State and Local Officials Newsletter

August 2025

Democracy at Home and Abroad

In the United States, state and local governments serve as excellent “laboratories of democracy,” and form the foundation of American democratic norms, even serving as examples abroad, yet support for freedoms of religion, speech, and press face ongoing challenges around the world. This issue of the State and Local Officials Newsletter highlights resources from CFR.org, ForeignAffairs.com, and ThinkGlobalHealth.org, to provide an update on the health of democracy, both at home and in other nations, to help inform the work you do in your states, counties, and cities. A curated selection of resources follow below.

We look forward to your continued participation in the CFR State and Local Officials initiative and welcome your feedback on how we can better support the work you are doing. Please email us at stateandlocal@cfr.org.

Best regards,
Irina A. Faskianos
Vice President, National Program and Outreach

Challenges to Global Press Freedom

CNBC’s Richard Stengel moderates a conversation with Vanderbilt’s Nicole R. Hemmer, CUNY’s Graciela Mochkofsky, and Pushkin Industries’ Jacob M. Weisberg on the trajectory of press freedom in the United States and abroad. Watch on CFR.org »

Might Unmakes Right: The Catastrophic Collapse of Norms Against the Use of Force

The collapse of democratic norms has occurred at both national and international levels, argue Yale University’s Oona A. Hathaway and Scott J. Shapiro. The use of force in Ukraine and the Middle East threaten to return international cooperation to that of the Cold War and harm international peacekeeping. Read more on ForeignAffairs.com »

Trump’s Military Response to Protests

CFR’s Matthew C. Waxman and Peter Mansoor answer questions about the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops to address anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles. They discuss the federalization of the National Guard, the legality of the deployment, and the history of the military suppressing protests on American soil.

Read more on CFR.org »

Foreign Influence and Democratic Governance

Part of the CFR Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy, CFR’s Miles Kahler discusses malign election interference by foreign actors and how to strengthen homegrown democracy in this Council Special Report.

Read more on CFR.org

After the Bombings, Iran Tightened Its Censorship. Iranians Aren’t Standing For It.

Recent U.S. military attacks on several nuclear facilities have ramped up the Iranian government’s already tight restrictions on the press and communications. This CFR article spotlights how young Iranians are resisting new pressures while weathering international sanctions.
Read more on CFR.org »

India, Modi, and Hindu Nationalism

CFR’s Gabrielle Sierra hosts Uppsala University’s Ashok Swain and The Caravan’s Hartosh Singh Bal to discuss Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to institutionalize Hindu nationalism on this episode of CFR’s Why It Matters podcast.
Listen on CFR.org »

Are you part of a delegation traveling abroad?

CFR can provide briefings for state and local officials and their staff in advance of international trips. Email stateandlocal@cfr.org to request a dedicated session with a CFR expert in the region or country to which your group is traveling or on a topic of regional interest.

The Path to American Authoritarianism: What Comes After Democratic Breakdown

CFR’s Steven Levitsky writes with University of Toronto’s Lucan A. Way about Trump’s indifference toward democratic norms, and how this administration could weaponize the bureaucracy without veering outside of constitutional bounds. This Foreign Affairs article weighs authoritarian indicators against the democratic guardrails intended to counter them.