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The House, led by Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), will be the source of most of the "Hundred Hours" measures. (AP/Susan Walsh)
Ethics and wage issues dominate the Democrats’ catchy “Hundred hours” of legislative initiatives (CSMonitor) in the 110th Congress, sworn in January 4. But significant proposals on homeland and energy security also are included, and how they fare could indicate how far the two parties are willing to cooperate on the country’s foreign policy challenges. The pledges of comity were quickly put to the test as Republicans said they were being bulldozed in the House of Representatives, where much of the initial action will take place. Democrats are also planning a series of oversight hearings (CSMonitor) beginning January 9 on a range of issues involving Iraq, including military strategy and reconstruction.
The Democrats quickly unveiled plans to implement the remaining recommendations of the bipartisan 9/11 Commission. They are set to propose a sweeping homeland security package calling for billions of dollars to be spent on measures to screen cargo bound for the United States, as well as stepped-up efforts (BosGlobe) to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has also announced she will create a new panel in the House Appropriations Committee—whose members would come from intelligence and appropriations committees—to oversee U.S. intelligence agencies. Budgeting for intelligence, however, would still come under the scrutiny of separate committees. There have been fresh calls from agencies like the Government Accountability Office for stronger oversight (PDF) of homeland security matters. The previous Republican-run Congress had a mixed record enacting the 9/11 recommendations on matters ranging from transportation security to adding border patrol agents.
Another initiative with potentially significant repercussions on foreign policy is an energy package (WashPost) aimed at boosting renewable energy sources and funded in part through increased royalties from energy companies engaged in offshore gas and oil production. Increasing investment in new energy technologies was one of a series of recommendations from CFR’s recent Independent Task Force on energy. Beyond the initial legislative flurry, Democrats could find common cause (Newsday) with the Bush administration on immigration and have pivotal influence on the Bush trade agenda, as this Backgrounder outlines.
But some analysts believe the issue that will color all other bipartisan dealings is Iraq. Party leaders have said their sweep of both legislative houses in November was in part a reflection of Americans’ desire for an exit strategy from Iraq. Still, Democrats and the Republican White House did stress the importance of cooperation in the aftermath of the midterm elections and the report of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group (ISG). President Bush’s immediate rejection of some top ISG recommendations and his expected call on January 10 for a limited surge of troops in Iraq flies in the face of Democrats’ calls for a phased withdrawal.
The Bush administration stole some of the Democrats’ spotlight during the first week of Congress by signaling a reshuffle (BBC) of significant diplomatic and military posts responsible for Iraq policy. Bush began the process on Friday by nominating John Negroponte to be the number two official in the State Department and proposing Retired Vice Admiral Mike McConnell as his replacement as director of national intelligence. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, now chaired by a critic of administration policy, Joseph Biden (D-DE), holds a private intelligence briefing on Iraq on Tuesday. That will be followed by a public hearing Wednesday with a panel of experts describing the current situation in Iraq.
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Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
The report of this bipartisan Task Force of distinguished leaders and experts represents a strong consensus on the importance of repairing America's immigration policy. It makes the case that maintaining America's political and economic leadership depends on attracting talented and hard-working immigrants, and on securing the country's borders in a smart, effective, and humane way.
This report finds that nuclear weapons will remain a fundamental element of U.S. national security in the near term, and makes recommendations on how to ensure the safety, security, and reliability of the U.S. deterrent nuclear force, prevent nuclear terrorism, and strengthen the nuclear nonproliferation regime.
About Independent Task Forces at CFR
Complete list of Task Force reports
Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report
provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.
For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
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