The US budget battle, China’s security focus: Weekend Reads

Check out our best political stories of the week. [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( White House and Republican negotiators are [inching toward]( a deal to avoid a US default as the Treasury Department estimates it will [run out of funding]( by June 5 if lawmakers fail to raise or suspend the debt ceiling. China’s increasing emphasis on [national security]( is evident from its decision to step up training at its government agencies, universities and state-owned enterprises on how to safeguard state secrets. Turkey’s financial markets are signaling that [more pain is to come]( as long-time leader President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tomorrow seeks to secure the reelection that narrowly eluded him almost two weeks ago. Delve into these and more of our top stories in this edition of Weekend Reads.  — [Karl Maier]( Marine One, carrying US President Joe Biden, departs from the South Lawn of the White House on Friday. Photographer: Samuel Corum/Sipa Check out the latest [Washington Edition newsletter](. You can [sign up]( now to get it in your inbox every weekday. And if you are enjoying this newsletter, sign up [here](. Debt Deal Emerging to Raise Limit With Two-Year Spending Cap A possible agreement may include raising the debt limit and capping federal spending for two years, sources say. While details are still tentative, [Akayla Gardner]( and [Justin Sink]( outline [what the deal]( could look like. DeSantis Makes 2024 Presidential Bid Leaning on Culture Wars Ron DeSantis signaled he will lean into [culture war issues]( as a central strategy to wrestle the Republican nomination from Donald Trump. [Nancy Cook]( and [Mark Niquette]( report that the Florida governor enters the race as the strongest challenger to the former president. Trump Tightens His Grip on GOP Even as Republican Field Widens Republican voters just aren’t ready to quit Trump, even if the party’s donors and political strategists would prefer almost any other candidate. Party rivals such as DeSantis, Tim Scott, Mike Pence and Nikki Haley [all disguise the obvious](: A Trump-Biden rematch is almost inevitable. Xi Upends the Secretive World of $10,000-an-Hour China Experts China’s vast web of “expert networks” has become a key tool for foreign investors to navigate an opaque but potentially lucrative economic powerhouse. For Xi Jinping’s Communist Party, however, the secretive industry represents something far more ominous: a [threat to national security]( that must be reined in. - The European Union is cautious about [imposing controls]( on investments into China, despite encouragement from the US to develop tougher legal tools. Why Turkey’s Erdogan Faces His First-Ever Runoff Vote After leading Turkey for two decades, Erdogan has come under fire for his government’s handling of a cost-of-living crisis and catastrophic twin earthquakes. As [Selcan Hacaoglu]( writes, his failure to win an outright majority in a first round of voting set up a runoff against rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu, who’s backed by the nation’s [broadest-ever grouping]( of opposition parties. A mural of Erdogan in Bursa. Photographer: Moe Zoyari/Bloomberg Sunak Faces Trouble Everywhere in Bid to Keep Tory Voters Happy UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s strategists see a [nightmare scenario]( playing out, with support falling among working-class voters in the north of England and the middle class in the south. Conservative ministers and advisers say they fear this post-Brexit “realignment” of voters in England may lead to a Labour Party landslide in elections due by January 2025. - The UK government is planning to [deport thousands]( of asylum seekers per month from next year, a source says, as Sunak comes under rising pressure over his failure to reduce migration. The City of London Lost Its Way on the Path to Racial Equity Just after George Floyd’s murder in the US in 2020, one of the most senior Black professionals in the City of London, KPMG UK Partner and Vice-Chair Richard Iferenta,  appealed to CEOs and chairpeople of the business community “[to stamp out racism]( of all forms.” Three years later, [Olivia Konotey-Ahulu]( writes, he has yet to see the change and ambition he asked for. - Gay British soldiers were subjected to [electric shock treatment]( in an effort to “cure” them of their homosexuality, according to a damning investigation into historic homophobia in the UK armed forces. Best of Bloomberg Opinion This Week - [Republicans Need to Dump Trump If They Want to Win: Editorial]( - [For These Strongmen, It’s Not the Economy, Stupid: Pankaj Mishra]( - [Bakhmut Falls But Whose Victory Is It?: Leonid Bershidsky]( - [The Kremlin Offers A Trump-Putin Ticket For 2024: Andreas Kluth]( - [Britain Can’t Cut Immigration Without Suffering: Therese Raphael]( Messi, Ronaldo Lead Saudi Arabia’s Multibillion-Dollar Makeover With its image damaged by its part in a brutal war in neighboring Yemen and the murder of dissident Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, Saudi Arabia is [using icons of Western popular]( culture and splurging on sports assets, the arts, concerts and celebrity chef restaurants to attract 100 million visitors a year by 2030. Greek Premier Mitsotakis Set for New Term, Boosting Markets After a big win in Sunday’s national election that was just short of a majority, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is set to secure another four-year term in a new election on June 25, [sending a signal]( that his investment-friendly policies will continue, [Sotiris Nikas]( and [Paul Tugwell]( report. India’s Coal Pits Fuel the Heat Waves That Threaten Millions Talk about being trapped in a vicious circle. As [Rajesh Kumar Singh]( and [Pratik Parija]( explain, to cope with brutal temperatures, India has to keep its power grid running by digging up ever expanding quantities of coal, the [dirtiest fossil fuel](. That in turn only makes its climate troubles worse. Crippling Heat Deepens Asia’s Reliance on Russian Energy The extreme heat that’s been scorching Asia in recent weeks has produced one clear beneficiary: Russia. [Yongchang Chin]( reports that as countries across the region scramble to make sure they can keep the lights on and air conditioners running, [Russian exports to Asia]( of thermal coal and natural gas have grown markedly. - Leaders and companies in Europe’s biggest markets are [increasingly balking]( at the ambitious pace of the continent’s green push as they confront the massive costs associated with economic transformation. Imran Khan Faces ‘End of the Road’ as Pakistan Army Cracks Down Holed up at his fortified home in Lahore’s upmarket Zaman Park, Imran Khan is looking increasingly [besieged](. Behind the scenes there’s a recognition among Pakistan’s powerful military that the former prime minster’s popularity is unmatched and his party must be cut down to size ahead of elections this year, sources tell [Chris Kay](, [Faseeh Mangi]( and [Muneeza Naqvi](. Security personnel escort Khan as he leaves the High Court in Lahore on May 19. Photographer: Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images Maasai Pushed Off Their Land So Dubai Royalty Can Shoot Lions The village of Ololosokwan near the famous Serengeti National Park is the center of a [long-simmering conflict](. As [Paul Tullis]( explains, the dispute involves herders, the Tanzanian government and a company called Otterlo Business that the United Nations says operates hunting trips for royals from the United Arab Emirates. The Tanzania-­Kenya border. Photographer: Adriane Ohanesian for Bloomberg Businessweek Best of Bloomberg Explainers This Week - [What’s Behind Lula’s Clash With Brazil’s Central Bank]( - [Zimbabwe’s $1,000-a-Night Safari Camps Take on Oil Drilling]( - [Putin’s Central Bank Is Also on the Battlefield in Ukraine]( - [Here's What Makes India’s Roads the Deadliest in the World]( - [Rishi Sunak Finds UK Inflation May Follow Him Into Election Year]( And finally … Sudan’s conflict this year has destroyed food manufacturing sites, left aid warehouses looted and razed markets, fueling a humanitarian crisis with roughly [20 million people]( needing assistance. [Simon Marks]( reports that the UN hopes vital aid will be delivered as a seven-day cease-fire takes hold between the country’s two warring generals. Smoke rises above buildings in southern Khartoum on May 19. Source: AFP/Getty Images Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? 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