Alex Callinicos

The pandemic, debt and economic power

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused an enormous jolt to the world economy. We are in the midst of the biggest global slump since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Biden heralds return to US ‘forever wars’

Donald Trump's decision last week to cut back US troops in Afghanistan and Iraq was roundly denounced by what Barack Obama called the “blob”— the mainstream national security establishment, whether Republican or Democratic.

A fine scapegoat for many Tory failures

Dominic Cummings’ stagey departure from 10 Downing St, like a pantomime Demon King, was one of the few happy moments in a terrible year. But what does it really mean?

The left in Britain and the US after two earthquakes

Win or lose, Donald Trump has upended the politics of the United States.

Trump’s Republicans at odds with big business

Amid all the uncertainties of this week’s US presidential election, one thing’s for sure. The Republican Party’s relationship with its social base is cracking apart

Joe Biden can’t contain the deep bitterness that exists in the US

It was one of Bill Clinton’s advisers who coined the slogan, “It’s the Economy Stupid!” But this has been Donald Trump’s recipe for getting re-elected.

Can Johnson survive Covid-19 and Brexit?

Weak and nasty” has been a good description of all Tory governments since the fall of Margaret Thatcher nearly 30 years ago. None fit this description better than Boris Johnson’s administration.

The sickness coming from the White House

There are three things to understand about Donald Trump at present. The first is that he may be incoherent and self-obsessed, but he’s not a fool.

European economies are headed for crash

The political disarray the pandemic is causing in Britain and the United States has made the European Union (EU) look good by comparison.

Covid-19 is creating new political divides

More and more coronavirus is reshaping politics

Trump is escalating an ideological war

It’s always been a mistake to underestimate Donald Trump. This is especially true now, when he’s fighting ferociously to stay in the White House. Not underestimating him means taking him seriously as a political operator, but also as an ideologist.

International law is made for capitalism

International law helps to regulate the relations between capitalist states. It plays an increasingly important role in providing a framework for the activities of transnational corporation

Brexit bluster can’t hide Tories’ EU troubles

A year ago Brexit dominated the headlines to the point of utter tedium. Now, of course, it’s the Covid-19 pandemic, which is too deadly to tolerate boredom. But Brexit is mounting a comeback, with a vengeance.

Energy rows in the Mediterranean reflect deepening imperialist rivalries

There is a scramble going on to grab the gas reserves in the north eastern Mediterranean. Competition over energy is interwoven with the growing struggle for dominance in a Middle East thrown into chaos

Trump opens a rift with US ruling class

Many in the US ruling class may be beginning to wonder whether Trump is worth the trouble

Trump banks on racial polarisation

The protests against the killing of George Floyd by the Minneapolis police are swelling into an uprising of national proportions.

Is EU singing from Hamilton songbook?

Alexander Hamilton, one of the brilliant group of “founding fathers” of the United States and its first finance minister, was once remembered mainly because he was killed in a duel by vice president Aaron Burr in 1804.

Bosses will use debt crisis against poorest

On the other side of the pandemic, many fear there will be a debt crisis. This fear is mainly motivated by the huge amounts of money governments are spending to prop up companies and subsidise wages.

Economic crash could leave lasting scars

The bank of England’s latest monetary policy report is a classic example of bad news and good news. The bad news is that the British economy will shrink by 14 percent this year.