NEWS WRAP

Trump in court, Virginia in blue

• Tempestuous testimony | Former President Trump took the stand this week in a New York case which could determine the fate of his storied business empire. Across hours of testimony, Trump took a confrontational approach, clashing with Judge Arthur Engoron multiple times. READ MORE HERE
   
• Election watch | Polls have closed in state legislative elections in Virginia and Ohio, and in gubernatorial races across the country. With both parties looking to test their messaging and strategies ahead of next year's general election, early results indicate Democratic messaging on abortion rights prevailed. READ MORE HERE
   
• Blinken on tour | Secretary of State Antony Blinken stepped up US Middle East diplomacy with a tour of the region and talks with Israeli leadership, the Palestinian Authority, Iraq and Turkey. The Biden administration has advocated for a 'humanitarian pause' to Israeli operations in Gaza but conflict has continued unabated. READ MORE HERE
   
• GOP round 3 | The third and final Republican primary debate takes place tomorrow, with just five candidates making the cut to appear on stage. Candidates will seek to break away from the pack as the Iowa caucuses loom and former President Trump's lead continues to grow. READ MORE HERE
   
• Cometh the hour, cometh the shutdown | New House Speaker Mike Johnson faces one of his first major tests as speaker with a US Government shutdown approaching within two weeks. Johnson must seek to unify his party and present an agreeable plan for continued government funding, though his initial proposals have been met with criticism from legislators on both sides of the aisle. READ MORE HERE

EVENT

Economic security in a turbulent world

The world economy is undergoing a patchwork reversal of global integration as major powers seek to “de-risk” key economic relationships and use new policy tools to boost domestic investment in strategic industries.

The United States Studies Centre invites you to join us as we convene a major international conference — “Economic Security in a Turbulent World” — to discuss these issues, bringing together policymakers, business executives and leading experts from the United States, Europe, and Asia, as well as from Australia.

Save the date for the opportunity to learn from leading experts in geopolitics and economic policy and engage in robust and interactive discussion on the key issues facing Australia, the United States and the Alliance.

TYPE
Conference

WHERE
Sydney CBD

WHEN
19–20 June 2023. 8.30am–5.00pm

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Did you USSC?

• CONFERENCE | Sydney International Strategy Forum
  Last week, the United States Studies Centre held its inaugural SISF conference, bringing together almost 200 experts, officials, businesspeople and government stakeholders to discuss the future of Australia's alliances and its role in a changing region. WATCH HERE
   

• PODCAST | USSC polling readout 2023: One year until the 2024 US presidential election
  On the newest episode of USSC Briefing Room, Director of Research Jared Mondschein, Research Editor Victoria Cooper and Director of Engagement and Impact Mari Koeck discuss the USSC's latest polling report, diving deep into the numbers on the issues affecting Australia and its alliances.
   

• COMMENTARY | Australia finds itself in a new economic world
  Writing for the Australian Financial Review, Senior Economic Advisor Dr John Kunkel says that the Prime Minister's visit to China is important to Australia's international economic diplomacy, with profound geopolitical currents reshaping the global economic order.
   

• COMMENTARY | New poll shows young Australians are wary of both AUKUS and the US — and want more action on climate instead
  Relying on new USSC polling, research associates Samuel Garrett and Ava Kalinauskas argue that the Australia-US alliance must demonstrate action on climate change if it is to secure the support of young Australians in the coming years. READ FULL ARTICLE
   

• INTERVIEW | Australian Defence Force taking on non-combat role in the Middle East
  Director of Foreign Policy & Defence Professor Peter Dean spoke to Sky News Australia about the approach the Australian Defence Force is taking in Israel to be prepared to evacuate Australia citizens if and when needed. WATCH THE INTERVIEW

BY THE NUMBERS

How do Australians feel about the prospect of a second Trump presidency?

By Ava Kalinauskas, Research Associate

A new poll by the United States Studies Centre finds that almost half (45 per cent) of Australians think a second Trump term would be bad for Australia. If Biden wins office, Australians are overwhelmingly against (56 per cent) withdrawing from their alliance with the United States. Yet when it comes to a hypothetical Trump re-election, the Australian public is far more divided on the question. The polling finds that 37 per cent of Australian respondents think Australia should leave the US alliance if Trump returns to the presidency next year. Slightly more — 44 per cent — disagree with the idea of doing so.  

Of course, a year out from the election, much remains unknown. Trump and Biden are yet to officially secure their parties’ nomination. Earlier this week Trump took the stand in a Manhattan courthouse for a civil fraud trial — part of his growing entanglement of legal trials that will play out alongside next year’s packed calendar of primary contests and conventions.  

But for Australians watching on, memories of Trump’s presidency will no doubt be front of mind, as Australia seeks to deepen cooperation with its closest ally at the same time as the United States gears up for a year ahead that will be dominated by domestic debates and political drama — and potentially result in a different White House occupant.

THE WEEK IN TWEETS

#DebatePrep