January
Does the ‘madman theory’ of leadership actually work?
US President Donald Trump is not the first world leader to believe that irrational behaviour in foreign affairs negotiations is a good way to get what you want.
- Daniel W. Drezner
December 2024
The new world order looks like mercantilism
The chaotic politics of the past 16 years masked the steady development of a new economic order, but trade and the economy aren’t zero-sum games.
- John Authers
November 2024
- Opinion
- Trump's White House
Three ways to tackle Trump’s looming tariff war
Canada, Mexico and China have options to avoid a trade war with the US president-elect. Here’s what they could do.
- Alan Beattie
- Analysis
- US Votes 2024
Campaign TV ads give voters permission to go rogue
Democrats and Republicans are highlighting relatable characters offering measured testimonials to coax voters into crossing party lines.
- Adam Nagourney
- Opinion
- US election
America’s search for a new role continues
Despite the mediocrity of the candidates, America is not down for the count. But it is wasting precious time to redefine its world role
- James Curran
August 2024
- Opinion
- Kamala Harris
The big risk in Kamala Harris’ surprise choice for VP
Tim Walz’s down-to-earth language was transformed into the equivalent of a political magic wand, but there’s a risk in overlooking Josh Shapiro in the must-win swing state of Pennsylvania.
- Jennifer Hewett
‘You don’t embarrass the New Yorker in Trump’ says military adviser
Chris Miller, a former acting secretary of defence and Project 2025 contributor, says the AUKUS military alliance will be fine if Donald Trump wins the election, but Vladimir Putin could be in a jam.
- Kevin Chinnery
July 2024
- Analysis
- US election
If Joe Biden goes: how would it work – and who would replace him?
The president faces huge pressure to step aside from his campaign. But what would happen next?
- Andrew Jack
- Opinion
- US election
How toxic talk turns too easily to assassin’s bullets
A more centrist political culture doesn’t make Australia immune to the language that has inflamed American politics in recent times.
- Georgina Downer
- Opinion
- US election
What if Joe Biden stays?
A second presidential term that was already burdened with political disadvantage will be incalculably more difficult because of questions about his age.
- Peter Spiegel
- Editorial Of The Times
- US Supreme Court
The US Supreme Court gives a free pass to Trump and future presidents
In a step towards monarchy, the bedrock principle that presidents are not above the law has been set aside.
- The Editorial Board
June 2024
- Opinion
- US election
Why next week’s Biden v Trump debate is so important
A set piece clash between Joe Biden and Donald Trump will turn less on policies than on manner and appearance. What they say will matter less than how they seem.
- Updated
- Edward Luce
February 2024
The expert who unmasked a Hitler forgery and appraised Nixon’s papers
Safeguarding History is a fun read about the life of a history expert who hobnobs with the rich and famous.
- Michael Dirda
How Joe Biden can copy Lyndon Johnson and quit
A bad week for the 81-year-old US president has sparked alarm about his fitness for another White House run.
- James Politi
- Opinion
- US election
Can Joe Biden now be convinced to drop out?
Most voters, including supporters of his own party, see the president as too old to run again.
- Edward Luce
December 2023
- Opinion
- Foreign relations
Henry Kissinger was an inconsistent opportunist
America’s 20th century foreign policy giant and statesman was driven more by domestic considerations than he would ever have admitted.
- Tom Switzer
November 2023
Henry Kissinger: a diplomat both admired and vilified
Historians and friends hailed Henry Kissinger’s diplomatic achievements, while critics assailed his policies in Vietnam and elsewhere as murderous.
- Michael D. Shear
Henry Kissinger, US diplomat and Nobel winner, dies at 100
He was a pivotal US secretary of state under presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, who oversaw America’s involvement in and withdrawal from the war in Vietnam.
- Updated
- Tony Diver
- Analysis
- Vale
Kissinger’s advice to aspiring leaders still holds
The arch foreign policy realist both intrigued and infuriated those around him and so many who have tried to assess his legacy.
- James Curran
- Opinion
- Biden's White House
Why ‘stabilisation’ is a misnomer for Xi-Biden meeting
Given the irritants on the horizon, even if the meeting in San Francisco is relatively cordial, relations are likely to quickly deteriorate amid ongoing strategic competition.
- James Curran