Opinion

  Adam Minter Nobody would ever mistake the Chinese Communist Party for a fleet-footed, democratic organization responsive to public opinion. But over the decades it’s shown a capacity to recognize when political winds are shifting and has been willing to accept outside advice and solutions. That’s changing under President Xi Jinping. China’s leadership has grown increasingly isolated and distant from ...

  Whoever wins Tuesday’s presidential election will face an assertive, aggrieved Russia whose risk-taking behavior under President Vladimir Putin is increasingly worrisome to American experts. Today’s pushy, headstrong Russia presents a paradox: By most measures, it’s a country in decline, with a sagging economy, an underdeveloped technology base and a shrinking population. Corruption pervades nearly every sector. The collapse of ...

  As Americans prepare to go to the polls after one of the most bizarre election campaigns, here are the main things that investors should keep in mind. Although the presidential race tightened in the last 10 days, many prognosticators and betting sites still predict that Hillary Clinton will win. If her victory is combined with down-ballot results that prolong ...

  If it’s upheld on appeal, last Thursday’s ruling on Brexit from the U.K. High Court gives members of parliament a responsibility some might prefer to shirk — namely, to offer the voters they represent their best judgment on Britain’s future in Europe. When the time comes, they need to stand up and do what they’re paid for. The judges ...

Even as the 12-day UN meeting in Marrakesh that has been tasked with finishing the rulebook for the Paris Agreement got underway on Monday, all eyes are on the crucial US presidential elections. The fate of the climate talks largely hinges on the US polls. Climate negotiators are rooting for Republican Donald Trump’s defeat. His win could throw cold water ...

  Back in 2008, incoming President Barack Obama inherited a U.S. financial crisis that was to some degree made in China. The next U.S. president may well confront a Chinese financial crunch with its origins in the U.S., as China unwinds the credit imbalances built up over the last eight years to defend against that global slump. China’s Debt Bomb ...

  The results of a new Pew Research Center poll on politics and climate change surprised even some of those who study public attitudes toward science. Forty-five percent of respondents who identified as conservative Republicans said they had little or no trust in climate scientists, compared with 6 percent of self-described liberal Democrats. Only 15 percent of conservatives said they ...

  Mihir Sharma India’s tax system is among the most complex of the world — 157th, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, with about 33 different payments required. It’s a consistent barrier to entrepreneurship and to investment. That’s why so many people were eagerly anticipating the rollout of the Indian government’s first real attempt at systemic reform in recent years: a nationwide ...

  Tuesday evening, after Election Day’s tranquillity, new clamours will erupt as analysts with agendas tickle portents and lessons from the torrent of election returns. Herewith some developments to watch. In the 17 elections since World War II, the winner has averaged 385.4 electoral votes, the loser 145.1. In six elections (1952, 1956, 1964, 1972, 1980, 1984), a major-party candidate ...

If Hillary Clinton wins the presidential election on Tuesday, she will be under no illusions about what awaits. Even if Donald Trump is defeated, the political party that nurtured his dangerous ambition will not be. (And Trump may never concede defeat in any case.) Barack Obama was elected president in 2008 amid waves of euphoria. By the night of his ...