Economic issues have dominated the 2010 U.S. midterm elections, with unemployment and U.S. deficit concerns generating more attention than foreign policy and national security. But the upcoming 112th Congress will have to address a number of significant foreign policy issues like ratifying the New START treaty between the United States and Russia, funding the war in Afghanistan, and whether to expand the U.S. trade agenda. The following collection of materials from CFR.org and Foreign Affairs offers background and analysis of the most pressing issues the country faces as it heads into the midterm elections.
Foreign Policy and the 2010 Midterms
- Leslie H. Gelb: Obama’s Conflict: More Jobs or Less War
- Interview with James Lindsay: Foreign Policy Sidelined in Midterms
- Interview with Richard N. Haass: Obama’s Foreign Policy Performance
- Must Read: FP: A Plan B for Obama
U.S. Economic Competitiveness and Power
- Foreign Affairs: Roger C. Altman and Richard N. Haass: American Profligacy and American Power
- Foreign Affairs: Leslie H. Gelb: GDP Now Matters More Than Force
- Backgrounder: Foreign Policy and the 2010 Midterms: Trade
- Op-Ed: Jagdish Bhagwati: Running in Place on Trade
- Must Read: WSJ: Americans Sour on Trade
- Backgrounder: Midterm Elections 2010: Spending Wars
- Center for Geoeconomic Studies: Foreign Ownership of U.S. Assets (PDF)
- Expert Roundup: Is More Fiscal Stimulus Needed?
- Interview with JC de Swaan: The Rising Chinese Consumer
- Expert Roundup: Is China a Currency Manipulator?
- Center for Geoeconomic Studies: U.S. Goes Low-Tech on China Exports
- Op-Ed: Evan Feigenbaum: Reluctant Warriors
- Analysis Brief: Rising Midterm Economic Pressures
- Backgrounder: Confronting the China-U.S. Economic Imbalance
- Crisis Guide: The Global Economy
U.S. Security and Foreign Policy
- Backgrounder: Midterm Elections and New START and Arms Control
- Expert Roundup: Debating the New START Treaty
- Hillary Clinton’s Address at CFR on U.S. Leadership and Global Challenges
- Foreign Affairs: Out of Order: Strengthening the Political-Military Relationship
- Foreign Affairs: Staying Power: The US Mission in Afghanistan Beyond 2011
- Foreign Affairs: Smaller and Safer: A New Plan for Nuclear Postures
- Interview with John C. Green: Islam and the Midterm Elections
Energy and Climate Change
- Backgrounder: Foreign Policy and the 2010 Midterms: Energy and Climate Policy
- Backgrounder: U.S. Deepwater Drilling’s Future
- Blog: Michael Levi on the “Post-Partisan Power” Study
- Foreign Affairs: Globalizing The Energy Revolution: How to Really Win the Clean-Energy Race
- Must Read: Pew Research Center: Little Change in Opinions about Global Warming
Immigration
- Backgrounder: Immigration and the Midterm Elections
- Expert Roundup: The Immigration Economy
- Article: Edward Alden: U.S. Losing Ground in Competitive Immigration
- Must Read: Politico: Immigration Hard-Liners to lead Judiciary?
- Op-Ed: Amity Shlaes: Immigration Embrace May Be Republican Game Change
- Task Force Report on U.S. Immigration Policy
- Foreign Affairs: The Demographic Future: What Popular Growth–and Decline–Means for the Global Economy