National emergencyCan Congress or the courts reverse Trump’s national emergency?

By Chris Edelson

President Donald Trump declared a national emergency to pay for the construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, after Congress, in its new spending bill, denied him the full money to build it. Presidents generally claim emergency power two ways: through inherent or implied authority under the U.S. Constitution or under statutory authority granted by Congress. The U.S. Constitution says nothing specific about presidential emergency power: Presidents can only claim such authority is implied or inherent. The emergency powers the Constitution does describe are actually assigned to Congress. Congress has delegated some emergency powers to the president through statutes, including the National Emergencies Act. But Congress retains the power to reject a president’s declaration of a national emergency. Now the question is: Will Congress use the power available to it, or will it play the role of passive spectator?

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National security challengesOn rogues and peers: Russian, Chinese challenges to U.S. national security

Russia and China represent distinct challenges to U.S. national security. Russia is not a peer or near-peer competitor but rather a well-armed rogue state that seeks to subvert an international order it can never hope to dominate. In contrast, China is a peer competitor that wants to shape an international order that it can aspire to dominate.

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Hemispheric securityGuyana faces "creeping coup"

Venezuela is not the only country in South America facing political instability and crisis:  After losing a parliamentary vote of non-confidence on December 21st, in the small neighboring country of Guyana, the government of President David Granger has refused to resign or schedule elections, in clear violation of the constitution.

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China syndromeHuawei espionage arrests in Poland: A wake-up call to Europe

By Thomas Morley and Matt Schrader

U.S. and European intelligence services have been warning that Huawei, a jewel in the crown of the China’s growing technology industry, cannot be trusted in its protestations that it does not cooperate with the country’s intelligence agencies, or that it respects the rule of law and the intellectual property of its competitors. European governments should exclude Huawei from their telecommunications infrastructure before the company becomes too enmeshed in the continent’s 5G systems to be fully, securely, and painlessly removed at a later date. Failure to do so would give China truly unprecedented tools to corrupt, influence, and subvert Western democracies and the rule of law that is so vital to their continued health and the health of the post-War international system.

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SuperbugsNew estimates aim to define the true burden of superbug infections

By Chris Dall

Millions of Americans who experience complications from an antibiotic-resistant infection each year. These infections place a substantial clinical, emotional, and financial burden on patients, their families, and the US healthcare system. But just how many people in the United States are dying from antibiotic resistance? Many researchers and epidemiologists wrestle with that question.

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ResilienceUsing data utilization to augment community resilience, disaster response

A civil engineering who researches resilience against extreme events and natural hazards is responding to lessons learned from California’s deadly Camp Fire by outlining how to utilize the power of data to improve disaster response and minimize economic loss and human harm in similar events.

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Climate threatsIn one generation, climate of North American cities will shift hundreds of miles

In one generation, the climate experienced in many North American cities is projected to change to that of locations hundreds of miles away—or to a new climate unlike any found in North America today. New web application helps visualize climate changes in 540 North American cities.

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Hemisphere watchDrug cartels target Obrador; Venezuela, Monroe Doctrine, Roosevelt Corollary; Haiti blackouts, and more

·  AMLO security crackdown met with Mexico cartel death threats

·  America’s cocaine habit fueled its migrant crisis

·  Former DHS chief: There’s no security crisis near the southern border

·  Alternative futures: United Kingdom options in Venezuela

·  Venezuela: What’s the mission, Mr. President?

·  Venezuela, the Monroe Doctrine and the Roosevelt Corollary

·  Venezuela: U.S. sanctions hurt, but the economic crisis is home grown

·  Mexico’s fourth transformation

·  Guatemala must not grant amnesty to war criminals

·  Routine blackouts in Haiti symbolize a loss of political power for its citizens

·  Why Venezuela’s oil money could keep undermining its economy and democracy

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Skilled-work visasReform of U.S. skilled-worker visa program wins praise

The Trump administration’s new rules for a U.S. visa program widely used for technology workers are getting cautious praise from Silicon Valley amid surging demand for high-skill employees. The H-1B visa program, which admits 85,000 foreign nationals each year, will give higher priority to people with postgraduate degrees from U.S. universities, under a final rule the Department of Homeland Security published in January.

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School shootingsSchool shooters usually show these signs of distress long before they open fire, our database shows

By Jillian Peterson and James Densley

Our initial analysis of the school shooting data found some noteworthy patterns. All mass school shooters since 1966 had a large number of risk factors for violence. Forty-five percent had witnessed or experienced childhood trauma, 77 percent had mental health concerns, as evidenced in a prior diagnosis, previous counseling or hospitalization, or medication use, and 75 percent had an interest in past shootings, as evidenced in their writing, social media posts or other activities. The majority of mass school shooters – 87 percent – showed signs of a crisis, as exhibited in their behavior, before the shooting. Seventy-eight percent revealed their plans ahead of time, often on social media. As juveniles, they also used guns that they stole from parents, caregivers and other significant adults in their lives. Our analysis found that about 80 percent of mass school shooters were suicidal. These findings make it clearer why current strategies are inadequate.

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