Editor's note
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What will happen if President Trump declares a national emergency as part of his effort to get a a wall built at the U.S.-Mexican border? American University’s Chris Edelson, an expert on the history of presidential powers, says it’s not likely that the courts will step in. Rather, he writes, “all eyes should be on Congress.”
As the government shutdown drags on, federally funded research is among the casualties. Michigan State’s Angela K. Wilson lived through two previous shutdowns as a division head at the National Science Foundation. “Without a doubt,” she writes, “The government shutdown will delay, cancel or compress implementation timelines” of new science and technology in the United States – and that ultimately affects
national security.
Hungary’s political situation has become increasingly volatile in recent weeks, with large demonstrations mounted in Budapest and other cities against Viktor Orban’s government. Tufts University scholar John Shattuck writes the protests come in the wake of Orban’s sustained attack on Hungary’s weak democracy, which has eroded institutions ranging from the press to the judiciary.
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Danielle Douez
Associate Editor, Politics + Society
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Top stories
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U.S. President Donald Trump in McAllen, Texas.
REUTERS/Leah Millis
Chris Edelson, American University School of Public Affairs
History shows that Congress can play an important role in checking a president's power.
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Ongoing wildlife studies are one kind of federally funded research that’s sidelined during a shutdown.
USFWS
Angela K. Wilson, Michigan State University
Setting aside personal hardships for workers who don't see a paycheck during the shutdown, the research enterprise itself loses out, too. And unlike back pay, this lost time can never be made up.
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban addresses supporters after the parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, April 8, 2018.
RREUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
John Shattuck, Tufts University
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has transformed from a liberal into an authoritarian leader who uses the tools of democracy to attack civil society. Hungarians are protesting in the streets.
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Economy + Business
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Nevbahar Ertas, University of Alabama at Birmingham
The current government shutdown is now the longest in American history, affecting about 800,000 federal employees.
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Jamila Michener, Cornell University
Medicaid and Medicare benefits appear safe for now. But SNAP food assistance and many other programs could be disrupted.
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Science + Technology
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David Gunderman, University of Colorado
Anti-Semitism brought down one of the world's greatest centers for mathematical research.
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Donna Strickland, University of Waterloo
The winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize in physics says scientists shouldn't feel pressured to do research that has economic or commercial ramifications. Science for the sake of science is more important.
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Most read on site
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Gaurav Khanna, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
Feel like visiting another star system or dimension? You can do this by traveling through a spacetime portal of a black hole. But you better choose carefully. All black holes are not created equal.
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Jennifer Ruef, University of Oregon
Many Americans feel anxiety or dread when it comes to math. A lot of that anxiety starts in childhood.
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John A. Tures, Lagrange College
The popular opinion is that presidents win government shutdowns, but a review of polling evidence paints a different picture.
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