Stephen Kinzer

Author and Journalist at Freelance

Author & journalist. Former NY Times foreign correspondent. Boston Globe columnist. Senior Fellow @WatsonInstitute for Intl. and Public Affairs @Brownuniversity

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Articles

Mexico’s dangerous constitutional ‘reform’

2 weeks ago | ourcommunitynow.com | Stephen Kinzer

Share Electing judges is a bad idea because it places popularity ahead of competence, experience, temperament, and other prized judicial qualities. Several countries, including the United States, allow election of some judges, but none has ever gone as far as Mexico. Mexican voters who go to the polls on June 1 will face a baffling array of ballots — more than half a dozen in some places.
Mexico’s dangerous constitutional ‘reform’ - The Boston Globe

2 weeks ago | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

Mexico is about to become the only country in the world where voters elect all judges. This “constitutional reform” was promoted as an anticorruption measure. It may have the opposite effect. Powerful economic interests and violent criminals, including drug lords, will now have easier access to the judiciary. The mass judicial election, scheduled for June 1, may be a turning point for Mexico. Rule of law has been weakening there for years. Electing judges threatens to weaken it further.
Trump’s troubling admiration for El Salvador - The Boston Globe

1 month ago | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

Name a lovely Latin American country that’s smaller than Massachusetts. It’s dotted with charming mountain villages, produces fine coffee, and has great beaches. Can’t guess? Hint: It’s home to the biggest prison in the Western Hemisphere, and more than 1 percent of its citizens are behind bars. The government says none will ever be released. Until a few months ago, few Americans gave much thought to El Salvador.
Ukraine wouldn’t be the first country, or the last, to accept an ugly peace - The Boston Globe

2 months ago | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

Wars are always ugly, but sometimes peace accords are ugly too. They often require excruciating concessions. This may be Ukraine’s future. In the aftermath of wars, former combatants seek peace and justice. These goals often conflict. From a Ukrainian perspective, justice would mean a recovery of lost territory and the withdrawal of Russian troops. That formula, however, would not bring peace, because Russia, which has the upper hand militarily, will not accept it.
Let’s make a deal, Iran edition - The Boston Globe

2 months ago | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

Who’s next? President Trump has stunningly upended US relations with France, Germany, Ukraine, Russia, Panama, Canada, Mexico, and Denmark. Lately he has suggested that Iran might soon join the list. “There are two ways Iran can be handled, militarily or you make a deal,” Trump mused a few days ago. “I would prefer to make a deal, because I am not looking to hurt Iran.”Hurting Iran has been a key goal of American foreign policy for nearly half a century.
How Europe can go it alone - The Boston Globe

Feb 25, 2025 | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

How do you react when your longtime partner dumps you? Stunned European leaders are suddenly facing that question. Their countries and the United States have long been locked in intimate embrace. Suddenly the United States has announced that the affair is over. Europe is on its own. It faces a highly uncertain future for which it is unprepared. Since the establishment of NATO in 1949, European countries have had little incentive to build up their own armies or plan for their continent’s security.
Trump loves McKinley. If only they were more alike. - The Boston Globe

Jan 31, 2025 | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

William McKinley. President Trump admires one of his long-forgotten predecessors. He has resurrected the memory of President William McKinley, whose term bridged the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. Trump evidently sees him as a kindred spirit. That is passing strange, since in most regards McKinley was the quintessential anti-Trump. McKinley was the ultimate consensus politician. He was famous for his lack of convictions and hated taking a stand on any controversial issue.
El secretario de Estado de EE. UU., Marco Rubio, es irrelevante ahora

Jan 31, 2025 | confidencial.digital | Stephen Kinzer

¡Oh, no! Marco Rubio es nuestro nuevo secretario de Estado. Dado que sus puntos de vista sobre los asuntos mundiales son una mezcla tóxica de ira, agresividad, ignorancia y arrogancia, es una noticia terrible. O tal vez no. Rubio no será el principal arquitecto de la política exterior estadounidense. Puede que ni siquiera esté en la sala cuando el presidente Trump tome decisiones importantes. Las opiniones de Marco Rubio no son la razón por la que será marginado.
The secretary of state is irrelevant now - The Boston Globe

Jan 21, 2025 | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

Oh no! Marco Rubio is our new secretary of state. Since his views on world affairs are a toxic mix of anger, aggressiveness, ignorance, and arrogance, that’s terrible news. Or maybe not. Rubio won’t be the chief architect of American foreign policy. He may not even be in the room when President Trump makes important decisions. Rubio’s opinions are not the reason he will be marginalized. The nature of the job has changed tremendously.
Biden’s disappointing foreign policy legacy

Jan 12, 2025 | bostonglobe.com | Stephen Kinzer

As President Biden prepares to leave office, he has sought to take credit for the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria. That may or may not be justified, but Biden is grasping for anything in the world for which he can claim credit. He leaves behind a remarkably weak foreign policy record. Yes, there was one big achievement: Biden ended the war in Afghanistan.