Brookings: Latest From Brookings

New Unemployment and Productivity Numbers are Bad News for Job Seekers

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:40:00 GMT

The latest employment and unemployment statistics confirm that, at least in the job market, this is the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, says Gary Burtless. These jobs numbers followed on the heels on new stronger productivity numbers, showing truly bad news for job seekers.

The Senate's Climate Change Bill and the Outlook for Copenhagen

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:52:00 GMT

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved a climate change bill this week despite a boycott from Republican committee members. Fellow Adele Morris examines the legislation and what policymakers will be able to offer at the climate change talks in Copenhagen next month.

Obama Goes to Asia: Understanding the President’s Trip

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:02:00 GMT

President Barack Obama is scheduled to arrive in Tokyo on November 12, beginning his first trip to Asia as president. He will also travel to China, South Korea and Singapore, where he will take part in meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. On November 6, the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies and the John L. Thornton China Center at Brookings hosted a discussion of President Obama’s upcoming trip and the issues he is likely to face.

Census Dodges a Bullet but the Immigration Issue Remains

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:21:00 GMT

The Senate voted 60-39 to approve cloture on the Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill, effectively blocking the controversial amendment that would bar the 2010 Census, unless it collected data on citizenship and immigration status. Audrey Singer responds to this news, and shows that though the Census will continue, the issue still remains.

The Four Who Ended the Cold War

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:43:00 GMT

The twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall on Monday has become for many a celebration of Ronald Reagan’s starring role in the demise of the Evil Empire, writes Brookings President Strobe Talbott. But, he says, it was a group of four who ended the Cold War peacefully: Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin and the calm—and calming—"air traffic controller" George H.W. Bush.

A Discussion with His All Holiness Bartholomew: Global Environmental Challenges and the Role of Faith and Religious Freedom

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:12:00 GMT

On November 4, the Brookings Institution hosted His All Holiness Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch of the Orthodox Christian Church. In his speech, His All Holiness addressed how global environmental challenges relate to the role of faith and religious freedom in public life.

The Iran Hostage Crisis: 30 Years Later

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:31:00 GMT

Three decades after Iran seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, igniting a 14-month hostage crisis, Suzanne Maloney examines the current state of power in the Islamic Republic. Maloney says that the recent demonstrations in Iran are an extension of the country's unanswered conversation of legitimate ruling authority, and that responses by hard-liners indicate a belief that any reform would beget revolution.

The Outlook for Consumer Spending and the Broader Economic Recovery

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:05:00 GMT

How long will the economic recovery take? Karen Dynan, vice president and co-director of Economic Studies, testified before the Joint Economic Committee that there is a great deal of uncertainty about the strength and speed of the nation’s recovery, with gradual expansion being the most likely economic scenario. She says that consumer spending is likely to grow modestly over the next few years because of weak income growth, higher saving and lower borrowing. Policymakers have options to bolster the recovery but they should be mindful of the long-run costs, particularly in terms of the budget deficit, she says.