WASHINGTON // He beat down a determined and angry challenge to his presidency and confounded history by winning re-election under poor economic conditions. But Barack Obama, the US president, will have little time to celebrate.
A divided country and a troubled world await the man tasked with four more years at the helm of the world's most powerful country. And the tasks ahead of the US's first African-American president remain as formidable and urgent as when he first took office.
His relatively comfortable margin of victory should not disguise what was a close-run election, one where it is far from clear what kind of mandate Americans have handed their returning president.
Nevertheless, the incumbent managed, narrowly, to hold on to seven - and depending on Florida where counting continues, maybe eight - of the election's nine swing states. That offered world leaders the chance to send their congratulations in early, and Mr Obama to declare during his victory speech in his hometown of Chicago that "the best is yet to come".
But multiple explosions in a Damascus neighbourhood yesterday were a sharp reminder that events wait for no man. Syria's civil war will demand attention sooner rather than later.
Mr Obama will also have to grapple with Iran's nuclear ambitions and Israeli threats to take unilateral military action against Tehran. Washington's efforts on Palestinian-Israel relations - an immediate priority of Mr Obama's first term - will also be closely watched, even as he seeks to pivot away from the Middle East and Afghanistan and towards Asia.
At home, meanwhile, and for all the sound and fury of the domestic campaign, the result thrown up by Tuesday's vote is essentially 'as you were'. Democrats retained control of the US Senate, and Republicans held on to their advantage in the House of Representatives.
Mr Obama may feel his convincing return to the White House has given him a mandate to push through his own vision for how to move the US forward. But Republicans could act as spoilers once more.
The stakes are high and will likely take priority over foreign policy in the near term. Mr Obama needs to come to terms with a huge domestic deficit and high unemployment that continue to threaten US economic growth.
His first task will be to deal with the so-called 'fiscal cliff', a package of US$600 billion (Dh2.2 trillion) in automatic tax increases and across-the-board spending cuts that will take effect on January 1 if the White House and Congress fail to agree on a budget deal.
Chances of success are mixed. John Boehner, the leading Republican in the House of Representatives, sounded a conciliatory note yesterday, saying the election had thrown up a "dual mandate … for both parties to find common ground".
But Mitch McConnell, his counterpart in the Senate, sounded far less compromising.
"The voters have not endorsed the failures or excesses of the president's first term," he said.
Indeed, with the potential for continued deadlock at home and his signature health-care reform now safe from repeal by a Republican presidency, Mr Obama may throw himself into foreign policy with far more vigour.
Congress has less ability to stand in his way on foreign relations. There is plenty to be done and traditionally second-term presidents can more easily try to secure a lasting legacy abroad than at home.
Domestic and foreign policy are not unrelated of course. His much-vaunted "pivot" away from a troublesome Middle East region and towards East Asia, is primarily an economic foreign policy, said Mark Perry, a Washington, DC-based independent military and political analyst.
The US will remain very much engaged in the Middle East, where priorities present themselves. On Syria, for instance, David Cameron, Britain's prime minister, has already said he was hoping the US and Britain would "do more" in Mr Obama's second term.
Freed from re-election considerations, Mr Obama may adopt a more aggressive posture.
"Red lines" are emerging in Syria, Mr Perry suggested. Spill over into Jordan would be unacceptable to the US, while a second term also sets "a limit to the kind of brutality that we can tolerate".
Iran's nuclear ambitions, meanwhile, will provide another test for Mr Obama. Though his outreach to Tehran has so far yielded little result, he proved himself keen to avoid military confrontation in his first term, and direct negotiations are a "logical next step" according to Mr Perry.
But for any such talks to take place, Israel must also be kept at bay and perhaps the most intriguing narrative to watch in Mr Obama's second term will be how relations between the two allies will develop.
During the election campaign, both Mr Obama and Mitt Romney, his Republican rival, competed over who could present themselves as closer to Israel.
But personal relations between Mr Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, have been strained. Mr Obama found himself frustrated in his efforts to push forward a Palestinian-Israeli peace process in part because of Israel's refusal to agree to a comprehensive settlement construction freeze in all occupied territory.
The issue also continues to pose a problem for the US's relations with others in the region.
"The lack of a resolution [to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict] complicates our relations to our Arab allies," said Mr Perry. "We are tired of that complication."
Democracy, Mr Obama said in his victory speech in the early hours of yesterday in Chicago, "can be noisy and messy and complicated".
He was talking about the angry and negative tone of the "hard fought" election campaign. But he could have been describing what lies ahead.
A hostile Congress, huge national debt and slow economic growth at home; Iranian nuclear ambitions, Israeli intransigence and Arab revolutions abroad.
Wherever he looks, Mr Obama's tasks for the next four years are all "noisy and messy and complicated."
okarmi@thenational.ae
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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.”
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe
Price, base: Dh201,153
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 204hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch, Matt Renshaw, Brendan Doggett, Michael Neser, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine (captain), Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Jon Holland, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Peter Siddle
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Genesis G80 2020 5.0-litre Royal Specs
Engine: 5-litre V8
Gearbox: eight-speed automatic
Power: 420hp
Torque: 505Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.4L/100km
Price: Dh260,500
