Columnist

Joseph Braude

Middle East specialist Joseph Braude is the author of Broadcasting Change: Arabic Media as a Catalyst for Liberalism (Rowman & Littlefield). He is Advisor to the Al-Mesbar Center for Research and Studies and tweets@josephbraude.

Latest Articles

  • By Joseph Braude

    Weeks Ahead of U.S. Presidential Race, Analysts Debate Presumption of a Biden Victory

    As America’s presidential election nears, Washington’s analysts and commentators are scrutinizing the polling data in critical, battleground states with ever increasing intensity. Most polls point toward a Democratic sweep of those states. Contrarians nonetheless note that the polls were...

  • By Joseph Braude

    A Mixed Verdict on America’s Vice Presidential Debate

    On October 7, the only debate between Vice-Presidential nominees Mike Pence of Indiana and Senator Harris of California aired on American national television. By contrast to the September prior debate between President Trump and former Vice President Biden, it received high marks from commentat...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Senate Republicans Move to Consolidate Conservative Power in the U.S. Supreme Court

    Amid the tumult of President Trump’s brief hospitalization with the coronavirus, and Democrats’ rising fortunes in the polls ahead of the November elections, Senate Republicans are quietly organizing a judicial nomination poised to entrench conservative power in Washington for years to come. Wh...

  • By Joseph Braude

    As U.S. Presidential Ballots Near, Attention Turns to Polling

    A spate of recent polls shows President Trump’s standing has declined in several states crucial to his re-election, foremost among them Pennsylvania, a traditionally Democratic state which Trump surprised observers by capturing for the Republicans in 2016. This has re-ignited a debate over the...

  • By Joseph Braude

    A Supreme Court Vacancy Scrambles America’s Presidential Race

    The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg at age 87 has intensified the political battle now raging in Washington and, in the view of some observers, markedly increased the chances of President Trump’s re-election. While the Republican-held Senate is attempting to confirm a...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Iranian Plans to Assassinate U.S. Officials Bring Only Further Pressure from Washington

    The seemingly dormant conflict between Tehran and Washington returned to the fore again this week when U.S. President Trump implicitly confirmed reports that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps was planning the assassination of American officials in retaliation for the killing of former IRGC...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Iran Remains Defiant as Sanctions Take Huge Toll on its Bottom Line

    The Trump administration’s bid to trigger snapback sanctions through the UN has thrown into sharp relief the already grim economic predicament gripping Tehran. Senior officials are publicly signaling that sanctions have crippled Tehran’s ability to obtain even basic necessities, while the best ...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Washington Advances Toward “Snapback Sanctions” on Iran

    On Thursday, Secretary Pompeo formally initiated the mechanism known as “snapback sanctions,” a feature of the 2015 JCPOA and its sister UN resolution, UNSCR 2231, in a bid to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran. Tehran and its allies may be expected to fight the measure tooth and nail, but the outcome...

  • By Joseph Braude

    The Coming Security Council Showdown

    On August 14, the UN Security Council rejected a resolution that would have prolonged the UN arms embargo on Iran for the foreseeable future, amid reservations from Washington’s European partners that an indefinite extension would incur vetoes from Russia and China. This seems likely to force W...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Joe Biden Finds His Running Mate 

    Joe Biden’s long search for a partner to complete the Democratic presidential ticket has finally concluded, settling on the candidate long considered the presumptive favorite by Washington observers, Senator Kamala Harris of California. Although the two clashed early in the nomination process,...

Editor's Pick

Interviews
Jul 31,2020
Dying to Succeed: Q&A with Egyptian Mr. Olympia Competitor and Entrepreneur Mahmood Al Durrah
With 2.5 Million Social Media Followers, “The King of Online Coaching” tells Majalla about his greatest moments in the sport, the sheer force of will and ambition that goes into building a successful business, what’s on his plate and how to get ripped.
Economy
Jun 19,2020
What Is a Life Worth?
COVID-19 and the Economic Value of Protecting Health

Opinion

Iran Faces its Third Deadly Wave
By Elie Fawaz
The Beirut Disaster: Implications for Lebanon
By Hanin Ghaddar
Joe Biden Finds His Running Mate 
By Joseph Braude
Kamala Harris is Now the Democratic Mainstream
By Jonathan Bernstein
Karen Bass Emerges as Serious Contender for Joe Biden’s VP, Draws Scrutiny
By Joseph Braude
Maryam Rajavi: Iran’s Face of Hope
By Elie Fawaz