The Power of Justice, William Schulz Iranian Elections Reflect Ambitions of the Supreme Leader, Meir Javendanfar Chemical Security Legislation Moves Forward, Reece Rushing Sensenbrenner Distorts Climate Facts, Andrew Light and Julian Wong Bailing Out the Bailer-Outer, Nina Hachigian The World's New Threat: Conflict Fatigue, Colin Thomas-Jensen and Rebecca Feeley Interrogations Legacy the Distraction Obama Sought to Avoid, Ken Gude Iranian Elections Show Regime's Concern for Obama Outreach, Lawrence Korb Uighur Releases a Real Step to Closing Gitmo, Ken Gude Conflict Mineral Mining has Contributed to a Congo Holocauts, John Prendergast William Schulz, "The Power of Justice," Center for American Progress, June 17, 2009 At the heart of the American experiment lies a paradox. A country founded upon a conception of its own uniqueness—an exceptional nation—sought to be a model for other countries to emulate. To the extent those countries did emulate it, however, the perception of America as unique began to dissipate. The more countries began to copy the values and virtues of the American tradition, the more they began to compare America to her own ideals. The measurer became the measured. And to the extent she fell short of those ideals, she tended to defend herself through a renewed claim to her own uniqueness. In no small degree it is the tension between these two characteristics—monotype and template—that accounts for the United States’ ambivalence toward the rest of the world and the world’s toward it. Click here to read the full report. Meir Javedanfar, "Iranian Elections Reflect Ambitions of the Supreme Leader," Middle East Bulletin, June 16, 2009 A victory by the reformists, in cooperation with the clergy and Rafsanjani, would have created a powerful front against Khamenei. Instead of being loyalist soldiers like Ahmadinejad, they would have challenged his views in important areas, such as dealing with the United States. With Khamenei already viewing Obama's positive overtures as a threat, any more internal dissent would have boosted Washington's position against Iran in the negotiations. There is also the question of Khamenei's succession. ... A coalition of reformers and clergy, with Rafsanjani's backing, could have challenged Khamenei's choice for the next Supreme Leader. This concerns Khamenei not simply as a threat to his prestige, but also to his family's welfare and political ambitions. Some analysts believe Khamenei wishes to secure his family's well-being by appointing his son Mojtaba to replace him as Supreme Leader. Click here to read the full article.   Reece Rushing, "Chemical Security Legislation Moves Forward," Center for American Progress, June 16, 2009 The House Homeland Security Committee is holding a hearing today on legislation designed to protect tens of millions of Americans against a terrorist attack on a high-hazard chemical facility. This legislation, The Chemical Facility Antiterrorism Act of 2009, H.R. 2868, would push chemical facilities to convert to safer alternative chemicals or processes, something the Center for American Progress strongly supports. Click here to read the full article. Andrew Light and Julian Wong, "Sensenbrenner Distorts Climate Facts," Center for American Progress, June 16, 2009 A congressional delegation led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) recently traveled to China to assess the potential for cooperation on international climate change efforts and to survey China’s independent efforts to reduce its CO2 emissions. Ranking member of the House Select Committee for Energy Independence and Global Warming James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) was part of this delegation. His take away from the trip? Nothing good. Click here to read the full article. Nina Hachigian, "Bailing Out the Bailer-Outer," Center for American Progress, June 15, 2009 The battle over America’s pledge of new funds to the International Monetary Fund is shaping up and will play out in Congress this week during the negotiations over the war supplemental. Recall that the G-20 nations agreed in April to boost IMF lending capacity by $500 billion. This extra capital is necessary because, in an effort to stem the economic crisis, the IMF bailed out a number of countries such as Pakistan and Iceland that may have otherwise gone belly up. Now the IMF needs additional funds that it can loan to other countries on the brink. Click here to read the full article. Colin Thomas-Jensen and Rebecca Feeley, "The World's New Threat: Conflict Fatigue," Foreign Policy, June 11, 2009 Doing research and advocacy to help end the crisis in the Great Lakes region around Congo can feel like screaming into an empty room. The region has been so violent for so long that the United Nations, donor governments, and the press have become numb. But there is a cure to even the worst cases of "conflict fatigue": an understanding that solutions are within reach if we just have the will to pursue them -- solutions that can prevent thousands of senseless deaths. Click here to read the full article. New Yorker - Ken Gude says while the Obama administration's desire to avoid a commission investigation into their predecessor's interrogation practices was understandable,  “It’s now become the distraction they wanted to avoid ...The White House briefings have been dominated by questions about releasing documents and photos." Times (UK) - Lawrence Korb says Iranian election results demonstrate the impact of President Obama's diplomatic outreach strategy:  “It shows how concerned the regime is about his popularity in the Muslim world. They didn’t have to fake the results of the previous election.” New York Times - Ken Gude says the Obama administration's release of some Uighur detainees to Bermuda is a real sign of progress on a seemingly intractable issue: “This is ‘closing Guantánamo.’ This is what it looks like.” Reuters - John Prendergast stresses the need for greater transparency in how 'conflict minerals' in the Congo are produced: "The status quo of the way minerals are mined in this country has helped lead to the highest recorded rates of death since the holocaust." Domestic Human Rights and National Security June 17, 2009, 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM The United States has long prided itself on being a human rights leader. It has often called other countries to account for their abuses. But it has frequently been reticent to submit itself to the same strict standards to which others are held. This panel will address how an international human rights framework that encompasses both civil and political as well as social and economic rights within the United States can advance American interests around the globe. Thus, in addition to addressing traditional notions of national security, civil liberties, and civil rights, panelists will also address how violations of social and economic rights implicate U.S. national security and how it is in the national interest of the United States to embrace a broader policy approach that emphasizes sustainable security. Click here for additional information on speakers and to RSVP. 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