Bloomberg Opinion

The mandarins at the State Department have always had a somewhat ambivalent relationship with Capitol Hill, and that's putting it diplomatically. But especially these days, Congress's deference to the executive branch is hurting US diplomacy and foreign policy. A case in point is Ukraine, where Donald Trump's policies reflect neither the strategic interests of the United States nor the will of the American people, who support continued US aid. Some thoughts on how to begin fixing that: First, the Senate needs to bring its bipartisan Russia sanctions bill to a vote and work with like-minded House members to get it to Trump’s desk. That would not just help Ukraine. More broadly, it would begin to restore Congress’s exercise of its constitutional powers on foreign policy, which in the last two decades have gone from being a check and balance on the executive branch to a barely noticeable speed bump. Whether in lawmaking or oversight, roll call votes or even Congressional Research Service reports on international affairs, the data over the last two decades show what Patrick Haney and Bryan Marshall, professors of political science at Miami University, call “a deep falloff in congressional activity.” And their survey concludes in 2020, before partisan divisions deepened and the second Trump administration began feeding foreign policy agencies and institutions with congressional mandates and appropriations willy-nilly into the department of government efficiency woodchipper. More below on #Congress #foreignpolicy #Trump #sanctions

The Republican assault on EVs might seem like it's doing Detroit a favor but it really isn't. It isn't great for Tesla either. See my two minute take here and read the full column at Bloomberg Opinion https://lnkd.in/ezrpcJuU

I had a day out at Buckingham Palace to talk about royal finances, and why I reckon King Charles could sacrifice a palace or racehorse or two to help pay for Britain's crumbling hospitals and schools. Check it out and read the full article for Bloomberg Opinion here: https://lnkd.in/eM4kyN5H

The growth in the number of Americans collecting Social Security has been surging -- this is helping to support consumption and economic growth at a time when job growth has been slowing and the economy is dealing with all sorts of headwinds. https://lnkd.in/extkJg_X

The “Golden Dome” that is some day supposed to make North America safe from incoming enemy missiles has now made it into the One Big, Beautiful Bill wending its way through Congress, with a budget ask for a relatively small ante ($25 billion) into a pot that will eventually grow into the hundreds of billions. The idea sprung out of Donald Trump’s own golden dome, and the president, in presenting it this week, seemed appropriately effulgent. The question is whether this astronomically ambitious missile-defense shield — which will require sensors, interceptors, satellites, software, lasers and more, all of them stitched together seamlessly with artificial and human intelligence — is a good idea. I don’t just mean financially, but strategically: Would it make America (and possibly Canada) safer? (Read the whole column with this GIFT LINK) Bloomberg Opinion https://bit.ly/3HoqklC

New York Governor Kathy Hochul appears to have struck a deal with President Donald Trump to lift her state’s opposition to new gas pipelines in exchange for him restoring permission for an offshore wind farm. He may now shift his sights to New England. New England already sports the highest electricity prices in the Lower 48. It’s grid faces elevated risks during winter as gas is diverted to heat homes. A big build out of offshore wind is a key element in the region’s plan to decarbonize power while electrifying transportation and heating. But offshore wind power was a struggling even before Trump showed up with his personal vendetta against turbines. Boston may be his next stop. Read about it here at Bloomberg Opinion https://lnkd.in/eXrwVPVJ

Corporate boards are a black box by design; shareholders rarely know the full story of what goes on around the boardroom table. That includes director departures. The tacit agreement for board members is that when you go, you go quietly. When Christine Day quit the Kohl's board earlier this month, she didn’t follow that unspoken rule. Instead, she went scorched earth. On her way out the door, she made clear in a string of emails the company filed with the SEC that she had been “continually disappointed with the level of governance.” Some describe this as a “noisy withdrawal.” It’s exceedingly rare in corporate America. But it shouldn’t be. Directors going public with their reasons for quitting is an effective governance tool — a way to alert shareholders to internal problems board members feel cannot be mended by their continued service. But right now, the incentives are all aligned for directors to keep things quiet. My latest for Bloomberg Opinion. https://lnkd.in/dCs-bvNf

🍕 15 years ago today, a Florida man paid 10,000 Bitcoin for two large Papa Johns pizzas. In today’s dollars, that’s roughly $1.1 billion, which is nearly enough to buy Papa Johns the company. So happy Bitcoin Pizza Day! And subscribe to Jessica Karl's free daily newsletter to get charts like this directly in your inbox: https://lnkd.in/e5CWFw5p

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman 🤝 Former Apple legend Jony Ive: This formidable new Silicon Valley bromance made a $6.5 billion, all-stock deal for OpenAI to acquire Ive’s io. It’s a bet that the 58-year-old can repeat his greatest feat: develop an era-defining product that changes the game just as the iPhone did when it was launched in 2007. It’s a bet they can do all this before Apple gets its own #AI house in order. And Dave Lee thinks it’s a bet with long odds. Read why: https://lnkd.in/g4vxN64n 📷️: OpenAI

Assistance to low-income Americans isn't spending on people and as much as investment in them, says columnist Kathryn Anne Edwards. Read why the GOP tax bill ignores that: https://lnkd.in/eU89f2Qx