Haley Barbour is the former governor of Mississippi and the former chairman of the Republican Governor’s Association. He also served as chairman of the Republican National Committee, leading the GOP to gain control of Congress for the first time in 40 years. POLITICO calls him “the most powerful Republican in politics.” He was also widely praised for his handling of both the Gulf Oil Spill and Hurricane Katrina. One of the Republican Party’s top political strategists, Barbour addresses elections, politics, Republican strategy, the economy, and other hot political topics.

Currently, David has taken over as Beijing Bureau Chief for The Economist. David was the Washington bureau chief and "Lexington" columnist of The Economist from 2012 to 2018. Before that he was UK political editor and "Bagehot" columnist of The Economist and before that he was EU correspondent and "Charlemagne" columnist of The Economist. No other journalist at the magazine has written all three of those columns. The postings have given David a front-row seat as economic woes and populist political forces have upended the global world order that some had thought was settled. Over the years David has interviewed heads of state, heads of government, cabinet secretaries, and countless elected politicians and newsmakers, and reported from more than 50 countries.