Johnson picks another fight

Taking pot shots at the European Union got Boris Johnson into Downing Street and the UK prime minister is betting the same tactic will help [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( Taking pot shots at the European Union got Boris Johnson into Downing Street and the UK prime minister is betting the same tactic will help keep him there. Johnson is trying to steady the ship after months of missteps and controversy culminated in a confidence vote last week that saw more than 40% of lawmakers from his Conservative Party vote against him. Key reading: - [Johnson Drags UK Into Brexit Groundhog Day Over Northern Ireland]( - [Ireland Accuses Johnson of Acting in ‘Bad Faith’ on Brexit]( - [Changes to N. Ireland Protocol ‘Lawful,’ UK Minister Says]( - [UK Tweaks Northern Ireland Bill as EU Readies Legal Action]( - [Why Are the UK and EU Heading Toward Another Brexit Crisis?]( Today, the government is due to present legislation that could revoke commitments to the EU that Johnson sold to the electorate as part of his “oven ready” deal to deliver on his promise to “get Brexit done.” On the face of it, the bill is about the Northern Ireland Protocol — part of the Brexit accord that agreed to customs checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from mainland Britain to avoid a hard border with the Republic of Ireland. The bill would give the UK power to override parts of the protocol, and may seek to downgrade the European Court of Justice’s role in ruling on disputes. Johnson says the protocol is disrupting trade between Britain and Northern Ireland, but the hardline Brexit supporters seem to be more upset about still having to follow EU rules. While this would appear to be a breach of the UK’s commitments to the EU, the government insists it will still comply with international law, though so far it doesn’t plan to publish its detailed legal advice. The legislation comes with risks for Johnson. If Brexiteers think it doesn’t go far enough in peeling back provisions in the protocol, they'll oppose it. And party moderates are concerned that it would breach international law and damage Britain’s reputation as a result. It may also stoke tensions with the US, where President Joe Biden has consistently stressed the importance of not allowing Brexit to put at risk the Good Friday Agreement that ended decades of violence in Northern Ireland. The deeper rationale is to revive the Brexit coalition that swept him into power, forced party moderates to fall into line and helped him to make major inroads into the former Labour heartlands of the North. But now there are two fundamental dangers for Johnson: With his party split down the middle, his opponents may not be prepared to swallow such a provocative approach and he could also wind up in a trade war with the EU. — [Ben Sills]( Murals depicting the Northern Ireland conflict between republicans and unionists known as ‘The Troubles.’ Photographer: Paulo Nunes dos Santos/Bloomberg Click [here]( to follow Bloomberg Politics on Facebook and share this newsletter with others. They can sign up [here](. Global Headlines Capitol hearings | The House committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol will resume hearings today with the intention of proving Donald Trump was [directly culpable]( in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection. The panel will make the case that the former president kept pushing his stolen-election claim knowing it wasn’t true, which could establish grounds for a case against him by showing he had criminal intent. - Trump’s 2020 campaign manager will appear as a witness as the committee seeks to show the campaign’s political fund-raising apparatus used the claim to [mislead](, and raise millions of dollars from donors. Contrasting messages | US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Asia’s biggest security forum that countries should be “free to chart their own course,” seeking to [reassure nations]( they don’t need to join a coalition against China. That was a stark contrast with China’s defense minister, Wei Fenghe, who vowed to “fight to the very end” against any powers that wanted confrontation. - Military officials in China in recent months have repeatedly [asserted]( that the Taiwan Strait is part of their exclusive economic zone at meetings with US counterparts. - Chinese President Xi Jinping said people in Hong Kong and on the mainland should [develop]( “a closer emotional bond,” ahead of his potential visit to the city. The world’s nuclear-armed nations are set to boost their [arsenals]( in the next decade, despite a decline in the number of such weapons last year, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. That could reverse a decades-long trend of reduced stockpiles. Battle rages | Ukraine said Russian forces [pushed]( its troops from the center of Sievierodonetsk, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned “very fierce fighting is going on, literally for every meter” in the country’s last major foothold in its eastern Luhansk region. Ukraine needs parity in heavy weapons to end the war, according to an adviser to Zelenskiy who listed its military needs on Twitter. Best of Bloomberg Opinion - [E Pluribus Europa: So, How Does Ukraine Fit in?: Andreas Kluth]( - [Biden Needs to Unleash His Inner Biden: Matthew G. Yglesias]( - [The Oil Price Shock Will Reverberate Into Next Year: Javier Blas]( On tenterhooks | Emmanuel Macron has a week to [convince]( voters to give him an outright majority in the French parliament to ease the way for the controversial social and economic reforms he promised. While the president’s party and its allies are likely to remain the largest bloc in the 577-seat National Assembly, polling after the first round of ballots yesterday indicate his majority will shrink dramatically. Explainers you can use - [How the ‘Energy Shock’ Has Upended the Global Economy]( - [Waive Pharma’s Vaccine Rights? What That Would Mean]( - [Biden May or May Not Cancel a Chunk of Student Debt]( China’s influence | Young Africans now rank China above the US as a [positive]( influence on their lives, a survey conducted by the South Africa-based Ichikowitz Family Foundation showed. As [Antony Sguazzin]( reports, the results are further evidence that China is winning the battle for influence against geopolitical rivals such as the US and the EU. Bloomberg TV and Radio air Balance of Power with [David Westin]( weekdays from 12 to 1 p.m. ET, with a second hour on Bloomberg Radio from 1 to 2 p.m. ET. You can watch and listen on Bloomberg channels and online [here]( or check out prior episodes and guest clips [here](. News to Note - A bipartisan group of US senators reached a [tentative deal]( on new gun-safety legislation following mass killings in Texas and New York last month. - China is starting to re-impose Covid-19 [restrictions]( just weeks after major easing in key cities, raising concern the country may again employ strict lockdowns. - South Africa will [oppose]( any request for bail made by two Gupta brothers after their arrest in Dubai this month, and will seek their extradition to face fraud and money laundering charges. - A widening [trucker strike]( is increasing risks for South Korea’s economy and global supply chains, disrupting output from top steelmaker Posco and the petrochemicals sector. Thanks to the 21 people who answered Friday’s quiz and congratulations to Rick Niswander, who was the first to name Nigeria as the country where at least four children of men accused of stealing billions of dollars from public coffers are running for high office. And finally ... Footage of a [violent]( attack by men on female diners at a barbecue restaurant in China has sparked outrage online, threatening to revive the MeToo movement that Xi’s government has repeatedly tried to suppress. Nine suspects were arrested and an official in the city of Tangshan vowed to “severely punish” those involved. That didn’t satisfy users of China’s Weibo social media platform, where the assault is turning into a broader conversation about gender inequality. A MeToo rally against sexual harassment in 2019 in Hong Kong. Photographer: Chris McGrath/Getty Images Like getting this newsletter? 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