What Brexit Means for the U.S.

Brexit’s Three Key Implications for U.S. Policymakers, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #5031, January 31, 2020. "The U.K’s exit from the EU will have three major implications for U.S. policymakers. First, as the U.K. regains its full diplomatic independence and represents itself in functional international organizations, it will be essential for the U.S. to deepen its bilateral diplomatic engagement with Britain. Second, as the U.K. recovers its freedom to negotiate trade agreements, the U.S. must take advantage of this opportunity to negotiate a free trade area with Britain. Third, as the U.K. restores its democratic national sovereignty, the U.S. should recognize that the U.K. has vindicated the principle on which the U.S. itself is founded, even though the history of the Special Relationship shows that the U.S. and the U.K. will not always agree with each other."

How to Protect the U.S. Judicial System from Interpol Politicization

Protecting the U.S. Judicial System from A Politicized Interpol, with Sandra Grossman, The Federalist Society, January 30, 2020. "The problem with Interpol is that not all national governments genuinely respect the divide on which Interpol’s constitution is predicated, the divide between offenses against ordinary criminal law on the one hand, and politicized offenses on the other. For too many governments, political opposition or financial independence is itself a criminal act. Since Interpol is for all intents and purposes a universal membership organization, it faces the relentless need to examine the uses its members are making of it, in order to ensure it is complying with its constitution. This is particularly true now the Interpol operates electronically, as the speed and interconnected nature of modern communications and databases means that the consequences of Interpol abuse – the use of Interpol for political or other forbidden purposes – can now have nearly instantaneous and worldwide effect."

Priorities for the U.S. in Europe in 2020

Six Key Priorities for U.S. Europe Policy in a Crucial Year, with Daniel Kochis, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #5025, January 17, 2020. "The year 2020 will have an outsized policy impact on key issues facing the transatlantic alliance. Key challenges for U.S. policy in Europe in 2020 include the continued threat of Russia to U.S. interests and to American allies, Russia’s continued war in Ukraine, the pernicious effects of Chinese investments, the Trojan horse of Chinese 5G technology putting Western intelligence sharing at risk, and failure to secure the Balkans and allowing local conflicts to metastasize. U.S. policymakers should focus on six key priorities in 2020: (1) a U.S.–U.K. free trade agreement, (2) NATO deterrence capabilities, (3) U.S.–EU trade negotiations, (4) moving Europe toward a robust response to the rising threat from China, (5) supporting the Three Seas Initiative, and (6) continued engagement in European hotspots."

Reviewing the TRAP Act

The TRAP Act’s Contribution to Preventing Transnational Repression Through Interpol, with Sandra Grossman, Federalist Society Review, January 10, 2020. "The Transnational Repression Accountability and Prevention (TRAP) Act of 2019, introduced in both the House and Senate in September, is a bipartisan response to widespread concern about the abuse of Interpol by authoritarian governments for political purposes. Repressive regimes, particularly in Russia, China, Turkey, and Venezuela, use Interpol to issue illegitimate Red Notices and diffusions against political opponents. The effect of this abuse can be severe and is borne by individuals whose due process guarantees and human rights are harmed. As a result, Interpol abuse has drawn increasing attention and criticism from a wide range of international organizations, political leaders, and non-governmental organizations."

A Practical Step Towards Improved Anglo-American Cooperation

The U.S. Should Pursue Visa Liberalization with the United Kingdom, Heritage Foundation Backgrounder #3461, January 10, 2020. "The term “visa liberalization” refers to a policy of making it easier for defined categories of foreign nationals to obtain valid visas to live and work in the United States. Visa liberalization with nations whose citizens respect the terms of their entry to the U.S. is not part of U.S. immigration policy. Rather, it is a way of reducing barriers to trade with foreign nations and increasing investment in the United States. The U.S. has pursued a policy of visa liberalization toward different foreign nations in different ways, including through U.S. statute, through a free trade area agreement, and through legislation associated with such an agreement. In spite of the Trump Administration’s “Hire American” policy, it has supported visa liberalization with New Zealand. Both the British and the American governments are eager to negotiate a free trade area agreement after the U.K. leaves the European Union. As part of this area, the U.S. should support, and the U.K. should seek, uncapped reciprocal visa liberalization for nonimmigrant professionals seeking to live and work in the U.S. or the U.K."