This week offered a glimpse into the central challenges set to dominate President Joe Biden's term in office. In a new essay, Hal Brands describes the central theme of Biden's foreign policy: the contest between democracy and autocracy. But while this is a useful frame, Brands argues democratic values won't save the free world in a gunfight. From defense budgets to alliance building, the hard part has just begun.

At home, two other challenges loom. In Persuasion, Stan Veuger and Daniel Shoag warn that inflation, if it lasts, will not just be a problem for the rich. Rising prices erode the value of working-class wages and may trigger a blunt response from the Federal Reserve that results in a recession.

Meanwhile, test scores released by Texas earlier this week offered an ominous sign for the country's students after over a year of pandemic schooling. For some subjects, such as algebra I, test scores did not just drop but plummeted. According to Nat Malkus, these early data are likely the first in a string of devastating test score results from other states.

Some policymakers hope expanding broadband access can help education outcomes, but Mark Jamison warns the Biden administration's proposed investments will squander much of their potential. The Biden approach depends on politics to deliver results, meaning the funding is more likely to be used for political favors than additional broadband. A better approach, Jamison argues, would route investment through the Federal Communications Commission.  

Finally, Matthew Continetti reports that the White House faces a challenge much closer to home: the vice president. A story this week based on interviews with 22 affiliated staffers described Kamala Harris' office as a dysfunctional operation inspiring neither loyalty nor trust. Coupled with her uneven trip to Guatemala last month, Continetti argues Harris is fast becoming a political liability for both the president and the Democratic Party.