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Guardian
Simon Tisdall is an assistant editor and foreign affairs columnist of Britain's Guardian newspaper.
PROFILE
Simon Tisdall
Guest
FROM Simon Tisdall
To the Point
Is America's "pivot to Asia" a thing of the past? So many of his Department's top jobs are still unfilled that Rex Tillerson seems like a lonely Secretary of State, and as a diplomat, he's an amateur. His trip to Asia — just one reporter included — was full of contradictions, with tweets from the President adding to the confusion. It's not clear if he threatened North Korea, advocated nuclear weapons for Japan and South Korea--or if he'll seek common ground with China. And there's another big question: how much is the Trump White House running the show?
To the Point
Iran Reponds to UN Demands Iran has until the end of this month for a final response to the UN Security Council 's incentive package for halting the enrichment of uranium that could lead to building a nuclear bomb. Today, Iran met its own deadline, proposing what's described in Tehran as "a new formula," which has not as yet been released to the public. At the United Nations , where the US and other Security Council members are studying the response, US Ambassador John Bolton called the move " a significant moment ." Nevertheless, nobody thinks Tehran will stop enriching uranium. If it refuses, can the UN agree on punishment for Iran's suspected progress in building a nuclear bomb? The available options might hurt Council members as much as they hurt Iran. Is military action still "on the table?" What are the political stakes inside Iran?
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To the Point
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
To the Point
Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
To the Point
White House budget proposal slashes and burns President Trump's first budget request is considered dead on arrival in Congress — a familiar development in Capitol Hill. We hear what it reveals about the priorities of the new administration. What's likely to die… and what might survive?
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.