Monday Briefing | May 09

Stories to Follow

Donald Trump Becomes the Republican Party’s Presumptive Nominee
On Tuesday, Donald Trump won the Republican Indiana primary by a large majority. In response, the two remaining Republican president candidates, Ted Cruz and John Kasich, suspended their campaigns indefinitely, making Trump the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee. The Republican Party is still divided over the presidential candidate, however. The Republican National Committee reportedly told staff members that if they could not support Trump, they should pack up their things by the end of the week. Some Republican favorites aren’t convinced, however. Mitt Romney (former Republican president candidate), Paul Ryan (Republican Speaker of the House), and former Republican presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush are currently refusing to endorse Trump.

North Korea Convenes Congress for First Time in 36 Years
On Friday, North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, convened the first Congress of the Working Party for the first time in 36 years. The meeting is not expected to create drastic changes in North Korean society and is largely considered an opportunity to praise Kim Jong Un. Surprisingly enough, however, Kim announced a five-year economic development plan, an usual step away from Kim’s father’s “military first” policy. Kim began the event by praising the nuclear and missile programs, though he stated that nuclear weapons would only be used if North Korean sovereignty was violated. The Congress is expected to last well in to this week.

 Happening this week

“Afghanistan at a Crossroads”
Tuesday, May 10^th at 6pm| 31 Washington Place, Room 520
NYU Program in International Relations presents the Second Annual Benton Discussion on Statecraft and Diplomacy. This year’s discussion, “Afghanistan at a Crossroads”, features a conversation between His Excellency Ambassador Mahmoud Saikal, Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, and Prix Bayeux Prize Winner, Christina Lamb, Chief Foreign Correspondent, The Sunday Times (London).

European Union at the Cross Roads: Political Tragedy, Economic Insecurity with Dr. Irene Finel-Honigman, Columbia University
Thursday, May 12th at 6:30pm| The Great Room, 19 University Place
As the EU began slow but steady growth and return to stability, since summer 2015 the migrant crisis, fear of Brexit and the terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels have exposed endemic weaknesses and extreme volatility. This presentation will explore the causes, challenges and prognosis of a Europe in transition.

In Your Free Time

Radio Lab
“Radiolab is a [podcast]about curiosity. Where sound illuminates ideas, and the boundaries blur between science, philosophy, and human experience.” Radiolab’s topics include everything from epigenetics, the 1980s Rock and Roll revolution in Cuba, and Japanese balloon bombs in WWII.

It’s What I Do by Lynsey Addario
“A remarkable journalistic achievement… that crystalizes the last 10 years of global war and strife while candidly portraying the intimate life of a female photojournalist. Told with unflinching candor [Addario] brings an incredible sense of humanity to all the battlefields of her life.  A brutally real and unrelentingly raw memoir that is as inspiring as it is horrific.”—Kirkus (starred review)