Causes of the Texas Blackouts, Biden’s Next Steps on Afghanistan, and More

Democrats forgo bipartisanship to rescue pensions, the least bad choice on Afghanistan, and avoiding future energy disasters in Texas.

View in browser March 10, 2021 Catastrophic blackouts in Texas   Despite two "once-in-a-lifetime" storms in Texas over the past decade, state policymakers have failed to address the fossil fuel industry's grip on energy policy and regulation. Colby Galliher, Kelsey Landau, and Julia Bourkland discuss the factors that led to the Texas blackouts and explain what must change to avoid future disasters.   Read more Why staying in Afghanistan is the least bad choice for Biden   "Do we stay or do we go? We believe that the correct answer is to stay. As difficult as it is to remain in this longest war, the most likely outcome of pulling out of Afghanistan would be very ugly, including ethnic cleansing, mass slaughter and the ultimate dismemberment of the country," argue Madiha Afzal and Michael O'Hanlon in their latest op-ed.   Read in The Washington Post Pension bills have always been bipartisan. Not anymore.   Democrats are using the budget reconciliation process to allocate around $80 billion of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan to preserve pensions, forgoing bipartisanship on major pension legislation for the first time in recent memory. Joshua Gotbaum explains how the issue became partisan and why Democrats are going it alone now.   Read more Help support Brookings with a donation   Brookings is committed to making its high-quality, independent policy research free to the public. Please consider making a contribution today to our Annual Fund to support our experts' work. The conclusions and recommendations of any Brookings publication are solely those of its author(s), and do not reflect the views of the Institution, its management, or its other scholars. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brookings Institution campus in Washington, D.C. is currently closed and all events are virtual only. For more information on the Institution's response, read our full guidance here. The Brookings Institution, 1775 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036 Unsubscribe Manage your newsletter preferences | Receive the Brookings Brief less often