Peter Bergen is CNN's national security analyst, a vice president at New America and a professor of practice at Arizona State University. Bergen's new paperback is "The Rise and fall of Osama bin Laden." from which this article is, in part, adapted. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) In 1961, after a CIA-backed invasion of Cuba failed spectacularly, President John F. Kennedy said of the Bay of Pigs fiasco, "Victory has 100 fathers and defeat is an orphan." Peter Bergen Last week, President Joe Biden took a victory lap when he announced that the US had tracked down and killed its most wanted terrorist, al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was living in a house in Kabul, Afghanistan. Don't expect a similar celebration on August 30, the first anniversary of the US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, which ended the longest war in American history. Any realistic assessment of that action shows that it … [Read more...] about Opinion: Biden’s Afghanistan exit decision looks even worse a year later
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IMF cuts India’s FY23 growth forecast by 80 bps to 7.4%
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut its gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for India for the current financial year by 80 basis points to 7.4 percent. A similar downgrade has been made to the growth forecast for FY24, which now stands at 6.1 percent as against 6.9 percent earlier. "For India, the revision reflects mainly less favourable external conditions and more rapid policy tightening," the IMF said on July 26 in an update to its World Economic Outlook report. Russia's invasion of Ukraine in late February disrupted supplies of crucial commodities, pushing up prices globally. Consequently, key central banks in the developed world, such as the US Federal Reserve, have begun tightening their monetary policies in earnest to cut down multi-decade high inflation . This has exerted further pressure on the Indian rupee, which has hurtled to multiple record lows in recent weeks and last week breached the 80-per-dollar mark for the first time . Close … [Read more...] about IMF cuts India’s FY23 growth forecast by 80 bps to 7.4%
To prepare for possible monkeypox spread, colleges focus on educating students
(CNN) With nearly 9,000 confirmed monkeypox cases nationwide, there is growing concern that US college and university campuses could become monkeypox "hotspots" this fall. Educators are working to reduce the public health risk while some students worry about how their campus experiences might be affected by the virus -- a virus that the nation is still trying to control and that was recently declared a national public health emergency . JUST WATCHED CNN goes inside clinic treating monkeypox as outbreak grows Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH CNN goes inside clinic treating monkeypox as outbreak grows 05:32 "As we head into the fall, I'm concerned about outbreaks on college campuses as they are often a place where individuals engage in higher risk sexual activity and are in close contact with many different people," Dr. Rachel Cox, an assistant professor in the School of Nursing at the Mass … [Read more...] about To prepare for possible monkeypox spread, colleges focus on educating students
The hidden cost of free lunches
A crowd at an election rally in Uttar Pradesh. (Image Source: AP/File photo) The prime minister has set the cat among the pigeons, with his fusillade against election freebies while inaugurating the Bundelkhand expressway. He said the culture of garnering votes by promising freebies harms the country’s economic development and warned the youth, ‘Your present will be lost and your future pushed into darkness.’ Those who believe in distributing freebies, he said, would never build infrastructure, sorely needed for securing the country’s future. That little speech succinctly lays out the rationale against populism---it promises instant gratification, at the cost of future penury. Predictably, the speech drew the ire of AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, who defended his trademark policy of giving away free power. His promise of giving 300 units of free power to each household if his party wins the Gujarat elections is estimated to cost the state Rs 8700 crore a year. It is policies such as … [Read more...] about The hidden cost of free lunches
Biden signs chips bill, unleashing subsidies for US production
- A + A (Aug 9): President Joe Biden signed into law a broad competition Bill on Tuesday that includes about US$52 billion to boost domestic semiconductor research and development, calling it a “once-in-a-generation investment in America itself”. “We need to make these chips here in America to bring down everyday costs and create jobs,” said Biden at a signing ceremony for the CHIPS and Science Act on the White House South Lawn, joined by executives from US semiconductor firms and congressional leaders. Biden said he had visited the US facility where Javelin missiles were made and said the Bill would make the nation less reliant on other countries to provide the advanced chips needed for those weapons systems, as well as other products. “Unfortunately, we produce 0% of these advanced chips and China is trying to move way ahead of us to manufacture these sophisticated chips as well,” said Biden. “It’s no wonder the Chinese Communist Party actively lobbied US … [Read more...] about Biden signs chips bill, unleashing subsidies for US production
ANALYSIS: A Dem Dark Horse Has The Power To Trample The GOP In 2024
The Democratic Party won’t allow President Joe Biden to have the final word on whether he’ll be the party’s candidate in 2024. The door is conveniently open for other candidates to make their case on why Biden should step aside, and Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom seems to be doing just that. Newsom is a true Progressive Democrat who handily defeated a recent recall election and looks poised to win reelection for a second term in November. The California Democrat signaled his quest to become the Democratic Party’s 2024 Presidential nominee over the July 4th weekend when he paid Fox News $105,000 to air ads during their Independence Day programing to urge Floridians to move to California, according to CNN. “It’s Independence Day. So let’s talk about what’s going on in America. Freedom is under attack in your state. Your Republican leaders, they’re banning books, making it harder to vote, restricting speech in classrooms, even criminalizing women and doctors,” Newsom … [Read more...] about ANALYSIS: A Dem Dark Horse Has The Power To Trample The GOP In 2024
Opinion: How Biden can avoid Carter’s one-term presidential fate
Julian Zelizer, a CNN political analyst, is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University. He is the author and editor of 24 books, including, " The Presidency of Donald J. Trump: A First Historical Assessment ." Follow him on Twitter @julianzelizer . The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) President Joe Biden delivered a bold speech on Thursday night , calling for a ban on assault weapons and other gun policies, including strengthening background checks and enacting new "red flag" laws. "Enough, enough," he told the nation, urging Congress to take action after a slew of mass shootings rocked the country. "We can't fail the American people again." The speech comes at a difficult moment for Biden. The administration is facing multiple escalating crises, which are slowly undermining his leadership and political strength. There's the Russian war in Ukraine, inflation and stock market turbulence, mass … [Read more...] about Opinion: How Biden can avoid Carter’s one-term presidential fate
Biden to sign USD 280 billion chips act in bid to boost US over China
US President Joe Biden US President Joe Biden is preparing to sign a USD 280 billion bipartisan bill to boost domestic high-tech manufacturing, part of his administration's push to boost US competitiveness over China. The Rose Garden ceremony on Tuesday will include lawmakers, union officials, local politicians and business leaders, the White House said, as the president looks to highlight a new law that will incentivise investments in the American semiconductor industry in an effort to ease US reliance on overseas supply chains for critical, cutting-edge goods. We are going to invest it in America, Biden said on Friday. We're going to make it in America. We're going to win the economic competition of the 21st century in America. The White House said Micron is announcing a USD 40 billion plan to boost domestic manufacturing of memory chips, and Qualcomm and GlobalFoundries are announcing a USD 4.2 billion expansion of an upstate New York chip plant. … [Read more...] about Biden to sign USD 280 billion chips act in bid to boost US over China
Opinion: What happens next to Brittney Griner is beyond our control
Gene Seymour is a critic who has written about music, movies and culture for The New York Times, Newsday, Entertainment Weekly and The Washington Post. Follow him on Twitter @GeneSeymour . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) Nobody trusts my ability to forecast the future, least of all me. Nevertheless, I feel fairly safe in predicting that WNBA star Brittney Griner will not serve all nine years of her sentence by a Russian court for drug possession and smuggling. Gene Seymour It's not that much of a stretch to imagine this coming true, especially when recapping the basis for that charge: two vape cartridges of hashish oil found in Griner's luggage at a Moscow airport in February. Nine years? For two cartridges? The maximum sentence is 10 years , and at least Griner didn't get that. Those with long enough memories can't help but think of the incredulous … [Read more...] about Opinion: What happens next to Brittney Griner is beyond our control