“Hong Kong Independence”, by Nasif Ahmed.
Nasif Ahmed: Hong Kong Independence
Category Archives: Lobbying
Democratizing China Should Be The U.S. Priority
Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 7, No. 7, July 2019
Hong Kong protest, June 2019. Source: Flickr.
Anders Corr, Ph.D.
Publisher of the Journal of Political Risk
U.S. goals in relation to China, our biggest national security threat, tend to array along three main axes: military, diplomatic, and economic. But in deference to the failed strategy of engagement, we don’t use the significant normative and ideological power of democratization as a multiplier on these battlefields, nor does the prospect of democratizing China factor sufficiently in our cost-benefit analyses.
Militarily, we prioritize defense from China, but other than ongoing military support to Taiwan and the Tibet campaign of 1957-72,[1] we have not used our substantial military resources to promote democracy in China, for example in the rebellious zones of Xinjiang or Hong Kong. Economically, we prioritize U.S. market share in China, IP protection, and beating China’s GDP, technology and industrial strength. But we don’t condition our China trade on our lowest priorities, human rights and democracy.
5G Fight With China: Politicization Leads to Suboptimal US Outcome
Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 7, No. 4, April 2019
A customer wearing a headset plays a virtual reality (VR) game, 2018. Source: Marco Verch via Flickr.
Anders Corr, Ph.D.
Publisher of the Journal of Political Risk
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced a national 5G auction of large slices (up to 3.4 gigahertz) of the millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum, along with $20.4 billion in subsidies over 10 years for rural connections, on April 12. The plan ignores expert cyber-security advice, has major security, timing, strategic and financial problems, and will not facilitate new competitors in the telecommunications market. The announcement by President Trump and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, likely under the influence of telecommunications lobbyists, was a surprise to most experts and took place with no real public input. The auction of the mmWave spectrum is set for December 10. At the press conference announcing the decision, Chairman Pai thanked Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow and Ivanka Trump for their assistance, with Ms. Trump giving a speech in support of the plan.