Stories Related to Gates Plots Defensive Stance On N. Korea

New York Times: “Four years ago, and certainly eight years ago, the Bay Area remained a haven for liberalism and offered little support for Mr. Trump. But that Obama-era bonhomie between Silicon Valley and the Democratic Party has come close to disintegrating. These days, entrepreneurs complain as much about President Biden as they do about Lina Khan, the chair of the Federal Trade Commission, who has ascended to Darth Vader-like status in some corners of the technology industry.” “To be sure, most of the tech industry’s elite maintain their liberal leanings on everything from immigration to climate change.

“Across the continent, parties in power are bracing for a drubbing in this week’s elections for the European Parliament — in many cases, at the hands of far-right populists,” Axios reports. “Four years of successive crises — a global pandemic, large-scale war in Europe for the first time in decades, and debilitating inflation — are fueling anti-incumbent backlash in the biggest election year in human history.”

“On the 56th anniversary of his father’s assassination, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the independent presidential candidate, again pleaded on Wednesday to be granted Secret Service protection, arguing in an interview on Fox News that he was at an elevated risk of being targeted because of his family history,” the New York Times reports.

New York Times: “With a billion-plus people going to the polls in more than 60 countries, some analysts had feared that 2024 would pose a fateful test for democracy — one that it might fail. For years, populist and strongmen leaders have chipped away at democratic institutions, sowing doubts about the legitimacy of elections, while social media has swamped voters with disinformation and conspiracy theories.” “In some of the biggest, most fragile democracies, leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey had been regarded as close to invincible, using appeals to nationalism or sectarianism to mobilize supporters and bending institutions to suit their purposes.” “Yet now, Mr.

“Vladimir Putin has portrayed himself as a defender of global stability, leading a powerful nation that offers a robust economic, military and cultural alternative to the West,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “One challenge to his vision: Russia’s population has been in decline for years, and the war in Ukraine has made matters worse.” “At least 150,000 Russians are dead on the battlefield, according to Western estimates.