Jeffrey D. Sachs's Blog, page 23

U.S. is a “danger to the world”, warns top economist

BARCELONA, Sept 29 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – A global push to end poverty and hunger, and combat climate change by 2030 is at risk from American “militarism”, powerful business interests and the actions of President Donald Trump, said leading U.S. economist and U.N. special adviser Jeffrey Sachs.  Read more at Thomson Reuters Foundation News.

Trump on the Warpath

The US suffers from an arrogance of military power disconnected from today’s geopolitical realities. The US is on this path again, heading for a collision with a nuclear-armed adversary, and it will remain on it unless other countries, other American leaders, and public opinion block the way. Read more on Project Syndicate.

Trump pushes US closer to war

Donald Trump’s speech to the United Nations on Tuesday moved the world closer to war. The speech was Hitlerian in tone and content, filled with vitriol and grievance. Germany, said Hitler, was stabbed in the back by its own leaders after World War I. The Obama administration, declared Trump, signed an agreement with Iran that [...]

Big Oil will have to pay up, like Big Tobacco

(CNN) Here is a message to investors in the oil industry, whether pension and insurance funds, university endowments, hedge funds or other asset managers: Your investments are going to sour. The growing devastation caused by climate change, as seen this month in Texas, Florida and the Caribbean, are going to blow a hole in your fossil-fuel [...]

Why the U.S. ‘war machine’ is driving troops into Afghanistan: Jeffrey Sachs

As the war in Afghanistan rages on and the Taliban appears to — once again — be gaining strength, U.S. President Donald Trump has committed more troops to “defeat the enemy.” America’s new Afghanistan policy is expected Sept. 6, when Defence Secretary Jim Mattis testifies before Congress, but Trump already outlined in August that one of [...]

How to break the 40-year working class losing streak

The Chicago Cubs broke a 108-year drought by winning the World Series last year. American workers are in a 40-year drought, but with the right game plan, they too can start to win. Consider first the sorry facts. The median inflation-adjusted earnings of full-time male workers peaked in 1973. By contrast, the earnings of capital [...]

Surviving America’s Political Meltdown

NEW YORK – The US is in the midst of a political meltdown, unable to manage a domestic economic agenda or a coherent foreign policy. The White House is in turmoil; Congress is paralyzed; and the world is looking on in astonishment and dread. If we are to survive and overcome this collapse, we must [...]

America’s Dangerous Anti-Iran Posturing

NEW YORK – In recent weeks, US President Donald Trump and his advisers have joined Saudi Arabia in accusing Iran of being the epicenter of Middle East terrorism. The US Congress, meanwhile, is readying yet another round of sanctions against Iran. But the caricature of Iran as “the tip of the spear” of global terrorism, [...]

Lessons from JFK in a time of Trump

In the last week of July, 54 years ago, President John F. Kennedy initialed the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty with his counterpart, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. Kennedy spoke to the nation in a remarkable address, which reminds us of his gifts of vision and eloquence; of the obligation and wisdom to pursue peace even in [...]

On ethics, Trump is leading America in the wrong direction

(CNN) In a recent speech in Poland, President Donald Trump asked whether the West “has the will to survive.” It’s a good question, but aimed in the wrong direction. While Trump spoke about foreign aggression, the real threat to the West is the collapse of ethical norms, led by Trump and others like him. America is engulfed [...]