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In our press tour today, we see an article commenting on Abdul Rahman Al-Sayyed’s victory as a senator in the midterm elections for the US Congress, and another discussing the impact of the Republican loss on the influence of technology tycoons in Silicon Valley, in addition to a third article about the role of drones used by the Houthis in the ongoing conflict in Yemen and with Saudi Arabia.
We start from the American newspaper "US Today", and an article entitled "With El-Sayed's victory, the Democrats repeat the mistake made by the Republicans," written by Des Bottas.
The writer believes that the victory of the Democratic candidate, Abdul Rahman Al-Sayyid, over his Republican rival, Mike Rogers, to serve in the Senate from the state of Michigan has more implications than it seems, as it strengthens the influence of the progressive wing within the Democratic Party, and gives it a strong impetus to tighten its control over the party as a whole.
The writer says: “Al-Sayyid and the party’s extreme left wing are seeking to reshape the Democratic Party according to their own vision. They espouse radical ideas, ignore existing political norms, and show no interest in building bridges of cooperation with moderates. Al-Sayyid’s victory in the Senate gives them an opportunity to tighten their grip on the party.”
The writer Abdel Rahman Al-Sayyed describes him as one of the most progressive members of the Senate (prospective). His agenda is based on familiar progressive issues: Medicare for all, taxing the wealth of billionaires, and keeping money out of politics.
“But when you look beyond that, his agenda is uncompromisingly radical,” he adds. “He calls for eliminating the filibuster rule in the Senate, ending the lifetime appointment of Supreme Court justices, and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”
In addition to his policies, Al-Sayed did not hesitate to alienate moderate Democrats who had concerns about his election campaign. His fellow Democrat Haley Stevens - who competed with him in heated primaries within the Democratic Party - was forced to overcome her differences and declare her support for him after her loss, according to the writer.
He added: "At a late stage in the race, a clash occurred between them... Two days before the elections, Stevens announced her support for Republican Rogers, Al-Sayed's competitor."
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The writer adds: “Al-Sayyed is not afraid of the idea of a broad, cross-party party. But his version of it replaces moderate Democrats with elements of extremist movements. He participated in two election rallies on two university campuses alongside Hassan Baker, a Twitch streamer who has previously said that America deserved the events of September 11.”
The writer continues: “Instead of seeking to win the support of voters in the center and the right, who have lost confidence in the Republican Party in its current form influenced by Trump, Democrats are turning further to the left in an attempt to win over an ever-shrinking segment of voters. Many within the Democratic Party may follow this path, but some will be repulsed by the lengths to which their party will go under the pretext of defeating Republicans.”
Des Bottas calls on Democrats to draw a lesson from what happened to Republicans over the past decade. “Republican voters were fed up with their traditional leadership and turned to figures from outside the party establishment who promised them confrontation. This trend led to the rise of President Donald Trump, and left many conservatives without political cover.”
He concluded: “Liberal Democrats will find themselves in the same position if their party continues on this path. Al-Sayyed sought to implement something of a progressive takeover of the party in Michigan. He succeeded in doing so. His victory is further indication that Democrats prefer to shift further to the left, rather than build a broad support base.”
Is Silicon Valley's political influence declining?
We turn to the British newspaper The Guardian, which wrote an editorial entitled “The Guardian’s take on the backlash against AI: Silicon Valley’s political influence is cracking.”
The newspaper believes that the midterm elections showed that the political bill for the artificial intelligence boom has come to be paid. The Democratic Party's huge win heightened concerns about rampant spending, debt accumulation, and opposition to data center construction, causing a sharp decline in technology stocks.
She wrote: “On Thursday, the Wall Street Stock Exchange suffered its largest losses since the pandemic, after the markets lost $3.2 trillion of their value... Nvidia, which dominates the artificial intelligence chip market, saw its value decline, by more than $400 billion. As for the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, he lost $113 billion within two days.”
The newspaper considered that President Donald Trump was one of the most prominent losers, as he rejected concerns related to artificial intelligence and the need to impose stricter rules, “and described concerns about the potential dangers of developing artificial intelligence as a hoax. Republicans have paid a price for his refusal to listen to these concerns.”
The most prominent fears of Americans regarding the expansion of the construction of data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure are the massive consumption of electricity and energy, price inflation, the threat to jobs, and the depletion of financial resources, as well as environmental risks.
The Guardian wrote: “Musk spent $200 million in Texas to support Republicans... but he did not succeed in buying these elections, as the Democrats won a seat in the Senate and the position of governor of the state, and swept all other positions at the state level, and they also took control of the Texas House of Representatives by a comfortable margin.”
At the level of the United States as a whole, the elections witnessed victories for Democrats, including candidates who criticized the construction of data centers and pledged to slow down or suspend the pace of their construction, according to the newspaper.
She adds: “Whatever the fate of technology stocks, the artificial intelligence monster will not return to its bottle. This year alone, this technology was cited as the reason for 120,000 Americans losing their jobs.”
She concluded: “Therefore, politicians should strengthen the bargaining power of workers and ensure that productivity gains are distributed fairly. Leaving matters to markets alone will only deepen economic insecurity and political mistrust, which are eating away at the body of democracy.”
"Houthi drones reshape the battle"
Image source: AFP
Finally, we conclude our tour with the Daily Telegraph and an analytical report entitled “Houthi drones reshape the battle for control of the Red Sea,” written by Akhtar Makoyi, the newspaper’s foreign affairs correspondent.
He wrote: "Drones have become the most lethal weapon of Houthi fighters in their efforts to control the Bab al-Mandab Strait, one of the most important shipping lanes in the world."
Since Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to the American-Israeli war against it, the Bab al-Mandab Strait has gained exceptional importance. “Cheap, accurate and almost impossible to counter, FPV drones are reshaping a conflict that has been going on for 12 years.”
The writer adds: "With the US midterm elections dealing a humiliating blow to Trump, and talk accelerating in Qatar about a possible agreement between the United States and Iran, the Iran-backed Houthis are intensifying their attacks, and they are determined to impose themselves as a party to any settlement, instead of being the subject of bargaining, according to analysts and regional officials."
The writer quotes a Yemeni source as saying: “The Houthis fear that the balance of power will change against them in favor of the Yemeni government, because they realize that they currently have the upper hand,” and therefore their logic is based on “strike the Yemeni government forcefully now, then negotiate with the Saudis.”
The writer points out that the advantage of the Iran-backed Houthis is largely concentrated in the airspace.
He wrote: “While the Saudi-backed Yemeni government has quietly acquired drones from Ukraine, even during the truce period, according to the Yemeni source, it is the Houthis who maintain superiority in the skies. This superiority goes back to Iran and China.”
The report indicates that the Houthis no longer rely entirely on Iranian equipment.
He adds: “China is the other half of the supply chain, not through the sale of weapons, but through the quiet flow of dual-use components, the Daily Telegraph understands.”
The newspaper adds: "This network relies on a decades-long system of Yemeni merchants, especially in the industrial city of Guangzhou in southern China, where more than 400 logistics companies run by Yemenis operate."
The report indicates that the sanctions imposed by Western countries have not affected the Houthis, concluding: “Until that (the status quo) changes, preference will remain with the party that is willing to send a cheap machine to places that the soldier cannot reach. In Yemen today, this applies to the Houthis.”
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