The Full Belmonte, 8/5/2023
Biden Officials Assail Fitch Downgrade, Seek to Stem Fallout
”President Joe Biden’s administration slammed a decision by Fitch Ratings to strip the US of its top-tier credit rating. It came two months after a standoff on raising the debt limit that underscored the difficulty Washington has in overcoming partisanship to perform the basic functions of government.” [Bloomberg]
Biden wants workers back
President Biden speaks in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, next to the White House, last month. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
“President Biden is calling for his Cabinet to ‘aggressively execute’ plans for federal employees to return to their offices this fall after years of working remotely, Axios' Alex Thompson has learned.
‘We are returning to in-person work because it is critical to the well-being of our teams and will enable us to deliver better results for the American people,’ White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients emailed every Cabinet official today.
Why it matters: It's Biden's most overt push yet to get federal employees to return to their offices — a dynamic many businesses have struggled with as Americans continue to embrace remote work.
‘17 of the 24 federal agencies used on average an estimated 25 percent or less of the capacity of their headquarters buildings,’ a Government Accountability Office report published last month found.
Between the lines: Zients has made returning to the office a priority for both the White House and the broader executive branch since becoming chief of staff in February.
Several current and former Biden White House officials told Axios that it was difficult to foster a healthy culture when the pandemic was still raging.
The White House declined to comment.
Zoom out: The political pressure on the White House to curb remote work has included demands from Republicans in Congress who have blamed telework for delays and backlogs in agencies' work.
Democrats and advocacy groups have blamed a lack of staffing on funding and cite telework as a key tool in recruiting staff.” [Axios]
Ukraine, Allies to Woo Global South at Saudi Arabia Meeting
”Ukraine and its allies will make their case for Kyiv’s peace plan this weekend to more than 30 countries, including some nations from the Global South that have so far avoided taking sides on Russia’s invasion. The talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, are aimed at building international support for Ukraine’s framework for potential peace talks.” [Bloomberg]
Ukraine Attack on Russian Ship Disrupts Commodity-Export Hub
”Russia’s commodity export hub in the Black Sea was closed for several hours on Friday after a Ukrainian drone attack on a naval vessel, the first time that operations at the key Novorossiysk shipment point for oil and grains have been disrupted by the war. Ukraine was responsible for targeting and disabling the Russian landing ship Olenegorsky Gornyak, sources say.” [Bloomberg]
In this grab taken from video, a drone approaches a vessel claimed to be the Olenegorsky Gonyak. AP
Battlefield Missiles Hurt Russia More Than Moscow Drone Attacks
”Drones that struck a Moscow office tower for the second time in a week shocked Russians long insulated from the war on their neighbor. But as Marc Champion reports, Kyiv’s missile campaign in the occupied south of Ukraine is having far greater impact on the Kremlin’s forces.” [Bloomberg]
Macron’s Africa Strategy in Tatters as Bet on Niger Unravels
”France’s Africa strategy is in tatters following the coup in Niger, where President Mohamed Bazoum is being held hostage by his security guards. With protesters there criticizing France over its influence, President Emmanuel Macron’s government is struggling to convince nations in the Sahel region that the presence of a former colonial power is beneficial.
The army leadership of Mali and Burkina Faso warned that any military intervention against Niger would also amount to a declaration of war against the West African nations.” [Bloomberg]
China’s ‘Sponge Cities’ Are Not Built for Extreme Flood Event
”China has invested billions of dollars to protect against extreme rainfall after a 2012 flood in Beijing killed 79 people and prompted Xi to call for building “cities like sponges.” But the climbing death toll in northern China since Saturday has sounded the alarm of whether the tactic works.” [Bloomberg]
The overflooded Yongding River following heavy rains in Beijing on Tuesday. Source: AFP/Getty Images
Good morning. We’re covering Oregon’s drug surge, Trump’s arraignment and the Pinegrove Shuffle.
Portland, Ore.Jordan Gale for The New York Times
A crucial difference
“When Oregon was getting ready to vote on whether to decriminalize all drugs in 2020, I was covering the story for Vox. During my interviews with the leaders of the decriminalization campaign, they often cited Portugal. It decriminalized all drugs in 2000. In the years after, Portugal’s drug-related problems declined.
But I found the comparison to be inexact. Even as Portugal ended prison time for drug possession, it created a unique system that pushed people to stop using drugs — sometimes with the continued threat of penalties, like the revocation of a person’s professional license. Oregon didn’t plan to enact similarly tough penalties, and advocates for decriminalization did not have a clear explanation for why their law would work as well as Portugal’s.
Our conversations left me wondering whether Oregon could repeat Portugal’s successes if the decriminalization initiative passed.
It did pass, with more than 58 percent of the vote. The results have not been good. Overdose deaths have spiked, and drug users have overrun public spaces in Portland, as Jordan Gale and Jan Hoffman reported for The Times this week.
Source: C.D.C. | Chart shows provisional numbers. | By The New York Times
‘At four in the afternoon the streets can feel like dealer central,’ said Jennifer Myrle, who runs a downtown coffee shop and wine bar with her brother. ‘At least 20 to 30 people in ski masks, hoodies and backpacks, usually on bikes and scooters. There’s no point calling the cops.’ On her walk to work, Myrle often sees needles, shattered glass, human feces and people who are passed out.
In today’s newsletter, I’ll use Oregon’s disappointing experience to consider a larger lesson about drug policy.
Carrot, but no stick
Drug addiction is an illness, but it is different from many other illnesses in a crucial respect. Most people with diabetes or cancer wish they could make their diseases disappear. Addicts have a more complex relationship with their disease. People with addiction often do not want treatment. They frequently think they have a handle on their drug use. That attitude is at the root of many people’s addictions.
‘You need to answer the question: Why would people stop using an incredibly rewarding drug if there is no real consequence at all?’ said Keith Humphreys, a drug policy expert at Stanford University.
A crucial part of Portugal’s change in 2000 was its attempt to nudge people to stop using drugs. The country did not simply decriminalize the substances. It also set up new incentives for seeking help: People caught using drugs can be sent to a special commission that tries to get them into free treatment. If drug users do not cooperate or they show serious problems, the commission can impose penalties, such as barring people from taking some jobs or visiting certain locations. It is a carrot-and-stick approach.
A police officer checks on a person believed to be overdosing.Jordan Gale for The New York Times
Oregon does not have much of a stick. The state imposes a $100 fine for people caught using drugs, but people can easily avoid the fine. A single phone call participating in a health screening, with no commitment to actual treatment, can get it waived. Drug users often ignore the fines, without consequences. Some police officers, knowing the fines can be toothless, no longer issue them.
As a result, people continue to use drugs, without an incentive to seek help.
The implication here — that law enforcement matters for stopping addiction — might make some liberals uncomfortable. But the evidence strongly suggests that people with addiction often need a push to seek help. By ending the threat of arrest or prison time and not creating anything like Portugal’s commissions, Oregon was left without a push.
Portugal, as it happens, seems to have lost its own push. The government has invested less in its commissions and treatment options in recent years, and some police officers have stopped citing people for drug use. As The Washington Post reported, Portugal’s drug problems are now getting worse, although they are still at lower levels than those in the U.S. and in Europe overall.
Supporters of decriminalization argue that Oregon’s policy just needs time: The law set aside money to improve access to addiction treatment, and that money has only recently gone out. Decriminalization advocates also say the pandemic is partly to blame for rising drug use.
At the very least, though, Oregon’s policy change has not turned things around.
The U.S. has spent decades criminalizing drug use, increasing spending on prisons and police and disproportionately locking up Black, Hispanic and Native Americans. Many experts believe that approach remains deeply flawed. Oregon’s experience shows there are also downsides to going to the other extreme.
Related: Oregon’s experience should deter other states from trying decriminalization, the Times columnist Bret Stephens argued. Jacob Sullum of Reason magazine countered that critics of the change aren’t grappling with the immorality of the law it replaced.” [New York Times]
THE WEEK IN CULTURE
Paul Reubens at the 2011 Creative Arts Emmy Awards.Danny Moloshok/Reuters
“Paul Reubens, who died this week at 70, was quiet. But his most famous character — Pee-wee Herman — was noisy and boisterous. See eight of Reubens’s best performances.” [New York Times]
“‘Pee-wee’s Playhouse’ celebrated the kind of anarchy that captivates kids and freaks out adults. James Poniewozik, The Times’s television critic, writes that he loved it ‘enough to marry it.’” [New York Times]
“Mark Margolis, a character actor who stole scenes in “Breaking Bad” and Darren Aronofsky films, died at 83.” [New York Times]
“For one night, Gwyneth Paltrow is renting her guesthouse on Airbnb. A Vogue writer imagined the possibilities.” [New York Times]
“Lizzo lost more than 150,000 Instagram followers after three former dancers alleged she created a hostile work environment, BuzzFeed reports.” [New York Times]
“‘Back to the Future,’ a musical based on the time-travel films, opened on Broadway. It’s a show with a ‘big wow factor,’ The Times’s Jesse Green writes.” [New York Times]
“‘The Notebook,’ a musical based on the Nicholas Sparks novel, is coming to Broadway in the spring.” [New York Times]
“With Hollywood strikes shutting down film shoots, some actors have turned to Cameo, a personalized video website, to make money.” [New York Times]
“A.I. innovations have transformed visual effects, making it a grievance for actors worried they will be replaced.” [New York Times]
“A trombonist breaking barriers: Hillary Simms, 28, became the first woman to join the prestigious American Brass Quintet.” [New York Times]
“A masterpiece of outdoor art was installed in a saltwater marsh in Georgia. It’s been sinking for decades, just as its sculptor intended.” [New York Times]
GAME OF THE WEEKEND
U.S. players training in Melbourne.William West/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
“United States vs. Sweden, Women’s World Cup: The U.S. team looks mortal. They were nearly eliminated in the tournament’s first stage, when a late-game shot by Portugal bounced off the goal post, and the offense has looked uninspired. Now the knockout rounds begin with a matchup against a Swedish squad that won its first three games with authority. There is reason for hope, though: The U.S. defense, anchored by Julie Ertz, has allowed only one goal. 5 a.m. Eastern tomorrow on Fox.” [New York Times]
Big 12 furthers expansion by adding Arizona, Arizona State and Utah from crumbling Pac-12
USA TODAY
“In the latest development in what has been one of the most transformative weeks in the history of college sports, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah are leaving the Pac-12 to become the newest members of the Big 12 and will join the conference in 2024, the Big 12 announced Friday night.
‘We are thrilled to welcome Arizona, Arizona State and Utah to the Big 12,’ commissioner Brett Yormark said in a statement. ‘The conference is gaining three premier institutions both academically and athletically, and the entire Big 12 looks forward to working alongside their presidents, athletic directors, student-athletes and administrators.’
With six current members set to leave for the Big 12 and Big Ten, the Pac-12 is suddenly on the verge of extinction. The Wildcats, Sun Devils and Utes are following Colorado to the Big 12. The Buffaloes decided to rejoin the conference last week and Washington and Oregon announced their moves to the Big Ten earlier Friday evening….” [USA Today]