Brexit, Huawei arrests, Trump’s legal troubles: Weekend Reads

[Balance of Power]( From [Bloomberg Politics]( [FOLLOW US [Facebook Share]]([Twitter Share]( [SUBSCRIBE [Subscribe]](  U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May beating back a challenge to her leadership, the burgeoning mess surrounding the arrest of a Huawei Technologies executive, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s mounting legal troubles dominated this week’s headlines. Catch up on some of Bloomberg’s best political enterprise on those and other topics with the latest edition of Weekend Reads. – [Kathleen Hunter]( Demonstrators outside Parliament as May answered questions about the postponement of a vote on her Brexit deal. As the withdrawal deadline draws nearer. [John Fraher]( pens a [message]( from the future about how the 2019 split from the European Union has fallen short. Click [here]( for a sampling of Bloomberg’s best political photos from the past week. Photographer: TOLGA AKMEN/AFP [Huawei Clash Shows Deeper U.S.-China Battle for Global Influence]( [David Tweed]( and [Enda Curran]( explain how Huawei – and the flap surrounding the arrest of its chief financial officer – epitomizes U.S. insecurity about growing Chinese technological prowess. Click [here]( for more about how the company’s influence is waning in Washington. [Trump’s Political Troubles Mount After a Week of Court Setbacks]( The emergence of Trump’s participation in a hush money plot that prosecutors described as “secret and illegal” is the latest in a series of legal and political headaches that have gripped the White House, [Justin Sink]( and [Shannon Pettypiece]( report. [How Ireland Outmaneuvered Britain on Brexit]( Ireland set the terms of the divorce talks even before the British realized. [Dara Doyle]( takes a closer look at how the U.K. got outfoxed. [France’s Yellow Vests Are Starting to Enjoy the Radical Life]( French President Emmanuel Macron’s budget concessions haven’t eased the anger of Yellow Vest protesters, who are starting to enjoy the radical life, [Gregory Viscusi]( writes.An Endless Flood of Syrian Refugees Tests Turkey’s Tolerance]( Turkey's embrace of refugees from the war in neighboring Syria is straining tolerance on the ground, fanning anger at President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government for allowing them in, [Selcan Hacaoglu]( reports.  A camp for displaced people in Kafr Lusin near the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey on April 1. PHOTOGRAPHER: IBRAHIM YASOUF/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES [Paul Ryan Leaves Washington With a $22 Trillion Legacy of Debt]( Beyond failing in his goal to shrink the federal deficit, the outgoing U.S. House speaker is leaving the budget in a precarious state, [Anna Edgerton](writes. [Will Merkel Leave Germany Fit for the Future? Probably Not]( Angela Merkel’s safety-first approach to running Germany’s economy has left a growing list of challenges for the next chancellor, [Alessandro Speciale]( and [Jana Randow]( write. [If You See a Line in Zimbabwe, Get In It: Rule for a New Crisis]( With a dearth of foreign exchange leaving importers unable to pay for shipments, consumers in the southern African nation face shortages of everything from bread to medicines, gasoline and cash, [Brian Latham]( reports. [How Asia Fell Out of Love With China’s Belt and Road Initiative]( Governments from Sri Lanka to Malaysia are taking a more cautious approach toward Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature trade-and-infrastructure initiative, [Iain Marlow]( and [Dandan Li]( report. [here]( for the latest on efforts to replace White House Chief of Staff John Kelly. [And finally](…Think 2018 has been tough? A pessimistic but not unrealistic scenario for events in 2019 might make you nostalgic for the year that’s waning. A combination of weather events including an unexpectedly severe El Nino and widespread drought results in diminished food production across much of the world. With trade patterns already disrupted by a tariff war, hunger spreads and refugees start moving. Read more about these and other glass-half-empty predictions for the coming months. Disruption to weather patterns from El Nino causes crops to wither in key areas of the world.    Like Balance of Power? [Subscribe]( to Bloomberg All Access and get much, much more. You'll receive our unmatched global news coverage and two in-depth daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close.   You received this message because you are subscribed to the Bloomberg Politics newsletter Balance of Power. You can tell your friends to [sign up here](.  [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022