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Strengths and Weaknesses of ICC Warrant for Putin’s Arrest
Brief #178 – Foreign Policy
by Yelena Korshunov
The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for the Russian president, Valdimir Putin, and Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova. The warrants were issued in relation to the forced unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Re-Energizing the Nations’ EV Infrastructure
Brief #82 – Technology Policy
by Steve Piazza
The bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed back in November, 2021 has reportedly already provided funding for over 20,000 projects related to strengthening the nation’s present and future transportation and energy needs. Beyond providing support for more traditional activities focusing on highways and bridges, the law has paved the way for advancements in electric vehicle (EV) technologies.
Dark Money in Politics: Understanding its Impact, Origins, and How to Combat It
Brief #71 – Elections & Politics
by Inijah Quadri
In recent years, there has been a growing concern about the influence of money in politics, particularly in the form of “dark money.” “Dark money” refers to political spending by groups that are not required to disclose their donors. Dark money can be used for a variety of political activities, including advertising campaigns, direct mail campaigns, and issue advocacy.
The Ukraine Crisis: Situation Update: #21
Brief #177 – Foreign Policy
by Abran C
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for the alleged crime of overseeing the abduction of Ukrainian children. According to the ICC there is credible evidence of Ukrainian children being forcibly removed from their homes and being sent into Russia at the orders of President Putin.
Banning TikTok Won’t Make the Data Safe
Brief #81 – Technology Policy
by Mindy Spatt
TikTok is under attack from all sides. The Biden Administration is threatening to ban the app altogether, the Justice department is investigating it, advocates say it is dangerous to children, a school district is suing, and governments in the US and the UK won’t allow their workers to use it.
Dominion Voting Machines and Its Case Against Fox
Brief #70 – Elections & Politics
by Maureen Darby-Serson
Dominion, known publicly for the use of their voting machines during the 2020 election, sued Fox news for defamation in court, with some documents being made public this past month.
Important Elections in the First Half of 2023: Municipal Elections
Brief #65 – Elections & Politics
by Ian Milden
While the year before a Presidential election doesn’t often feature major federal elections, many local offices are up for election this year. Municipal officeholders have the power to shape policy on issues such as transportation, infrastructure, housing, public safety, and other government services.
The Diversification of US Soccer
Brief #176 – Foreign Policy
By Reilly Fitzgerald
The North American Soccer League was a league developed in the mid-1960s and lasted until the mid-1980s. It was a VERY poor league when it started, in every sense of the word. It did not have a lot of money, as soccer was not a major athletic interest in the United States (even though it was being played in Europe and around the world since the late 1800s). The quality of play in the sport was severely lacking, so much so that the immigrant communities in the US were not interested at all, according to an article from The Conversation. Also, European players who attempted to come and play in the United States were quickly frustrated and didn’t even consider it to be the same sport as European football. To address this lack of talent, and quality, the NASL decided to try and tempt high quality players from under-represented countries, in world football, to come to the United States to play.
Department of Labor Rescinds Religious Exemption Rule Used To Discriminate
Brief #202 – Civil Rights
By Rodney A. Maggay
In 2019, the Trump Administration proposed a Department of Labor (DOL) rule that expanded the interpretation of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 as applied to employees of federal contractors.
Abortion: How Abortion Rulings Could Affect Women in America
Abortion: How Abortion Rulings Could Affect Women in America
Health & Gender Policy Brief #149 | By: Inijah Quadri | November 22, 2022
Header photo taken from: PBS Newshour
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Photo taken via Facebook
Policy Summary
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By basically overturning Roe v. Wade, six unelected Supreme Court judges took away the right of tens of millions of women to make their own decisions about their bodies. After their ruling, several areas in the United States were to be transformed into a dystopian nightmare of online tyranny, where even a Google search for “abortion medication” could be used as evidence against people seeking abortions. Your location data could also be used against you if you try to have an abortion in another state where it is still allowed. This was considered a total nightmare for most people.
Surprisingly, the New York concealed carry law was knocked down by the same Supreme Court the day after Roe v. Wade was reversed, making it easier to carry a concealed weapon in public. Thus, the Supreme Court made a ruling the same week that states do not have the authority to adopt their own gun-control laws but do have the right to establish their own women’s control measures. This caused a lot of uproar, some of which suggested that women should “start lobbying to get uteruses recognized as a legitimate type of assault weapon.”
Policy Analysis
In the wake of recent abortion bans being passed in several states , many women are left wondering what this could mean for their reproductive rights. While the full effects of these bans are yet to be seen, it is most likely that they would have a negative impact on women’s health and well-being.
For one, abortion bans could lead to an increase in the number of unsafe, illegal abortions. This is because women who are unable to get legal abortions may resort to desperate measures in order to end their pregnancies. This could put their health and even their lives at risk.
In addition, abortion bans could also make it more difficult for women to access other essential reproductive healthcare services, such as birth control and prenatal care. This is because many of these services are provided by the same clinics that offer abortions.
Third, women who need or want abortions would be forced to either travel to another state or another country to get one. This would put them at risk of both physical and legal harm. Women who can’t afford to travel or take time off from work would be especially harmed by these bans.
Fourth, abortion bans would also likely lead to an increase in unplanned pregnancies. This would put a strain on both the women themselves, as it would limit women’s career aspirations. It could also lead to several employers refusing to employ “childbearing” women, even if they are not pregnant at the time of seeking the job. This will inevitably cause inequality down the line between men and women.
Photo taken from: Teresa Crawford / The Associated Press
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What Voters Did To Protect Abortion Rights in the Recent Elections
Voters in various places where the issue of abortion rights was on the ballot unanimously voted to uphold women’s access to safe and legal abortion. Many states, including Kentucky, Michigan, Vermont, California, and Montana, saw a surge in support for abortion rights.
Voters also rejected a bid to alter the Constitution to explicitly outlaw abortion in Kentucky, an extremely conservative state. In Montana, a majority of voters opposed a measure that would have further restricted access to abortion.
Chart taken from: The Conversation (.com)
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is clear that abortion bans could have a significant impact on women in America. Not only would they be criminalized for having an abortion, but they would also face a number of other challenges. While it is impossible to know exactly how many women would be affected by an abortion ban, it is clear that most American men and women are not waiting to find out; with the recent elections, it is clear that at least a few men and women are willing to consider abortion bans.
We hope that this citizen outcry will lead to a more open dialogue between individuals in the United States corridors of power about abortion and the role it plays in people’s lives. In addition, we hope that this dialogue will lead to a reinstatement of Roe v. Wade which will see an increased number of women having abortions when they need them.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
CBS New York: (https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/live-updates/supreme-court-new-york-concealed-carry-gun-law/)
CNN Business: (https://edition.cnn.com/2022/06/24/tech/abortion-laws-data-privacy/index.html)
CNN Politics: (https://edition.cnn.com/2022/11/09/politics/abortion-rights-2022-midterms/index.html)
Occupy Democrats: (https://m.facebook.com/OccupyDemocrats/photos/a.347907068635687/1728121793947534/)
PBS News Hour: (https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-what-the-abortion-debate-in-kentucky-will-mean-for-a-post-roe-america)
The New York Times: (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/us/abortion-laws-roe-v-wade.html)
Time: (https://time.com/6232659/montana-abortion-referendum-fails-midterms-2022/)
Wikipedia: (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_v._Wade)
The Move Away from Plastic is Looking Just as Flimsy
The Move Away from Plastic is Looking Just as Flimsy
Environmental Policy Brief #150 | By: Todd J. Broadman | November 24, 2022
Header photo taken from: iStock
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Photo taken from: Reuters / Pierre Albouy
Policy Summary
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We are a world addicted to plastic, the most perceivable, persistent and pervasive indicator of the Anthropocene. Plastics are produced from natural gas, feedstocks derived from natural gas processing, and each year more is produced. The current production rate is 400 million metric tons and is the source of 5% of CO2 emissions. By 2030 it will be 600 million metric tons, and 800 by 2040.
In addition to its contribution to greenhouse gas in its production, 91% of plastic is not recycled and much of it ends up in the ocean, about 200 million tons by current estimates; about 10 million tons are added each year with some of it flowing to one of five major gyres, ocean currents that gather marine garbage into their vortexes.
To limit plastics use, there was an agreement put in place in 2018: the EMF Global Commitment. Since its inception, global corporate brands like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Mars actually increased the amount of plastic they create since its launch in 2018. Companies like Nestlé point a finger at the lack of infrastructure as the main barrier for a plastic-free future. Nestlé is therefore actively advocating for a legally binding global plastics treaty and the prospect of new, harmonized national regulations.
95% of their packaging will be made for recycling by 2025; Coca-Cola, a major COP27 sponsor, has chimed-in saying that 100% of their packaging will be recyclable by 2025. Coca-Cola produces around 120 billion oil-based plastic bottles annually, according to anti-plastics campaigners Break Free from Plastics. Around 99% of the bottles are produced with fossil fuels and most are not recycled.
The ocean is showing signs of succumbing to toxic microplastics. By 2050, there could be more plastic in the oceans, by weight, than fish. Cleaning up what is there is proving a technical challenge. In fact, Katie Matthews, chief scientist at the nonprofit advocacy group Oceana, said that we need to face a reality in which “We can’t clean up our way out of plastic pollution.” Microplastics have made their way throughout the food chain from phytoplankton to zooplankton, in turn consumed by mollusks and small crustaceans like shrimp, and eventually all the way to the bodies of baleen and blue whales. Research shows that zooplankton actually graze directly on microplastics. So ubiquitous, there is a layer of sea called the plastisphere. On land, microplastics are found in human blood, feces, and in the placentas of unborn babies. Their impacts on health are yet to be determined and are under research.
Policy Analysis
91% of plastics end up either in landfills or in the water system. Over time, the plastic is broken down into pepper flake sizes, all-combined they tally up to half a million tons. Much of it not from obvious sources, these microplastics come from synthetic clothing, personal care products, tires, city dust, and from the breakdown of plastic debris. Sewage treatment plants are not equipped to filter them and they end up in the ocean. Studies of ocean sediments find that the amount of plastics found correlates with production increases over time.
Large scale ocean clean-up at this juncture will not take place. While cleanup technologies have a role to play in cleaning up ocean plastic, no single solution can effectively reduce ocean plastic. Just 1% of ocean plastic ends up in the large patches or gyres and the remainder is spread thin over thousands of square miles. What researchers agree on is that societies must undergo a fundamental and systemic change that includes the banning of single-use plastics, using compostable materials, and mandating recycling for everything else.
“We’re pretty close to it all being too late,” said Judith Enck, founder of Beyond Plastics and a former regional director for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. She references the large number of ethane cracking facilities, the latest in high technology plastics production. “If even a quarter of these ethane cracking facilities are built,” she says, “it’s locking us into a plastic future that is going to be hard to recover from.”
Though spotty, governments around the world have been taking action. Many US cities, including New York and Chicago, ban or tax plastic bags. The European Union went as far as banning single-use plastics outright in June of 2021. The goal of the ban is to establish a circular economy that emphasizes the needs of reuse, repair, and recycle in the design and manufacturing of plastics and plastic products.
In March of 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) passed a resolution that mandated a treaty be created to address plastic pollution throughout the entire production cycle. The treaty will be legally binding – the equivalent of the Paris Accords on climate change. It is to include micro- and nanoplastics and associated toxic chemicals. Details are too finalized by 2024.
Like the Paris Agreement, targets were set and are not expected to be met in large part because economies have not taken the necessary steps to transition away from petroleum-based products and services.
Chart taken from: Dynisco, Photo taken from Getty
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“In the context of a world trying to shift off of fossil fuels as an energy source,” says Steven Feit, a staff attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law, “plastics are where [oil and gas companies] see the growth.”
While those efforts are taking shape, Shell’s $6 billion ethane cracking plant – a facility that turns ethane into ethylene, a building block for many kinds of plastic – is now operational in Pennsylvania. That plant alone has the capacity to produce up 1.6 million tons of plastic. This represents the “renaissance in U.S. plastics manufacturing,” whose output goes not only into packaging and single-use items such as cutlery, bottles, and bags, but also longer-lasting uses like construction materials and parts for cars and airplanes.
On a positive note, the use of virgin plastic by major brands is going down in favor of recycled material. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has spearheaded the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty which they say will feed into the U.N.’s upcoming treaty. Yet as industry is given a green light to continue with plastics production, there is a lack of investment in recycling infrastructure and flexible packaging. There are no plastics off-ramps that government is offering and the production of reusable plastic is actually falling year on year.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
https://www.hrw.org/ investigates and reports on abuses happening in all corners of the world.
https://www.plasticsoupfoundation.org/ focuses on the link between plastics and human health.
https://www.smartgreenpost.com/ a blog on environmental issues, from climate change to recycling.
https://www.foodpackagingforum.org/ enables stakeholders to make better decisions on the environmental impacts of food packaging.
Examining the Integrity of Voting Systems
Examining the Integrity of Voting Systems
Technology Policy Brief #73 | By: Steve Piazza | November 15, 2022
Header photo taken from: Brett Deering / Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Center on Extremism
Policy Summary
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In 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). HAVA’s passage enhanced existing policy established under the 1971 Federal Election Campaign Act, which created the National Clearinghouse for Information on the Administration of Elections.
The purpose of the newer legislation, which grew out of the contentious election of 2000, was to improve communication between election officials. It also transferred oversight from the Federal Election Commission to the newly formed Election Assistance Commission (EAC).
Amongst other things, HAVA fosters the ongoing commitment to improving technology that replaces outdated, unreliable balloting equipment. This includes adherence to its national elections guidelines addressing the development, certification, and verification processes of voting related operating systems.
It should be noted that EAC acts as a clearinghouse for information and not as a decision making body mandating which voting machines are to be used. That is left up to the states.
Policy Analysis
Following unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud during the 2020 election, voting equipment suddenly found itself at the center of intense scrutiny. Select images of antiquated and assailable equipment, controversial topics which had been brewing for years, suddenly motivated 2020 election result deniers to seize on the opportunity and attempt to lay blame on everything from the machines to the manufacturers themselves.
Use of electronic voting equipment dates all the way back to the original lever machines of the 1890s. More modern versions surfaced in the 1960s when punch cards and scanned paper ballots came into being. Since the 1970s, direct recording electronic (DRE) voting machines and other paper ballot tabulation systems have become commonplace, though some hand counting still exists in a few locations.
The Voter-Verified (or Verifiable) Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) was also established and has become more widespread. To date, the use of mobile and other remote devices has been discouraged because of the difficulties in being able to generate a secure paper trail.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (CSL) local jurisdictions select and purchase voting systems, but before they are able to do so the system must go through a testing process to ensure that it meets state standards and in some cases federal standards as well.
Voting system vendors are responsible for ensuring that the system is tested—often through a federally accredited Voting Systems Test Laboratory or VSTL—to the required standards. Once testing is complete, approval is issued at the state level and local jurisdictions may purchase the system. Thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia use some aspect of the federal testing and certification program in addition to state-specific testing and certification of systems:
Recently, millions and millions of dollars have been spent on equipment in the United States that has resulted in a number of different configurations. These range from optical scan voting systems that read hand marked paper ballots to DREs providing a touchscreen that generates a paper printout which then must be fed through a scanner to tabulate.
Diagram taken from: Brennan Center for Justice
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During the U.S. 2022 midterms, and largely because of reactionary changes in state legislation, nearly 70% of Americans used the optical scan method while almost 25% used a DRE of some kind. By contrast, 92% of countries worldwide use manual paper balloting, and only 10% use a mix of paper ballot and voting machines.
Voting technology world-wide has become much more advanced and is not as vulnerable as some may think, mostly because machines are not on the Internet, a common misconception, and most countries use them adhering to established standards of functionality based on functionality, security, privacy, usability and accessibility (NCSL).
For example Brazil has a nationwide system of voting that only uses voting machines. The entire country votes on one day using the same voting machines which tabulate a result at the end of the day. In Brazil’s most recent presidential election, where soon to be defeated President Jair Bolsonaro railed against the possibility of rigged machines without providing evidence, the election resumed only when it was agreed that the military step in and administer the final counts.
Though the military did report that vulnerabilities for malicious code do exist, it must be emphasized that no irregularities were proven, testimony to the country possessing one the best machine-based election systems in the world.
Photo taken from: Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images
One had to expect that the midterms would lead to claims of faulty machines. Almost immediately on election day, a number of minor complaints and attempts to perpetuate conspiracy theories surfaced, mostly on social media. These included:
- A computer snafu in Detroit resulted in duplicate numbered ballots.
- In Arizona, printer errors occurred in 60 locations and voting tabulators malfunctioned in another 44.
- A scanner malfunctioned in Mercer County, New Jersey.
- Some printers ran out of paper in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.
- In New York City, complaints over voting difficulties circulated after a voter inadvertently tried to use the AutoMark machine, an assistive ballot device for marking not tabulating.
Minor glitches like these were quickly resolved and there was no evidence of widespread fraud, just as in the 2020 election. Officials claim that any problems were from accidental human error and that the real culprit here is disinformation, a lingering symptom to be sure.
Voting machines still contain some vulnerability to being accessed improperly. But that’s why the popularity of the paper trail strategy is still growing, and that ongoing analysis of voting machine technology is vital. The United States as a whole has a mixed (machine and paper-based) system for recording the votes of citizens. The system seems to be working as witnessed by the last 2 election cycles that have been conducted with no large scale fraud.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Here is a link to the U.S. EAC page on everything pertaining to voting equipment across the country: https://www.eac.gov/voting-equipment/system-certification-process
The Verified Voting Foundation is a non profit organization advocating for election security in the use of technology: https://verifiedvoting.org/
Learn more about processes and equipment used in your state by clicking here: https://ballotpedia.org/Voting_methods_and_equipment_by_state
Taking a Look at the Georgia Runoff Election
Taking a Look at the Georgia Runoff Election
Elections & Politics Policy Brief #45 | By: Ian Milden | November 16, 2022
Header photo taken from: 11alive.com
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Photo taken from: The Associated Press / Bob Strong / Reuters
Policy Summary
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Georgia’s Senate Race is going to a runoff. The runoff will be held on December 6th. This brief will explain the concept of runoff elections and take a look at what both parties are doing to prepare for the runoff.
Policy Analysis
Runoff elections are a second round of elections held if no candidate received a majority of the vote. In the United States, runoffs tend to be part of the election system in southern states and usually are only in place after primary elections. Georgia has runoffs in general elections in addition to primary elections.
After the Democratic victories in the 2021 runoff elections, Republicans in the Georgia state legislature voted to change the laws regarding runoffs. They voted to shorten the time between the general election and the runoff to four weeks. They also put new restrictions on early voting and registering new voters between election day and the runoff.
Runoff elections tend to have low voter turnout rates because many voters are not aware of their existence or forget the date of the runoff election, so campaigns tend to emphasize turning out voters who make up their party’s base. The new rules for runoffs reinforce this dynamic and severely limit strategic alternatives for campaigns.
The DSCC, the official campaign arm of Senate Democrats, announced plans to heavily invest in voter contact and turnout to help the campaign of Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA). The DSCC can also legally coordinate its efforts with the Warnock campaign.
Republicans are turning to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R-GA), who just won a second term, to help Herschel Walker (R-GA). Kemp will loan his campaign’s get-out-the-vote operation to the Senate Leadership Fund, a Super PAC run by people with close ties to Mitch McConnell. This loan includes members of Kemp’s staff as well as his data analytics operations. The Super PAC will cover all of the associated costs. There are legal restrictions on the ability of Super PACs to coordinate with official campaign operations.
Photo taken from: Nicole Craine / The New York Times
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This is a significant strategic shift for the Super PAC because they have never conducted voter turnout operations. Their previous major expenses to help campaigns were usually television and digital ads. While Kemp’s team is very experienced in helping Brian Kemp win elections in Georgia, Herschel Walker trailed Kemp’s vote count by over 200,000 votes due to voters being unwilling to look past Walker’s long list of scandals. This was a trend that early polling detected in this year’s elections.
The results of the November election were what the polls suggested was the most likely outcome. Raphael Warnock led Herschel Walker by a close margin, but he did not get enough votes to avoid a runoff. I would expect the runoff election to also be close and have a lower voter turnout rate than the November election did.
This race will be decided by who shows up to vote. Based on the results of the November election and the strategic decisions that Republicans and Democrats have announced, Warnock winning re-election is a slightly more likely outcome, but Walker can win if Democrats don’t show up to vote on December 6th.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Senator Warnock’s Campaign Website
https://warnockforgeorgia.com/
DSCC – Official Campaign Arm of Senate Democrats
Petersburg and Moscow Deputies Demand Putin’s Resignation
Petersburg and Moscow Deputies Demand Putin’s Resignation
Foreign Policy Brief #156 | By: Yelena Korshunov | November 14, 2022
Header photo taken from: Radio Free Europe
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In September 2022, the deputies of the St. Petersburg municipal district Smolninskoye turned to the State Duma (Congress) with a proposal to dismiss president Vladimir Putin and additionally accuse him of treason for the violent war in Ukraine. Within a week, the deputies were accused of “discrediting the army” and fined, and the court launched a procedure for the dissolution of the municipal council.
Photo taken from: meduza.io
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Meantime millions of people had already left Ukraine, and the deaths of thousands of Ukrainian civilians — including hundreds of children — had already been documented. “I set out these statistics in a letter,” says one of the initiators of the appeal, municipal deputy Nikita Yuferev in his interview to Russian oppositionist portal Meduza, “and sent it to Putin, demanding that he give the order to end the “military operation” for humanitarian reasons. In a while, I received a response from the presidential administration stating “Your proposal has been reviewed. We inform you that a special military operation is underway for demilitarization and denazification.”
“It is important to clarify that we understand that our appeals are not read, at best they are watched by assistants or advisers”, says Mr. Yuferev. “We understand that this will not have any effect on them, they will not burst into tears and will not end the “special military operation”, but we are carrying out these actions so that people who are in Russia and who do not agree [with the authorities] know that they are not alone. Now everyone is surrounded by an information bubble of state propaganda, which convinces them that everyone is for Putin.
We are trying to show people that they are not alone and that there is a whole municipal government that opposes the current government and its policies. In my opinion, the main change has to happen in people’s minds. After we voted for a letter with an appeal to the State Duma to dismiss the president, on the night of September 8th I received an SMS [text message] that they were waiting for me at the police department. In the morning we went there with a lawyer to give explanations. The following week, we were all convicted of “discrediting” and ordered to pay a fine. But the main effect of this letter has already happened: thousands of people write to us about how they support us.”
“Moreover, the very next day after our meeting,” continuous Yuferev, “ the council of deputies of the Lomonosovsky municipality in Moscow made a similar statement. They wrote a beautiful and elegant letter where they explained to Putin himself why he does not suit Russia and why his methods are outdated and do not work. Following this, my Moscow colleague Ksenia Torstrem launched a petition for municipal deputies from all over Russia demanding that Putin resign.
As far as I know, deputies from 35 municipalities have already signed it. In total, she has about 70 verified signatures of municipal deputies. Of course, we may be prosecuted criminally, there is such a fear. Last year, on August 4, 2021, an explosive device detonated at our meeting, injuring four deputies. Therefore, a fine, in my opinion, is not the worst thing that can happen. It is clear that all this is a fight against windmills, but the deputies are determined. We cannot change everything in Russia, but we must do something to the best of our ability.”
Policy Analysis
Photo taken from: glavcom.ua
I hope these brave people and their families are safe and not thrown into prison as were many others who dared to protest against the unleashed war. Even if at a first glance it looks like their voices are a “fight against windmills”, the estaphet seems to be passed up high, to the Russia’s president’s surroundings.
A couple of media sources reported that a significant figure in Putin’s court, Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, privately confronted the Russian president in recent weeks. The British intelligence previously stated that Putin’s entourage, particularly Prigozhin, is increasingly criticizing the Russian military command and provoking discussions about civil war.
“Yevgeny Prigozhin and social networks associated with Wagner are increasingly talking about the ineffectiveness of traditional Russian military institutions and social problems, which can indirectly undermine the power of the Kremlin,” said experts of the Institute for the Study of War.
And that is what Prigozhin recently posted on the Vkontakte (a Russian social media platform) speaking about Ukrainian president Volodimir Zelensky, “Although he is the president of a country that’s hostile to Russia right now, Zelensky is a strong, confident, pragmatic and nice guy.”
Don’t underestimate him,” he wrote later. In the perspective of hundreds of thousands of Russians leaving the country as a result of the “partial” mobilization call, the retreat of Russian troops in Ukraine, protests on the streets, and disagreement in the highest echelons of power, Vladimir Putin’s authority started weakening and his seemingly sturdy throne showed some cracks.
The Implications of November 8th, 2022
The Implications of November 8th, 2022
Elections & Politics Policy Brief #44 | By: Maureen Darby-Serson | November 10, 2022
Header photo taken from: Sean Rayford / Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Doug Mills / The New York Times
Policy Summary
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The elections on Tuesday November 8th, 2022, may be one of the most impactful elections we will have seen in our lifetime to date. With the US House of Representative and US Senate up for grabs, Democrats were preparing for the worst but hoped for the best.
It looks like they were met with results somewhere in the middle. History tells us that the political party that holds the presidency, which is the Democrats right now, tend to not do well in midterm elections. With the current numbers in the House and Senate and this historical fact, this means that the Democrats could have lost Congress and lost big. Many were expecting a “Red Wave”, where Republicans sweep elections and take over several seats. This did not occur this past Tuesday.
Of note, there are still some elections waiting to be decided. Namely, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona. Georgia will likely see a run-off election in December as neither candidate reached the 50% threshold for votes. As of writing this article, the Senate is split with each party having 48 seats and the Republicans controlling the House with 208 seats versus the Democrats 188. But again, there are still some seats waiting to be decided.
Policy Analysis
This means a lot for President Joe Biden and his agenda. With the Republicans potentially controlling the House, he may not be able to get some of his agenda items on to the floor to be voted on and passed into law. This will make him look like an ineffective president, when, it is an ineffective government who is not willing to work with the other party for the good of the nation.
This also means that President Biden has made history with one of the best midterm elections a sitting president has seen in recent times. What does this mean? It could be several things. Many Trump-backed candidates did not win, so maybe people are tired of the Republican rhetoric.
Women came out to vote, maybe due to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Younger people came out to vote, maybe because they are tired of not being heard on gun control.
Illustration by: Jeff Koterba
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Either way, this means good things for Democrats. Will this mean good things to come? We shall see in 2024.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
https://it.usembassy.gov/what-are-midterm-elections-and-why-are-they-important/
https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-live-updates-896439f8b5fe09824d8f6cd98580a051
Situation Update: # 15 The Ukraine Crisis
Situation Update: #15 The Ukraine Crisis
Foreign Policy Brief #155 | By: Abran C | November 10, 2022
Header photo taken from: Viacheslav Ratynskyi / Reuters
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Fighting and Retreat from Kherson
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After 260 days of war, the fighting in Ukraine is still raging as firece as ever, yet Ukranian forces have made more gains in recent weeks than they had in the first months of the war. Russia on Wednesday ordered its forces to withdraw from the city of Kherson, the only regional capital captured by Russian forces since the invasion began back in February. The withdrawal of Russian forces from the city signals another blow to the Kremlin’s efforts in Ukraine.
Kherson is one of the four regions that Putin proclaimed back in September to be incorporating into Russia. The annexation of the territory came after a sham referendum that was condemned as illegal by Ukraine and much of the international community. Yet only two months later, the Kremlin has at least for now, lost control of what is supposedly Russian territory.
Additionally, only hours before the withdrawal, the Russian-installed deputy of Kherson, Kirill Stremousov, was killed in a car crash, making him the second Russian official killed in Kherson this since June. Stremousov was a dual Ukrainian and Russian citizen, and was one of the most prominent faces of Russia’s occupation in Ukraine’s territory. He had been urging civilians to evacuate Kherson and flee across the Dnieper River in the wake of the Ukrainian counteroffensive to retake the city.
With the Russian retreat from Kherson and weeks of losses in Ukraine, Putin announced that 50,000 reservists, which were called up under Moscow’s partial mobilization, have been deployed and are now involved in active warfare. A signal that Moscow intends to continue the fight and recapture territory liberated by Ukrainian forces. Ukranian officials are wary that the withdrawal may only be a regrouping for another push that is likely to come later.
International Support of Russia
Photo taken from: Radio Free Europe
Russia has become increasingly isolated in the international community and certainly among Western states. Western countries have made trade and even travel for Russian tourists increasingly difficult as a result of the Kremlin’s war.
Though even with the barrage of sanctions, restrictions, and condemnation from Western leaders, there has been relief for Russia from other global players. India has announced it will continue buying Russian oil ahead of a G7 meeting where Western powers had hoped to meet and agree to put further pressure on Russia. This week Indian foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, in his first visit to Russia since the invasion of Ukraine, said, “We have seen that the India-Russia relationship has worked to our advantage. If it works to my advantage, I would like to keep that going.”
The move counters Western efforts to cripple Russia’s economy with sanctions that explicitly target its energy export sectors. Russia and India are also considering the joint production of modern defence equipment. Moscow has been India’s biggest supplier of military equipment for decades, with India having imported arms worth more than $20 billion between 2011 and 2021.
Russia’s security chief, Nikolai Patrushev, also this week met with his Iranian counterpart and the Iranian president in an effort to deepen ties between the two countries that have been isolated by Western powers.
The Iranian president said Iran remains opposed to the war as a fundamental policy, nevertheless the two countries would be upgrading relations to a new “strategic” level, something he said is “a decisive response to the policy of sanctions of the United States and its allies. Iran has been accused by Ukraine of supplying Russia with drones used to attack Ukrainian infrastructure.
Ukraine has faced blackouts, with 40% of the country’s energy infrastructure having been damaged after weeks of Russian attacks using Shahed-136 kamikaze drones and other types of unmanned aerial vehicles manufactured by Iran. The Iranian government has acknowledged that it had supplied drones to Russia, but claims the sale of weapons occurred before the invasion and not after.
Brittney Griner’s Sentencing in Russian Trial
Brittney Griner’s Sentencing in Russian Trial
Foreign Policy Brief #154 | By: Reilly Fitzgerald | November 10, 2022
Header photo taken from: AFP / Getty Images
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Policy Summary
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WNBA star Britney Griner is one of several American citizens wrongfully detained in Russia. Her arrest took place within about one week of the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine. She was arrested on trumped up charges of ‘drug smuggling’ while traveling to Russia to play on a team during the WNBA off-season. She was convicted of drug smuggling, due to her carrying a small amount of cannabis oil into Russia, which she was prescribed by her doctor in the United States.
Russia over the summer conducted a trial, and found her guilty of drug smuggling and recentlysentenced her to nine years in a penal colony. She is not the only American citizen wrongfully imprisoned in Russia though; Paul Whelan is an American detained on espionage charges; and Mark Fogel is another American citizen who was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for carrying cannabis into Russia with a prescription from his doctor, very similar to Britney Griner.
Policy Analysis
Russia is well-known for its ‘zero tolerance policy’ toward illicit drugs, which is how the Russian government views cannabis. However, Russia is also infamous for its well-documented alcoholism rates and addiction problems.
So, it may seem a little disingenuous for Russia to be claiming a ‘zero tolerance policy’ towards illicit drugs and addictive behaviors – none of which Griner has exhibited by an American standard where cannabis use is legalized in many states. She was prescribed the cannabis oil by a licensed physician.
Griner’s sentencing to nine years in a penal colony is extremely alarming. First off, the location of the penal colony is unknown, as of yet. The penal colonies that are in use in Russia are often on the sites of former gulags; former Russian prison work camps that were used, in the height of the Soviet Union’s reign, to jail political opposition.
The gulags, and now these penal colonies, were, and are, well-known for their horrific and inhumane conditions. Prisoners are often working outside doing manual labor (akin to forced labor or enslavement); they have poor hygiene conditions and lack health care services.
PBS Newshour interviewed Julia Ioffe, a distinguished Russian-American journalist, recently and she explained that these penal colonies are often the most common sentence for women, especially foreigners, who are found guilty on drug charges. Ioffe also stated that Griner was going to be “guilty no matter what” in the current state of Russian affairs.
Ioffe also made the point that she worries for Griner’s safety in these penal colonies as these camps are already intensely political amongst the prisoners and the fact that Griner does not speak Russian will be a major hindrance to her ability to remain safe. Ioffe also pointed out that these penal colonies are rife with sexual violence towards the prisoners from the guard staff.
Photo taken from: Marijuana Moment
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The White House is still trying to discuss with Moscow the release of Griner, and the other Americans wrongfully detained in Russia; although, these talks have been not progressing well. There were rumors regarding a potential prisoner exchange between the two countries as the United States has jailed Viktor Bout, a former international arms dealer. However, these discussions, according to Julia Ioffe have been difficult as Moscow has increased their demands on the United States by adding more prisoners that they would like sent back to Russia; one example given by Ioffe was the release of a former FSB officer who is imprisoned in Germany for assassinating a person in a park.
These types of demands are impossible for the United States to negotiate with as President Biden cannot control, nor interfere, with the legal proceedings of the German government. As long as these types of demands are made by the Russians, the likelihood of a prisoner exchange for Griner seems to diminish.
The jailing of Griner and others took place just before the start of the Russian war in Ukraine. Russia has viewed the war in Ukraine almost as a proxy-war against the United States, as the US has been a large supporter of Ukraine militarily and financially through this conflict.
The imprisonment of Griner is a part of this political puzzle and a way for the Russian government to inflict some harm and damage to the United States government. President Putin and his allies are essentially kidnapping American citizens for political reasons.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
James W. Foley Legacy Foundation (https://jamesfoleyfoundation.org/american-hostage-advocacy )
Russia – DrugPolicyFacts.org (https://www.drugpolicyfacts.org/region/russia)
Amazon is a Hazardous Place to Work, But Don’t Dare Tell the Company to Change
Amazon is a Hazardous Place to Work, But Don’t Dare Tell the Company to Change
Technology Policy Brief #72 | By: Mindy Spatt | November 8, 2022
Header photo taken from: Chris J Ratcliffe | AFP | Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Claudine Hellmuth / E&E News
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]Workers, regulators even its own investors want Amazon to improve its abysmal worker safety record. But the company has fought tooth and nail to quash those efforts.
Working conditions at Amazon’s warehouses are among the worst in the US. High quotas and constant surveillance likely contribute to injury rates for Amazon workers that are substantially higher than for comparable businesses; Amazon’s injury rate for warehouse workers was more than twice as high as Walmart’s in 2020, and its serious injury rate for warehouse workers was about 80% higher than for the industry overall.
These alarming statistics drove the company’s own investors, including Digital investment platform Tulipshare, to propose resolutions at Amazon’s 2022 annual meeting calling for the company to report on worker health and safety and the treatment of its warehouse workers.
The company’s board opposed the resolution which predictably failed, along with 14 others on worker safety. “Whilst we are disappointed that our proposal did not pass today, this vote was just the beginning in the fight for workers’ rights,” said Antoine Argouges, CEO and founder of Tulipshare, adding that Amazon had not yet disclosed by what percentage the proposal was rejected.
Argouges also said he believed there was widespread support for the resolution among investors, and indicated his intention to continue “the fight for better working conditions at Amazon.”
In its home state, Amazon is battling with the Washington Department of Labor & Industries over hazardous conditions at a warehouse in Kent, Washington.The Department found that workers were under pressure to lift, carry, and twist at a rapid pace, which the Board said was likely to lead to injury. The Department fined Amazon a paltry $60,000 and ordered the company to change these practices and decrease the potential harm to workers.
Amazon Would Rather Fight Than Change
Rather than comply Amazon appealed the order, claiming the citation requiring the company to reduce to the alleged safety hazards before any appeal could be heard, would require expensive changes to its warehouse design and retraining warehouse employees.
In its appeal Amazon complained that the process required by the board would be extremely disruptive to its operation and cost millions.
And Amazon brazenly asserted its corporate personhood, claiming the order by the Department of Labor and Industries order violated its right to equal protection under the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, in collaboration with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. is also investigating potential workplace safety hazards at Amazon warehouses nationwide, CNBC recently reported.
OSHA inspectors are looking at many of the same practices mentioned above, including Amazon’s ergonomics program and Power Industrial Truck (known as PIT) operations. Employees working in this sector are required to drive forklifts to reach high shelves, move heavy items, and operate other potentially dangerous equipment.
OSHA may also be looking into extreme heat in Amazon facilities. Heat-related hazards are a new emphasis for the agency, and were one of the complaints that spurred a walkout in August by 160 employees at the Amazon’s San Bernardino International Airport facility
Photo taken from: Amazon, Wired
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Photo taken from: kadmy / iStockphoto
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Amazon’s Solution
Amazon has zeroed in on robots as the solution. “The movement of heavy packages, as well as the reduction of twisting and turning motions by employees, are areas we continually look to automate to help reduce risk of injury,” Amazon said.
But critics allege that not only do the robots not make workers safer, they may be making things worse. They claim injuries are on the increase in warehouses with workers, because they cause managers to “raise performance quotes.” So far, it looks like workers can’t win.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
The Strategic Organizing Center (SOC) is a democratic coalition of four labor unions: Service Employees International Union (SEIU), International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), Communications Workers of America (CWA) and United Farmworkers of America (UFW). Together, SOC-affiliated unions represent more than 4 million workers.
https://thesoc.org/news/amazons-safe-new-robot-wont-fix-its-worker-injury-problem/
Amazon warehouses face expanded probes into safety hazards as investigators visit three more sites by Annie Palmer, Aug. 2, 2022
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/02/three-more-amazon-warehouses-part-of-osha-safety-investigation.html
Inland Empire Amazon Workers United https://www.facebook.com/ieamazonworkers
Checking in on US Senate Races Before Election Day, Part 2
Checking in on US Senate Races Before Election Day, Part 2
Elections & Politics Policy Brief #42 | By: Ian Milden | November 2, 2022
Header photo taken from: Scott Olson—Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Rachel Woolf / The New York Times
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Election Day is November 8th. This Brief will take a look at some of the Senate Races I previewed over the summer and early fall and provide some short updates on the state of those races.
Colorado – For a Republican to win in Colorado, they would have to win not only conservative voters, but also a significant share of unaffiliated voters. Republican Nominee Joe O’Dea tried doing this in the primary and won over an underfunded conspiracy theorist.
Shortly after the primary, O’Dea got into a war of words with Trump, which may cost him votes from Trump’s supporters. Republicans didn’t make a significant investment in the state due to the unexpected expense in Ohio. Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) should win reelection, though the margin might be closer than Democrats would prefer.
New Hampshire – Republicans held their primary in September and nominated Don Bolduc, a retired general known for appearances on Fox News. The types of statements that got Bolduc on Fox News don’t sit well with many of New Hampshire’s moderate voters.
He’s been trying to backtrack on some of his more controversial statements on topics like the 2020 election and abortion in hopes that some voters have short memories. With the polls getting slightly tighter, a Super PAC with ties to the Heritage Foundation is spending money to help Bolduc. This is a closer race than Democrats hoped to have, but Bolduc is a flawed candidate. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) should still be favored to win reelection.
Photo taken from: WSAV-TV
Arizona – Blake Masters (R-AZ) was trailing significantly in most polls at the start of the General Election. As a result, the Senate Leadership Fund, the primary Super PAC supporting Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate, canceled its plans to run ads in the state. The NRSC has reinvested some money into the race, but it hasn’t made up for the cuts made by the Super PAC or Masters’ fundraising difficulties. The national environmental trends and polling trends within Arizona for all statewide races have moved towards the Republicans in recent weeks.
Photo taken from: The Associated Press
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Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) still leads narrowly in most polls (and often within the margin of error), and Masters still has a poor image among Arizona voters. I think Senator Kelly will still win as long as Democrats mail their ballots back, but I wouldn’t completely rule out Arizonans supporting Republicans in many state races this year.
Wisconsin – Mandela Barnes’ (D-WI) polling lead didn’t last long. Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) is now leading after spending on TV ads criticizing Barnes on crime.
Democrats have not been able to invest enough to prevent the ads from having an effect. The general election campaign has not only harmed Barnes’ image, but according to the Marquette University Law School Poll, Johnson’s image has improved. If Democrats don’t defeat Senator Johnson this year, then that will likely prompt some difficult conversations within the party about strategic directions.
Florida – I didn’t give Democrats a very good chance of winning the Florida Senate Race when I previously wrote about this race. National and statewide Democrats haven’t invested a significant amount of money in Florida for this year’s statewide elections. Florida probably shouldn’t be considered a swing state until Democrats develop a better strategy to compete in statewide elections.
Utah – There are not many polls for this race. The Dan Jones and Associates poll has gathered new data about every other month. The most recent one I could find was from early October. It still shows Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) in the lead, but unaffiliated candidate Evan McMullin has been slowly gaining support.
A more recent poll from Emerson College shows Lee with a wider lead. Voter perceptions of McMullin appear to be worse in the Emerson College poll when compared to earlier polls, which suggests that his chances of pulling off an upset are still slim.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
DSCC – Official Campaign Arm of Senate Democrats