Axios

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka has challenged 2020 Democratic candidates to prove their support and not to take the union vote for granted — but there are half as many union members today than there were just 35 years ago, according to the Pew Research Center.

Why it matters: Half of Americans say the decline of unions has had a negative impact on workers, according to a Pew Research Center survey. And it may be a central reason for stagnant wages and growing income inequality in the U.S., according to a new study by the Brookings Institution's Hamilton Project.

As the Chinese government accelerates its crackdown on Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters, the Trump administration has sharpened its view of the world's most important bilateral relationship.

What's happening: Senior officials tell me they are increasingly concerned about Beijing's treatment of activists in Hong Kong and, increasingly, fear overreach that could also target Taiwan. This comes as any chance of an armistice in the trade war seems to be shrinking away.

The Trump administration's trade war with China entered a new phase on Sunday morning as new 15% tariffs on about $110 billion of Chinese imports took effect, Bloomberg reports.

Why it matters: Per the New York Times, the move changes the rules of trade in ways that have no recent historic precedent. "This is the first time U.S. consumers will see the costs quite directly, right as we head into the busiest shopping time of the year," Western Washington University economics professor Edward Alden told the Washington Post. China has introduced retaliatory taxes, the first phase of which came into effect Sunday.