Much attention has been paid, and justifiably so, to how the coming presidency of Barack Obama will change the way the world sees the United States, and how we see ourselves.
Some have argued that the election of Mr Obama is a final statement about inclusiveness. As one commentator put it, "now when we tell our children they can grow up to be anything they want, we're finally telling the truth".
But the story of diversity and inclusion has been written earlier in the US Senate, where the successes and failures of our inclusiveness can be seen.
The final picture of what the 111th Senate will look like is not yet clear. The contests in Georgia and Minnesota have yet to be decided (Georgia requires a runoff election, and Minnesota is so close that a mandatory recount has begun), and the governors of Illinois and Delaware still need to fill the seats that were held by Mr Obama and Joseph Biden, the vice president-elect.
Finally, the picture could change even more should Mr Obama select a senator to serve as secretary of state or any other cabinet post in his administration.
But even with this uncertainty, we can begin to sketch out what the 111th Senate will look like, as compared with the 110th Senate.
Overall
In the 110th Senate there were 51 Democratic votes (49 Democrats and two independents who caucused with them), and 49 Republicans.
The new Senate will have at least 58 Democratic votes (56 Democrats and two independents) and at least 40 Republicans - with two races yet undecided.
The final tally, therefore, will be no worse for the Democrats than 58-42, and could be as high as 60-40.
Since Illinois and Delaware (and even in the states where the secretary of state picks are possible - Hillary Clinton's New York and John Kerry's Massachusetts) all have Democratic governors who will appoint replacements to hold the seats until the next election, the Democrats will not lose any seats.
Women
Women make up 51 per cent of the US population, but there are only 16 women in the 110th Senate (five Republicans and 11 Democrats), while the 111th Senate will include 17 women (four Republicans and 13 Democrats).
The change is in part the result of Democrat Kay Hagan beating incumbent Republican Elizabeth Dole in North Carolina, and Democrat Jeanne Shaheen defeating Republican incumbent John Sununu.
The only possible state from which a new woman senator may emerge is Illinois, where a few prominent women are being mentioned as possible successors to Mr Obama.
African-Americans
African-Americans are the most under-represented group in the US Senate. While this community makes up 12 per cent of the US population, in the 110th Senate there was only one African-American senator, Barack Obama.
With Mr Obama vacating his seat, it is possible that there will be no African-Americans in the 111th Senate. In fact, in all of US history there have only been three African-American senators: Edward Brooke, a Republican from Massachusetts who served two terms from 1967-1979; Carol Moseley Braun, an Illinois Democrat who served one term from 1993-1999; and Mr Obama.
There is pressure on Rod Blagojevich, the Illinois governor, to appoint an African-American to fill Mr Obama's seat. It is also possible that an African-American could be appointed from New York, should Mrs Clinton become secretary of state.
Hispanic Americans
Also are under-represented in the US Senate are Hispanics. They make up 15 per cent of the US population and yet, in the 110th Senate there were three Hispanic senators (Ken Salazar, a Democrat from Colorado; Melquiades Martinez, a Republican from Florida; and Robert Menéndez, a Democrat from New Jersey).
Since none of them were up for re-election this year, all will return for the 111th.
Asian-Americans
Asian-Americans comprise 4.5 per cent of the population, and only two senators are Asian-Americans, both are native Hawaiians and represent that state: Democrats Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka.
American Jews
While American Jews comprise two per cent of the US population, there were 13 Jewish senators in the 110th session, and that number will not change in the 111th Senate. (The only vulnerable American Jewish senator is Minnesota Republican Norman Coleman, whose election is still to be decided, is opposed by Democrat Al Franken, who is also Jewish.)
Arab-Americans
New Hampshire Republican John Sununu was the only Arab-American member of the 110th Senate, and his defeat means that in Jan 2009, for the only the second time since 1973, the US Senate will be without an Arab-American member.
However, it should be noted that Mr Sununu's loss was to former governor Jeanne Shaheen, whose husband is an Arab-American.
To date, the Arab-American senators have been James Abourezk (Democrat-South Dakota, 1973-1979); James Abdnor (Republican-South Dakota, 1981-1987); George Mitchell (Democrat-Maine, 1980-1995); E Spencer Abraham (Republican-Michigan 1995-2001); and John Sununu (Republican-New Hampshire, 2003-2009).
jzogby@thenational.ae
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
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- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 (PA) | US$95,000 | (Dirt) 2,000m
7.05pm: Meydan Classic Listed (TB) ) | $175,000) | (Turf) 1,600m
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) ) | $135,000 ) | (D) 1,600m
8.15pm: Nad Al Sheba Trophy Group 3 (TB) ) | $300,000) | (T) 2,810m
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
Schedule for show courts
Centre Court - from 4pm UAE time
Johanna Konta (6) v Donna Vekic
Andy Murray (1) v Dustin Brown
Rafael Nadal (4) v Donald Young
Court 1 - from 4pm UAE time
Kei Nishikori (9) v Sergiy Stakhovsky
Qiang Wang v Venus Williams (10)
Beatriz Haddad Maia v Simona Halep (2)
Court 2 - from 2.30pm
Heather Watson v Anastasija Sevastova (18)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (12) v Simone Bolelli
Florian Mayer v Marin Cilic (7)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
