'I need you'

Does the world really need another summit?

In normal years, world leaders shuttle between big meetings of the G7, the G20, APEC, ASEAN, the EU, NATO, the Arab League, the AU, the GCC, the OAS, the NALS and the BRICS.

Now it’s time for the Quad.

President Joe Biden will send a clear signal on Friday by making one of his first major forays on the world stage a four-way summit among the leaders of the US, Japan, India and Australia, aka “the Quad.” The White House says Biden is keen to get into international cooperation on the pandemic, trade and the climate crisis. Notice what is missing there? It’s China — the nation that most observers see as the entire rationale for the talks.

Leaders might not want to get too specific on a Zoom call. But the four powers have common concerns about China’s behavior across a range of trade, military, foreign policy and intelligence questions. When they talk about maintaining a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region, that’s what they mean.

Each Quad member has seen its relations with Beijing slump in tandem with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s increasingly assertive and nationalistic rule. China’s navy and military ambitions are also giving Quad members a strong incentive for cooperation. Last year, Australia joined annual Malabar exercises with the US, Japanese and Indian forces.

The Quad fits a US strategy of building a network of alliances and informal partnerships to counter China’s increasing willingness to wield power globally. But is such an approach effective? The European Union, which recently signed a trade pact with Beijing, shows no sign of wanting to choose between the two great Pacific powers: China and the US. And Japan and Australia are members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership alongside China that was signed last year (the partnership was created after the Trump administration backed out of an earlier group that the Obama administration had hoped would thwart Beijing’s Pacific influence).

In diplomacy, showing up counts. When the next Quad summit rolls around this time next year, expect leaders to meet in person -- where they can more discreetly talk about what’s really on their minds.

The world and America

Famine is spreading in Yemen amid a Saudi fuel blockade.

Myanmar police say they refused orders to shoot protesters.

And different Covid-19 variants caused simultaneous infection in two people in Brazil.

Meanwhile in America, 1 in 10 people are fully vaccinated.

Texas sued leaders in the city of Austin over their Covid-19 mask requirements.

And Netflix may crack down on password sharing.

'Politics seems to be a broken business to me right now'

He wouldn’t be the first American movie star to move into the governor’s mansion. Actor Matthew McConaughey says he is seriously considering a run for governor in Texas, challenging incumbent Republican Greg Abbott. Jumping into the race is "a true consideration," McConaughey said on a recent episode of Crime Stoppers of Houston's "The Balanced Voice" podcast. "I'm looking into now again, what is my leadership role?" he said. "Because I do think I have some things to teach and share, and what is my role? What's my category in my next chapter of life that I'm going into?" He previously told "The Hugh Hewitt Show" that “politics seems to be a broken business to me right now. And when politics redefines its purpose, I could be a hell of a lot more interested.”

'I need you'

In the first-prime time address of his term, Biden on Thursday shouldered the pastoral responsibility and galvanizing theater of the American presidency as never before -- and issued a challenge to every citizen.

He beseeched the country to stay committed to social distancing and asked everyone – even the skeptics — to get vaccinated in their turn. For his side of the bargain, the President vowed to make every adult eligible to be vaccinated by May 1, raising the prospect of parties and family gatherings by America’s birthday, the Fourth of July.

Biden’s ambitious target acknowledges the nation's impatience, exhaustion and trauma, and its desperation to re-create the richness of normality. As only someone who has suffered a lifetime of personal tragedy can, Biden spoke movingly of what has been lost over the last year: half a million lives, but also the vacations, weddings and graduations that didn’t happen, and the agony of separated families.

Evoking a July 4 soft deadline is a risk; the virus has repeatedly resisted efforts by political leaders to set timetables for its defeat. Remember then-President Donald Trump predicting the pews would be full of worshippers last Easter? But Biden's version of hope is less delusional; the country's vaccine effort is cranking up to a formidable pace, with 2 million shots going into arms every day. The President must now provide the massive infrastructure needed to get to his target.

On Thursday night, Biden's personal challenge to Americans, faith in a resilience many no longer feel and confidence after months of darkness recalled another president who understood the vast power of the presidency to inspire a nation to help itself. By force of character, Franklin Roosevelt conjured the national will to prevail over another era-defining threat: the Great Depression. If Biden can perform a similar feat over the next few months, he will be equally well remembered.

Thanks for sticking with us through the week.

On Friday, Microsoft President Brad Smith testifies before members of Congress. International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach is expected to speak about the Tokyo Games, and Chileans are expected to resume anti-government protests in Santiago.

On Saturday, demonstrators in Bangkok are expected to gather to call for a new constitution. Two NASA astronauts will perform a space walk to upgrade the International Space Station. Expect a vigil in London over the disappearance of 33-year-old Sarah Everard.

On Sunday, SpaceX launches its 22nd batch of Starlink satellites. Opponents of government-imposed Covid-19 restrictions are expected to protest in The Hague. And Americans lose one hour of sleep to daylight savings.

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