demands for a level-playing field in many aspects of the economy, they added.
- China is not the only one that’s applied to join the CPTPP; the U.K. and Taiwan have done the same. …
- Japan has an existing territorial dispute with China in the East China Sea, while Australia has been at the receiving end of import tariffs imposed by China.
- Meanwhile, Canada and Mexico could stand in China’s way through the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement or USMCA. The trade deal contains a “poison pill” provision requiring any of the three members to consult the others if it wishes to pursue a trade deal with a “non-market country.” …
- In addition to political hurdles, China may have difficulties meeting CPTPP provisions that promote cross-border data flows, labor and environmental protection, as well as restrictions on state-owned companies, said analysts.
- Businesses from the U.S. and the European Union are among those that have complained about China’s unfair trade practices, such as subsidizing state firms, the lack of intellectual property protection and forced technology transfer. …
- Regardless of its success, analysts said China’s CPTPP bid highlighted the country’s expanding economic clout in Asia-Pacific, while the U.S. has largely focused on security issues in the region. …
- President Joe Biden has made it a priority to bolster U.S. standing in Asia-Pacific. But his administration has not articulated a trade policy on China, and experts have said the S. is unlikely to join CPTPP due to domestic politics.
- Meanwhile, China has become a major trading partner for many countries in the region, and last year led 14 other regional economies to sign the world’s largest trade agreement — the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership or RCEP.
- “Unfortunately, the one thing that is clear is that the United States is once again reacting rather than leading and therefore letting China determine the course of events in Asia,” said William Reinsch, senior advisor and Scholl Chair in international business at Washington D.C.-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.
- MIKE: Trade agreements aren’t just about economics. For the US, they’re also strategic, binding countries to us economically, which also has the effect of binding them to us geopolitically. The same is true for arms sales. While not popular among many people, these sales also have the effect of extending and strengthening US influence in world affairs. Consider the effects of Turkey – a NATO ally – buying a Russian air defense system. NATO isn’t just a geopolitical mutual defense alliance. It’s also all about military interoperability. Not all its weapons are US weapons, but even rifle cartridges must be interchangeable among similar weapons. International agreements are not one-dimensional. They’re more like 3-dimensional chess.
- ANDREW: I’ve started looking into think tanks’ funding whenever I see them quoted in an article. Unsurprisingly, the Center for Strategic and International Studies has major donors including Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Chevron and BP. I’m not saying they’re being used to produce “expert analysis” that promotes American military expansion for the sake of their donors’ profit, but I’m not saying that’s not happening.
- See also: CPTPP: UK to formally apply to join trans-Pacific trade bloc – British government says joining CPTPP would remove tariffs on food and drink and cars, while helping to boost the technology and services sectors. Source: News Agencies | ALJAZEERA.COM | 31 Jan 2021
- … A year after it formally left the European Union, the British government said on Saturday that it wants to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which removes most tariffs between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. …+
- The United States, the world’s biggest economy, is not part of the partnership; former President Donald Trump, withdrew the country from its predecessor, the Trans-Pacific Partnership. China, the world’s second-largest economy, also does not belong. …
- [Emily Thornberry, shadow international trade secretary for the opposition Labour Party said that] After five years of debate about Brexit trade agreements, people would question the British government’s decision “to rush into joining another one on the other side of the world without any meaningful public consultation at all”. …
- [UK International Trade Secretary Liz Truss] has previously said joining the CPTPP would offer “enormous opportunities”, including lower tariffs for car manufacturers and whisky producers, as well as “delivering quality jobs and greater prosperity for people here at home”.
- See also: China steps up talk of joining CPTPP; by Jacob Atkins | gtreview.com (GLOBAL TRADE REVIEW) | Asia / 11-MARCH-2021
- China has sent fresh signals it is seriously considering joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), as part of the Asian giant’s new drive to boost further trade integration.
- The CPTPP came into effect in late 2019, and comprises 11 countries including Australia, Canada, Japan and Mexico. It succeeded the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which former US President Donald Trump withdrew his country from in 2017. …
- China already has bilateral free trade deals with several of the agreement’s signatories, and late last year wrapped up the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which covers the 10 ASEAN member states, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea. …
- Because it was not one of the countries that originally negotiated the pact, China will have to largely accept the trading rules as they are, says Toohey, an assistant dean at the university’s law school. …
- If China joins, it will also wield negotiating power if the US also attempts to re-enter the bloc under new President Joe Biden, says Deborah Elms, executive director at the Asian Trade Centre, a think tank.
- “The advantage of being in versus being out… is that the current members get to decide whether new members are going to be allowed in. And of course they get to decide, in part with the others, what are the provisions that [they’re] going to accept from this new member.”
- … as further positive messages come out from the Chinese administration about the potential for the country’s accession to the deal, the US will have to move quickly in order not to be shut out.
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Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig 