Politics and Government

commentary

The Iran Protests: A Crossroads in Governance?

Iran has seen large-scale protests in response to the death of Mahsa Amini, who died in the custody of the Iranian morality police in September. But are these protests the spark that will usher in a democratic form of governance in Iran?

Karishma R. Mehta

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Xi Jinping Is Weaker Than You Think

Although Xi wields significant influence over Chinese domestic politics—certainly more than his most recent predecessors—he still needs support from the Party elite. And on that front, some cracks are showing.

Howard Wang

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COVID-19's Biggest Casualty May Be Governability

Pandemics fuel pre-existing prejudices, deepen social divisions, and increase political tensions. As the United States heads into the midterm elections, the parties should be prepared to face headwinds whichever side emerges with control of Congress. COVID-19's biggest political casualty might be governability.

Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins

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Will Putin's War in Ukraine Continue Without Him?

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, there has been ongoing deliberation about how long Putin will remain in power. But the West should not assume a change of leadership would result in an end to the war, at least in the short term, as Putin's war could very well continue without Putin.

Shawn Cochran

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Facts Still Matter, Even If the Court Signals Otherwise

The Supreme Court's recent decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen threatens to render decades of scientific studies legally irrelevant. But there is still room for research to inform court decisions about firearm regulations.

Rosanna Smart @RosannaSmart, Darrell A. H. Miller, et al.

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Regime Change in Russia?

A careful strategy of strength and prudence has helped the West maintain security and manage relations with Moscow. The West may continue this course while upping the ante to help Ukraine defeat and expel Russian forces. In so doing, the West may also be advancing prospects for longer-term peace that might come only through liberalization in Russia.

William Courtney @courtneywmh

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State Gun Regulations Are a Messy Patchwork. The Supreme Court's Bruen Decision Won't Help

The Supreme Court's decision may not actually narrow the policy gap between states sharply divided over their approach to regulating guns. Rather, its result may not look very different than what we have today—a patchwork of laws that often reflect political and policy demands of individual states.

Andrew R. Morral @AndrewMorral, Rosanna Smart @RosannaSmart

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Homelessness in L.A., Russia's Military Woes, Educator Morale: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on breaking the cycle of incarceration and homelessness, Russia’s ongoing military struggles, NATO expansion, and more.

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Understanding Russia's Motivations, and Using Them

The concept of ontological security could help explain Putin's war on Ukraine and his regime's reasoning. It's about maintaining a continuous sense of self, and in this case, of state identity. Putin may have deemed the invasion necessary to maintain a sense of continuity and order, where order is Russia's continued adversarial relationship with the West.

Khrystyna Holynska, Pauline Moore

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Learning, Relearning, and Not Learning the Lessons of COVID-19

Recent announcements have demonstrated how little has been learned from the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the potential need for a national reckoning to assess shortfalls and develop recommendations for preparing for and responding to future pandemics and other biological risks. The United States could create a national commission to develop a way forward.

Daniel M. Gerstein @Daniel_Gerstein

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'The Future Could Be Brilliant': RAND's CEO Is an 'Apocaloptimist'

Jason Matheny, RAND's new president and CEO, explains why he's cautiously optimistic about the future of humanity, the importance of public service, and RAND's role in shaping policy solutions.

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The Irony of Misinformation: USIA Myths Block Enduring Solutions

Unlike Russia and China, the U.S. government has failed to institutionalize the importance of information in foreign policy. The United States lacks formalized leadership structures to tackle information issues head on, and a central organization to coordinate activities to understand, inform, and influence foreign audiences.

Christopher Paul, Matt Armstrong

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Yoon Suk-yeol Is Biden's Perfect South Korea Partner

Yoon Suk-yeol, South Korea's conservative new president, has shown that he is in lockstep with U.S. President Joe Biden on foreign policy. During Biden's Indo-Pacific trip in May, their conversations in the security domain suggest Yoon's overlapping tenure with Biden heralds a golden era in the U.S.-South Korea alliance.

Derek Grossman @DerekJGrossman

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Do Americans Know Who Their Diplomats Are? Or What They Do?

Americans have a limited understanding of how diplomats are selected and how diplomacy interacts with other elements of the U.S. national security establishment. Efforts to better inform and engage the American public about the work of diplomacy and who American diplomats are would lead to a greater understanding of the job and its people.

Michael S. Pollard @MichaelSPollard, Charles P. Ries @charles_ries

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Combating Disinformation by Bolstering Truth and Trust

For Jessica Cecil, founder and former head of the Trusted News Initiative, today feels a bit like the Dark Ages after the fall of the Roman Empire, in which agreed-upon facts endure in only a few isolated places of elite discussion and there is no common language of politics. She spoke about the need for governments, companies, news organizations, and relevant civil society groups to work together to combat disinformation at a meeting of RAND Europe's Council of Advisors.