Edward Alden

So wonderful to watch J.J. Spaun win the U.S. Open. He and his beautiful family help me believe in this country again.

Trump’s Tariff War Is a Test of American Democracy Congress has a chance to reassert itself against the president’s power grab.

If you think trade is boring or obscure, think again. This is going to be the issue on which American democracy lives or dies.

My latest: foreignpolicy.com/2025/04/28/t...

That’s the guy!

Peter Navarro: The Architect of Trump’s Tariffs (Gift Article) Once sidelined, President Trump’s counselor Peter Navarro has returned to Washington and quickly upended the global trading system.

“The worst trade adviser any modern U.S. president has had.” Thanks to Ana Swanson for including my comments in her comprehensive profile of Peter Navarro. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/20/b...

U.S. to significantly hike softwood lumber duties, landing fresh blow to B.C. forestry industry | CBC News The U.S. is set to more than double the duty it charges on softwood lumber imports from Canada, with the planned new rate set at 34.45 per cent, up from the previous 14.54 per cent.

Some news for US home builders: “The U.S. is set to more than double the duty it charges on softwood lumber imports from Canada, with the planned new rate set at 34.45 per cent, up from the previous 14.54 per cent.”

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Are tariffs bad for growth? Yes, say five decades of data from 150 countries The empirical evidence on the growth effects of import tariffs is sparse in the literature, notwithstanding strong views held by the public and politicians. Using an annual panel of macroeconomic data...

Are tariffs bad for growth? Yes, say five decades of data from 150 countries pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

Japan grapples with next move in Trump tariff negotiations Industry scrutinizes government's handling of economic diplomacy

reality check -- Japanese negotiators in DC to try to get exemption from Trump tariffs and can't even get a meeting. Oh well. That is how allies get treated these days.
asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Trad...

@budgetlab.bsky.social: Trump’s auto tariffs will cause vehicle prices to rise by 13.5% on average, the equivalent of an additional $6,400 to the price of an average new 2024 car. budgetlab.yale.edu/research/fis...

“The world needs more grown-ups. We need more adults dude” — p 1 from The Wisdom of Mike Myers.

This Revolution of Destroyers Demands New Names | The Tyee Mafia state. Führer democracy. We need honest terms that signal the threat posed by Trump and his mimics.

This Revolution of Destroyers Demands New Names via @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/Analysis/202...

Outrageous!

The Myth of the Hardened Border Crude restrictions can’t stop migrants, drugs, or disease.

“Border-first approaches may be increasingly popular—and politically appealing—but they are certain to fail, and to hurt many innocent people in the process,” write @edwardalden.bsky.social and Laurie Trautman.

Pandemic Responses Should Not Rely on Border Closures | Think Global Health Lessons learned from COVID-19 should inform future public health responses

In a recent executive order, President Trump cited that immigration at the southern border threatens public health.

@edwardalden.bsky.social uses the COVID pandemic as a case study on the limitations of border closings for preventing disease transmission. [Feb. 2025]

But of course we’ll just close our borders and everything will be fine, right?

Sure, but done the way they are being done by Trump, tariffs are going to hurt far more manufacturing workers than they will help.

The Myth of the Hardened Border Crude restrictions can’t stop migrants, drugs, or disease.

When it comes to threats from abroad, politicians must stop promising quick fixes through border closures—and start investing in the infrastructure needed to actually mitigate these dangers, argue @edwardalden.bsky.social and Laurie Trautman.

Thank you Colleen! And coming out on the eve of yet another ill-conceived “travel ban.”

When COVID authoritarianism met border authoritarianism All 194 countries in the World Health Organization imposed COVID travel restrictions. The authors of 'When the World Closed Its Doors' argue it was a failure.

“These policies were ostensibly directed outward, targeting foreigners. But as is often the case with border controls, they inflicted damage internally too, infringing on citizens' rights.”

reason.com/2025/02/18/w...

And thanks again to @cfr.org, @wwu.edu and @oxfordunipress.bsky.social for all the support for this book.

Looking Back at the 2020 ‘Summer of Love,’ Major Lessons Emerge | The Tyee It’s not easy to look back at the recent, difficult past, but the future of borders is at stake. A new book excerpt.

So pleased to see this excerpt from my new book with Laurie Trautman running in @thetyee.ca. I grew up in Vancouver, ai this is where my own journey with cross-border living began. thetyee.ca/Culture/2025...

Was pleased to join Washington International Trade Association for a panel yesterday with USTR alums Wendy Cutler and Stephen Vaughn, as well as @edwardalden.bsky.social and Arancha González (former foreign minister of Spain).

We got into the future of WTO and more.
www.wita.org/events/2025-...

Like I said: This is a betrayal of America’s identity as a nation that offers a haven for refugees — including my own family when we fled the Soviet Union in 1976. wapo.st/40XERMF

Our region is a model for how two nations can work together to advance shared interests. It's at risk with recent wall- building measures at the border.

Check out Dr. Trautman and @edwardalden.bsky.social alden.bsky.social's most recent Op-Ed in the
@seattletimes-rss.bsky.social to learn more.

The U.S.-Canada relationship is a special one — and one that has defined much of my own life.

We need to fight for it!

Thanks to Laurie Trautman for co-authoring this piece with me on what we can do here in Washington state.

www.seattletimes.com/opinion/u-s-...

JUST IN: A federal judge in Washington says she's concerned that the White House is still implementing the spending freeze that she and a Rhode Island judge have ordered temporarily halted.

Judge AliKhan is inclined to issue a restraining order.

Hey look, Biden got Mexico to deploy 10,000 troops to the border at the beginning of his presidency. And he didn’t threaten a trade war to do it. It’s so damn sad how Trump plays with & deceives his followers.

"The U.S. President Is Quietly Killing So Many Lives" - Holding Trump To Account For The Chaos, Disruptions, Recklessness And Malevolence We need to keep fighting The Unacceptable 4 - Gabbard, Kennedy, Patel, Vought

Reminder - shuttering USAID may cause millions of people to die throughout the developing world in the next few weeks. Whatever else he thinks he’s doing madman Musk may about to become a mass murderer.

open.substack.com/pub/simonwdc...

Pandemic Response Should Not Rely on Border Closures | Think Global Health Lessons learned from COVID-19 should inform future public health responses

Thanks to Think Global Health @cfr.org for publishing this.

The big takeaway from our new book on the Covid travel restrictions ia that borders are at best a limited tool for stopping diseases.

Instead of learning that lesson, the US is doubling down.

www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/pand...