Simon Hill

International Politics & Public Money

Simon Hill follows international politics, budgets, and the public money underneath diplomatic smiles. He asks who benefits, who pays, and which cost vanished from the communique. He brings a calculator to a geopolitical knife fight.

Articles By Simon Hill

86 published articles

Democrawonk — A pleased government drafter puts a pink bow on a tangled paper ballot title emerging from a machine fed a simple question.

Ballot Language Offers Voters A Choice Of Yes, No Or Huh

Campaign SeasonOctober 30, 2026 at 10:04 AM EDTBy Simon Hill

Democracy would like your answer, once you locate the question.

Democrawonk — Trump struggles to aim a pink stage spotlight at Xi Jinping, who stands calmly behind a Free Trade lectern.

Washington Leaves Free-Trade Podium Unattended, Xi Finds The Microphone

International PoliticsOctober 30, 2026 at 7:40 AM EDTBy Simon Hill

Beijing gets an open-market photo opportunity. America supplies the flattering contrast.

Democrawonk — A tariff filing cabinet has an oversized Exemptions drawer with a question-mark handle beside a Records Request.

The White House Offers Its Excellent Intentions In Lieu Of Receipts

Follow the MoneyOctober 29, 2026 at 9:39 PM EDTBy Simon Hill

Jamie Raskin wants tariff records. A declaration of personal virtue is not an attachment.

Democrawonk — An intelligence officer searches an empty USB drawer with a giant magnifying glass while a wall of surveillance screens and an empty pink lost-and-found box surround him.

GCHQ Can’t Account For Thousands Of Storage Devices. Have They Tried Surveillance?

International PoliticsOctober 29, 2026 at 5:20 PM EDTBy Simon Hill

Britain’s intelligence watchdog is still asking where the memory cards and hard drives went. The question has been outstanding for years.

Democrawonk — A huge roadside surveillance camera points toward a car while an official on a ladder closes a pink curtain labeled PRIVATE over the camera’s own identification area.

Florida County Won’t Investigate Mystery Cameras. Let’s Not Get Nosy.

Everyday AmericaOctober 29, 2026 at 3:46 PM EDTBy Simon Hill

Seven unpermitted cameras disappeared without their owners being identified publicly. Flock says it knows, but protects customer details.