When the United Kingdom, France, Germany and other U.S. allies decided to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in 2015 amidst clear opposition from Washington, some questioned whether it meant the transatlantic relationship was weakening in the face of a rising China. In terms of risk, rebalancing, and reward, however, the AIIB was not a situation that pitted Europe’s relationship with the U.S. against its relationship with China. Such a case may offer insight when considering the Paris Agreement and Europe’s actions if faced with choices between Washington and Beijing.

Founding Father, Benjamin Franklin once said “No nation was ever ruined by trade.” President Donald J. Trump seems determined to prove Franklin wrong. On April 29, 2017, Trump directed the Commerce Department and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to review all of America’s recent trade agreements. He wants trade officials to determine if America is being treated “fairly” by it trade partners.

With a lucrative arms contract and a strategic shift toward Saudi Arabia Israel, the US consolidated long-standing alliances at the likely expense of warming relations with Iran. But the new president has shifted his ground quickly on more than one issue, and so his Middle East policy still should be viewed as a work in progress.

President Trump’s first budget is a preliminary fulfillment of his promises to increase defense spending, improve military readiness, and strengthen the armed forces. But special interests in Congress – and some big legal questions – make its final adoption and form unpredictable.

US President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will no longer participate in the 2015 Paris climate agreement, the landmark United Nations treaty that many of us worked so hard to achieve. Trump is making a mistake that will have grave repercussions for his own country, and for the world.

The president’s overly rosy forecasts and tensions with Congress over alleged Russian meddling in last year’s US election mean a bumpy road ahead for his budget legislation. What Trump finally gets will probably a dramatically modified budget plan or an interim short-term deal that limits his administrative space.

Despite proposals to issue super-long government bonds and other ideas for controlling debt and the federal deficit, Congress and the president must bridge a lot of uncertainties to change the system dramatically.

Recently, President Trump released a U.S. tax cut plan to re-shore U.S. corporate revenues. Some expect it to cause great challenges to manufacturing and capital outflows from China. The realities are more complex.