All Blacks or Black and Tans?

President Biden’s Visits to United Kingdom and Ireland Must Serve Prosperity and Peace, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #5311, April 6, 2023. "President Biden’s visit to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement comes at a crucial time. Northern Ireland’s governing institutions have been badly damaged by the European Union’s vindictive approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol, negotiated as part of the U.K.’s exit from the EU. In practice, the EU values its Customs Union far more than it values the Good Friday Agreement, and despite U.S. praise for the Agreement, the U.S. has backed the EU’s approach. The President should avoid making things worse, reject the half-truths and mythologies on which U.S. praise for the Agreement is often based, and focus on deliverables, especially a free trade area with the U.K."

Global Britain After Brexit

Defining Britain’s Post-Brexit Role in the World, Centre for Brexit Policy, June 20, 2022. Uncredited contributor to the section on U.S.-U.K. relations.

Assessing U.K. Objectives For An FTA With The US

How the U.S. Should Respond to the U.K.’s Negotiating Objectives for a Free Trade Agreement, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #5069, May 6, 2020. "On March 2, the U.K. published its negotiating objectives for a free trade agreement with the U.S. These objectives make it clear that the U.K. is committed to free trade with like-minded democracies, including the U.S. The U.K. attaches particular importance to an ambitious and comprehensive free trade agreement with the U.S., viewing it as a strategic opportunity to strengthen the Special Relationship. The U.K. places particular emphasis on expanding trade in services with the U.S. and hopes the U.S. and U.K. can set a new gold standard for digital trade and the protection of intellectual property. The U.K.’s objectives demonstrate that, while negotiations for an agreement with the U.S. will not be free from challenges, there is a clear basis for the speedy conclusion of a free trade agreement between the U.S. and the U.K."

The 2021 NDAA - Land Mines, Cluster Munitions, and Defense Cooperation

How the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act and the Defense Appropriations Act Can Prepare the U.S. for Great Power Competition, with colleagues at the Heritage Foundation, Heritage Foundation Special Report #222, March 23, 2020. "The 2021 National Defense Authorization Act and the Department of Defense Appropriations Act are key tools for helping the Department of Defense (DOD) adapt to great power competition. The process of preparing for great power competition will not be a fast one, nor is it a matter of simply giving the DOD more resources. It will require prioritizing the long-term challenge posed by China and Russia, while divesting from previous efforts that do not contribute to meeting those challenges. Even if the United States dedicated all federal taxpayer dollars to the defense of the nation, the DOD would still have to make hard decisions about which capabilities are necessary now and in the future, as well as about the level of readiness of each unit. The 2021 authorization and appropriations acts are excellent opportunities for Congress to help the DOD make those decisions."

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."

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."

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."

It's Not No Deal

Why the U.S. Is Right to Back the ‘Mini-Deal Brexit', Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #4971, June 20, 2019. "The dichotomy between a Brexit governed by outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement and a “no-deal” exit is a false choice. A network of mini-deals among Britain, the European Union, and the U.S. is already in place. The U.K.’s economy has enjoyed unprecedented strength, and it is in an excellent position to leave the EU on the basis of this “mini-deal Brexit.” The U.S. can play a valuable role in facilitating Brexit by continuing to make it clear that it is ready to conclude an ambitious free trade area with the U.K., and by urging both the U.K. and EU authorities to conclude an agreement facilitating free trade after Brexit."

Here's the Media Script for a Presidential Trip

Trump’s UK Visit Was A Glowing Success, Daily Signal, June 6, 2019. "The media has a simple script. When the president is a Republican abroad, the correct approach is to blame everything on him and play up as many negatives as possible. But when the president is a liberal, anything less that fulsome applause is a betrayal of the tradition that politics stops at the water’s edge."

So, Why Not Boris?

Theresa May Will Be Gone in Days. Why Not Meet With Boris Johnson?, Daily Signal, June 3, 2019. "There are big issues at stake in this visit, as there always are in the Anglo-American relationship. And big issues are often controversial ones. From Britain’s relationship with Huawei to its support for the Iran nuclear deal, and most importantly of all, Brexit, the president has lots to discuss."

Above All, A US-UK FTA

Six Key Priorities for President Trump’s State Visit to the United Kingdom, with Nile Gardiner, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #4962, May 22, 2019. "President Trump’s state visit to the United Kingdom from June 3 to 5, 2019, offers a vital opportunity to strengthen the Special Relationship and transatlantic alliance, advance U.S. leadership in Europe, reaffirm powerful U.S. backing for Brexit, and underscore that a U.S.–U.K. free trade deal will be a top priority for the U.S. Administration post-Brexit. The President should emphasize plain speaking and serious actions. Above all, he must make it clear to the next British government and to the British people that an independent and sovereign Britain will continue to be the United States’ closest ally."

The Facts of the Special Relationship

Pompeo Sends the Message Britain Needs to Hear, Daily Signal, May 9, 2019. "The essence of Pompeo’s remarks was that Britain is a great and global power, with which the United States enjoys a special relationship—and that it needs to remember that. Throughout, the secretary was careful not to fall into the trap of telling Britain what to do. Instead, he reminded it of its strengths, its interests, and its friends, and left Britain to draw the correct conclusions."

Is London Ready for It?

Trump’s State Visit to UK Part of Observances of D-Day Anniversary, Heritage Daily Signal, April 24, 2019. "The White House announced Tuesday that it has accepted an invitation from Queen Elizabeth II for President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump to make a state visit to the United Kingdom."

Trump's To-Do List in the UK

For Trump It Looks Like A Bad Time To Arrive in Britain – Actually, It’s Ideal. Here’s Why, Fox News, July 12, 2018. "President Donald Trump will have to learn some new names in London. Earlier this week, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and David Davis, who led Britain’s arrangements for exiting the EU, resigned out of dissatisfaction with the government’s plans for Brexit. On the surface, this looks like a bad time for Trump to arrive. Actually, it’s ideal."

Expanding the Perimeter

How to Expand Defense Trade Cooperation Between the U.S., the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada, with Daniel Kochis, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief, April 26, 2017. "Of the United States’ alliances, none are stronger than those it enjoys with Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The U.S. has stood shoulder to shoulder with these English-speaking allies in two World Wars, the Cold War, two wars in Iraq, and the war in Afghanistan, and that collaboration continues today in the fight against ISIS. The U.S. also works closely with these allies in the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing community, which includes New Zealand. It is therefore in America’s interest to promote even closer defense collaboration with Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. A major pillar of improved collaboration is improved defense trade cooperation."

Really, It's Not Just Another Country

How Trump Can Advance the Special Relationship with Britain, with Nile Gardiner, Daily Signal, January 26, 2017. "Just seven days after taking office, President Donald Trump will meet with British Prime Minister Theresa May in Washington on Jan. 27. It will be the first visit to the White House by a foreign leader since Trump’s inauguration, and the meeting sends a clear signal that the Anglo-American alliance will be at the heart of strategic thinking in the new Trump administration."

Not Just Another Country

The Trump-May White House Meeting: Five Key Recommendations for Advancing the Special Relationship, with Nile Gardiner, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #4649, January 25, 2017. "On January 27, just seven days after taking office, President Donald Trump will meet with British Prime Minister Theresa May in Washington. It will be the first visit to the White House by a foreign leader since Trump’s inauguration, and the meeting sends a clear signal that the Anglo–American alliance will be at the heart of strategic thinking in the new Trump Administration."

Broadening the River

Brexit and the Arrival of Trump Signal the Beginning of an Exciting New Era of Closer and Deeper US-UK Relations, BrexitCentral, January 19, 2017. "So let’s try something new: focusing on reality. Let’s get a few solid accomplishments under our belt – starting, but not ending, with that trade deal – and then see how we feel about each other, and ourselves. I’d love to go back to the era of Roosevelt and Churchill, or Reagan and Thatcher, because they all combined great rhetoric with great achievements, but that’s not happening. Yet we do have the chance – because you now have the freedom, and we appear to have the desire – to break the mould, to do things that used to be impossible, or merely unthinkable. If politics allow us to make Churchill’s river that little broader for both our benefit, and for the years that will follow our new administrations, it would be folly not to take it."

On the Special Relationship

The Special Relationship: Anglo-American Relations Since 1776, Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History, June 8, 2016, "The Special Relationship is a term used to describe the close relations between the United States and the United Kingdom. It applies particularly to the governmental realms of foreign, defense, security, and intelligence policy, but it also captures a broader sense that both public and private relations between the United States and Britain are particularly deep and close. The Special Relationship is thus a term for a reality that came into being over time as the result of political leadership as well as ideas and events outside the formal arena of politics."

Five Facts About Brexit, the U.S., and Britain

Brexit and the Future of the Special Relationship, Heritage Foundation Factsheet #165, June 2, 2016, "Many Americans believe the EU is a bit like NAFTA—a free trade area. That is untrue. The EU is not even a free trade area: it is a customs union. More important, the EU is a political project and always has been. Imagine if the U.S. was part of a federal union with every other nation in the Western Hemisphere, with a supranational bureaucracy in Costa Rica that had the power to make rules for us, and a court in Mexico City that could overrule our Supreme Court. That is the EU. If you believe in democratic national sovereignty, the EU isn’t for you."