Congress opposes direct public access to most Congressional Research Service reports, so people who care to read the reports on current policy issues must work around the Congressional barrier. Some noteworthy new reports from CRS include the following (all pdf).
The U.S. Export Control System and the President’s Reform Initiative, July 14, 2011
A Balanced Budget Constitutional Amendment: Background and Congressional Options, July 8, 2011
Selected Characteristics of Private and Public Sector Workers, July 1, 2011
The Sustainability of the Federal Budget Deficit: Market Confidence and Economic Effects, June 28, 2011
War Powers Litigation Initiated by Members of Congress Since the Enactment of the War Powers Resolution, June 22, 2011
Satellite imagery of RAF Lakenheath reveals new construction of a security perimeter around ten protective aircraft shelters in the designated nuclear area, the latest measure in a series of upgrades as the base prepares for the ability to store U.S. nuclear weapons.
It will take consistent leadership and action to navigate the complex dangers in the region and to avoid what many analysts considered to be an increasingly possible outcome, a nuclear conflict in East Asia.
Getting into a shutdown is the easy part, getting out is much harder. Both sides will be looking to pin responsibility on each other, and the court of public opinion will have a major role to play as to who has the most leverage for getting us out.
How the United States responds to China’s nuclear buildup will shape the global nuclear balance for the rest of the century.