The Current

Brookings scholar Constanze Stelzenmüller, director of the Center on the United States in Europe and a senior fellow in Foreign Policy at Brookings, talks about whether foreign policy issues matter to U.S. voters, and also what's at stake for the world in the outcome of the U.S. presidential election. Show notes and transcript The Current is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Find this and all Brookings podcasts on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed four bi-partisan bills in a $95 billion foreign aid package with monies going to aid Ukraine, to the Indo-Pacific region to counter China, to offensive and defensive weapons to Israel, and to humanitarian aid for Gaza and elsewhere. Molly Reynolds, senior fellow in Governance Studies at Brookings, joins The Current to talk about how these bills were passed in a deeply divided House of Representatives and the potential risk to Rep. Mike Johnson's speakership. Show notes and transcript Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.  

The recent collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore after being struck by a container ship is both a human tragedy and an economic disaster. Six construction workers doing repair work on the bridge lost their lives when it plunged into the cold Patapsco River. The wreckage of the bridge now sits in the channel that connects Baltimore Harbor to the Chesapeake Bay, effectively closing the Port of Baltimore. Joe Kane, a fellow in Brookings Metro, talks about the economic impacts of the disaster and prospects for rebuilding the bridge.

The U.S. has recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic's economic disruption with a strong economy, but a strong economy alone doesn't address all the challenges Americans face. As part of the Brookings Election '24 initiative, Wendy Edelberg talks about where the economy is doing better - increasing wages, decreasing inflation - and other areas where social policies can step in to fill the gaps on housing, child poverty, and more. Show notes and transcript: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/what-a-strong-economy-can-and-cant-fix  Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

The third Summit for Democracy takes place March 18 to 20, in Seoul, South Korea. The theme of the summit is democracy for future generations. To talk about the summit’s critical importance and the role of anti-corruption work in the support of democracy, Ambassador Norm Eisen joins The Current. Eisen is a senior fellow in Governance Studies at Brookings and chair of the Anti-corruption, Democracy, and Security Project. Show notes and transcript Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

"Russia has failed in its biggest goals, but those failures may be reversed. Ukraine's successes are not guaranteed to endure, and at the moment, momentum seems to be shifting at least modestly in Russia's favor." Two years after Russia's full-scale military invasion of Ukraine, Michael O'Hanlon takes stock of where the war stands and what happens if the U.S. House of Representatives fails to authorize additional financial and military aid.  Show notes and transcript: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/is-russia-winning-in-ukraine/ Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

This week, Pakistan holds national elections. Voters in the world's fifth most populous nation go to the polls to elect representatives to Pakistan's parliament, and from that, the next prime minister. To talk about what's at stake for Pakistan, the turmoil surrounding some of the major candidates, and what the outcome could mean for the region and the world, Madiha Afzal, a fellow in Foreign Policy, the Center for Middle East Policy, and the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology at Brookings, joins The Current. Show notes and transcript Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

For the first episode of 2024, the new president of Brookings, Cecilia Rouse, sits down with The Current to share her thoughts on priorities facing the nation today and how Brookings can provide sound research to inform policy to improve the lives of those across America. Show notes and transcript: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/meet-cecilia-rouse-new-brookings-president  Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

As the Israeli offensive in Gaza moves south toward Khan Younis, and as some hostages come home while many more remain captive, Natan Sachs joins the podcast from Israel to reflect on the public mood, Israel's operational goals, the ongoing threat of wider regional escalation, and what might come next. Show notes and transcript:  https://www.brookings.edu/articles/taking-stock-of-the-ongoing-war-in-israel-and-gaza  Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Corrupt regimes around the world threaten global democracy and security. On this episode of The Current, Norman Eisen, senior fellow in Governance Studies and chair of the newly launched global Anti-Corruption, Democracy, and Security (ACDS) project at Brookings, talks about the project and explains why fighting corruption and promoting good governance are key to strengthen democracy and security. Show notes and transcript Follow The Current and all Brookings podcasts on Apple or Google podcasts, or on Spotify. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.