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2018-09-03 -Land of the Free
Diplomad 2.0: Winning and Silliness
[Diplomad 2.0] Can't stay away. This won't be long. Just a few thoughts as I watch developments this past week or so.

On trade. Trump is doing some amazing things on trade. You can agree or disagree with what he's doing but he's upending the existing world trade order. Back in 1999, we saw riots in the streets of Seattle over a meeting in that city by the World Trade Organization (WTO). Tens-of-thousands of people marched, looted and fought in protest over the WTO and its "globalization" of trade. It seems to me, those very same people ought now to be all for Trump. He's is dismantling the world trade institution that has done so much harm to US and other Western economies, especially the workers. It has helped the stock market as companies feel ever more free to move their operations in pursuit of lower wages and lax labor codes. It has played havoc with traditional industrial cities in the US, UK, and Europe. It has created a massive bureaucratic monster which now "regulates free trade." Trump is slashing away at it.

The deal with Mexico APPEARS to be a first step in that assault on the globalist economy. We haven't seen all the details so we don't know for sure. What has come out, however, would seem to be a big plus for US and Mexican industrial workers. We'll see, but it sounds promising.

Canada, of course, fell victim to the false prog vision of President Trump. Canada's silly PM missed the boat and lost Canada a chance to exert some influence in the Trump battle to scrap and replace NAFTA. The Canadian government wasted their time,
Canada’s foreign minister, Chrystia Freeland, spent most of her time on visits to the U.S. lobbying governors and congressmen rather than talking seriously to our trade negotiators. Her boss, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, even thought it was a good idea to antagonize Trump at his failed G7 summit in June.

Canada must now return, hat in hand, for a deal. If not, Trump will advance the deal with Mexico and leave Canada behind. Today he again vowed to raise car tariffs on Canada if it refuses to revise unfair levies of nearly 300 percent on some American goods, among other unfair practices.

Never underestimate Trump--just ask Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, and Hillary Clinton for starters. Trudeau is going to have to do some serious catch up. He might want to read one of Trump's books for starters.

The Europeans and the Chinese, I predict, will soon have to make some serious concessions to Trump on trade. Trump understands something a lot of other politicians seemed incapable of doing. The US is by far the world's biggest economy and market, and, still, the most innovative--fracking, anybody? You can't just ignore it, or get into a trade war with it. You will lose.

While Trump is winning, we see a lot of silliness from others. The McCain funerals were absurd, demeaning, and damaged the reputation of McCain. The gathering of the establishment elites, the phony speeches, and the attempt to rewrite history by the "fake news" media were just too much to take, and underscored the revolutionary nature of the Trump administration. Read the hagiographies now being written by the MSM about McCain and then read what the WaPo said back in 2008 when their voice might have counted,
the stress of a campaign can reveal some essential truths, and the picture of Mr. McCain that emerged this year is far from reassuring. To pass his party's tax-cut litmus test, he jettisoned his commitment to balanced budgets. He hasn't come up with a coherent agenda, and at times he has seemed rash and impulsive. And we find no way to square his professed passion for America's national security with his choice of a running mate who, no matter what her other strengths, is not prepared to be commander in chief.

Or, of course, the NY Times back in 2008,
Senator John McCain of Arizona has retreated farther and farther to the fringe of American politics, running a campaign on partisan division, class warfare and even hints of racism. His policies and worldview are mired in the past. His choice of a running mate so evidently unfit for the office was a final act of opportunism and bad judgment that eclipsed the accomplishments of 26 years in Congress.

Righto.
Posted by 3dc 2018-09-03 00:00|| || Front Page|| [6 views ]  Top

#1 I suspect the Chinese will hold back any real trade concessions until after 2020. If Trump is reelected, they'll have no choice but to come to the table.
Posted by Iblis 2018-09-03 11:07||   2018-09-03 11:07|| Front Page Top

#2 Yah, the neverTrumpers are ranting about Putin while at the same time they've got both Russia's and China's nads in their mouth. No wonder it sounds so incoherent.
Posted by Thing From Snowy Mountain 2018-09-03 14:21||   2018-09-03 14:21|| Front Page Top

#3 Impose the 25% tariffs. Factories can't wait idle for 2 years. They will have to move to another country immediately or go bankrupt.
Posted by Sonny Dribble1184 2018-09-03 15:33||   2018-09-03 15:33|| Front Page Top

01:03 DooDahMan
01:00 DooDahMan
00:58 Grom the Reflective
00:35 Uleremp and Company7042
00:34 3dc
00:32 Uleremp and Company7042
00:14 DooDahMan









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