Despite the constitutional barrier between church and state in America, politicians hardly ever give a major speech without invoking religion. In particular, the political relationship between Christian evangelicals and the Republican Party has existed for decades. But is the expected announcement of Donald Trump as the Republican nominee next month about to shake things up? He is very different to the usual candidate that would appeal to the religious right. If he gets the evangelical vote, he'd be the first nominee to do so without really talking about God or the Bible. How has he proved so successful? Ernie Rea and guests discuss religion and the US Republican Party.
1 July 2016
Slate: Rules Are Made to Be Spoken
Sali Tagliamonte, author of Making Waves: The Story of Variationist Sociolinguistics, talks about the underlying disorder of the English language.
Listen to Lexicon Valley Episode No. 88:
listen to the podcast
Listen to Lexicon Valley Episode No. 88:
listen to the podcast
AP: Ku Klux Klan dreams of rising again 150 years after founding
In a series of interviews with The Associated Press, Klan leaders said they feel that U.S. politics are going their way, as a nationalist, us-against-them mentality deepens across the nation. Stopping or limiting immigration — a desire of the Klan dating back to the 1920s — is more of a cause than ever. And leaders say membership has gone up at the twilight of President Barack Obama's second term in office, though few would provide numbers. [...]
The Anti-Defamation League, the Jewish protection group that monitors Klan activity, describes Barker's Loyal White Knights as the most active Klan group today, but estimates it has no more than 200 members total. The ADL puts total Klan membership nationwide at around 3,000.
The Alabama-based SPLC says there's no evidence the Klan is returning to the strength of its heyday. It estimates the Klan has about 190 chapters nationally with no more than 6,000 members total, which would be a mere shadow of its estimated 2 million to 5 million members in the 1920s. [...]
Stopping immigration, not blocking minority rights, is the Klan's No. 1 issue today, Waller said. His group operates by the KKK rulebook called the "Kloran," which was first published in 1915. Various versions of the book are now online, and an edition posted by the University of Wisconsin library states in part: "We shall ever be true in the faithful maintenance of White Supremacy and will strenuously oppose any compromise thereof in any and all things.
"The current hot-button issue for Klan members — fighting immigration and closing U.S. borders — is one of the most talked-about topics in the presidential election. Klan leaders say Donald Trump's immigration position and his ascendancy in the GOP are signs things are going their way.
Politico: Brexit pushes US closer to Germany
The longstanding “special relationship” between the U.S. and Britain gave Washington a key confidant at the table in Brussels, as Obama stressed in his April referendum intervention in London. But a Europe without a United Kingdom doesn’t exactly leave Britain’s former colony out in the cold.
“On the big issues, we’ve seen the transition for years now where the first call has not been to London, where it used to be, but to Berlin,” said Damon Wilson, a former senior director for European affairs at the National Security Council under George W. Bush and who is currently executive vice president of the Atlantic Council. “That transition has already happened and the great recession really accelerated that with the magnification of German economic and political power.” [...]
Still, he said, “the U.K.’s diffidence towards the EU for so many years diminished their clout,” he says. “Increasingly, U.S. officials have seen if you want to get something done in Europe you work with the power that knows how to work with the EU.” And that, he says, is Germany.
Business Insider: JPMorgan and UBS both think London will lose its crown as the financial centre of Europe
Both JPMorgan and UBS think London will remain a financial hub but believe the city's dominance in Europe, and the world, will be diminished, with the likes of Frankfurt, Paris, and Dublin benefiting as a result. Such a move could devastate London. Around 350,000 people work in finance in London. [...]
JPMorgan, Barr's employer, has already warned that it will likely have to move a quarter of its 16,000 UK employees to elsewhere in the EU.
Britain may well not even get the sweetheart deal on trade and finance that's hoped for either. French President Francois Hollande yesterday signalled that he wants to stop London clearing trades made in euros, something that would be a hammer blow to the city and surely force even more jobs overseas. [...]
Of course almost no bank wants to be the one to admit they are moving jobs onto the continent. So far almost all have reaffirmed their commitment to the UK. But all have also underlined the fact that, ultimately, they will do what's best for their clients. Their analysts seem to think that's moving at least some jobs elsewhere.
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