Trump’s Tariffs – Terrible or Terrific?
The View from the Middle
As my readers will already know, I am always skeptical of our government’s implementation of taxes. I think that our government is the worst manager of our funds and I would gladly reduce the size of the leviathan that we call the federal government in order to allow our citizens to keep more of what they earn. And tariffs are taxes, are they not?
Yes! And, in fact, tariffs are taxes with a double negative impact on the world’s citizens. First, a tariff punishes the workers of the exporting country by unjustifiably raising the costs of their goods to the importing country thus making it less competitive. Second, tariffs raise the cost of those goods for the consumers of the importing country. In other words, even when we slap a tariff on an import, our government gets the revenue but our citizens pay the tariff in higher prices. So, the Trump tariffs must be terrible, right?
Not so fast. If the goal of our increase in tariffs on China, the EU, Japan, Mexico and Canada is to reduce if not eliminate tariffs in the future, then they are a good thing. Can you imagine a world without tariffs, without trade barriers or subsidies of any kind? Citizens around the world will benefit from a cheaper cost of goods and the America worker will win big time! The elimination of tariffs allows the American worker to compete on an even playing field with Europe, China and the rest of the world and I have complete confidence in our workers and in our system to win in that environment.
So how did we get to where we are today? After World War II, we (America) went on a campaign to rebuild Europe and Asia. We became the marketplace and Europe and China became the marketers. This was probably appropriate for the world at the time, but times change.
Over the next 60 to 70 years we have allowed the gravy train to continue at the expense of the American people. We kept tariffs down on our imports (their exports) and allowed their tariffs to increase to the point the world’s tariffs are about twice the rate of ours and China’s tariffs are about three times our rate.
In addition to this ridiculous tariff imbalance, we have allowed China to manipulate their currency, which also disadvantages American goods sold in China. If all that was not enough, we have allowed China to create barriers to American investment there. If an American company wishes to open a business in China, for example, they MUST acquire a Chinese partner to do so. Their plan is to have that “partner” steal all of the American company’s intellectual capital and then eventually take over the company completely. We did all this with the hope of getting fair and free access to the 1.4 billion people there. Obviously, that was not THEIR plan.
And, what have the decades of appeasement delivered for America? We currently have a total trade deficit of almost $600 billion and our deficit with China alone is almost $400 billion. Germany, Mexico and Japan have also manipulated their way to $70 billion surpluses for themselves. And Trump’s tariffs is his way of saying that the days of unbalanced tariffs, trade barriers, subsidies and currency manipulation is over. And I think we can all agree that would be a great place to be.
Trump took his battle against tariffs to a new level this last week with his announcement of $12 billion in aid to farmers hit by retaliatory tariffs from other countries, especially China. Personally, I would make clear that we will spend every penny we receive in tariffs, especially new tariffs, to support the very industries they have targeted. This should drive home the senselessness of their desire to maintain their trade advantage and usher in a new era of world-wide Fair Trade!!
The European Union (the second largest market in the world outside of the US) was the first to blink. Yesterday, President Trump and the European Commission President announced a deal for the EU to make commitments to purchase American soybeans and liquified natural gas (two very strategic choices!!) on their way to a world of massive tariff reductions if not total elimination. My guess is that Mexico is next on our path to a world of zero tariffs or at least free and fair trade.
PS – China has a program called “China 2025”. The ultimate goal of this push is to have China replace the US as the economic leader of the world by that date. Imagine a world where the #1 economic power is a brutal, unscrupulous power with little to no concern for the rest of the planet instead of the free market capitalists of America. Let’s say this country also holds trillions of dollars of our debt. They will be savage task masters to our children. We don’t have time to play polite diplomatic games any more. This problem needs to be addressed right now. If you have a better plan than Trump’s tariff plan, let me know. Just saying “pretty please” is not going to cut it.
Thursday, July 26, 2018
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
Beware of Clever Rhetoric, especially on Brett Kavanaugh
Beware of Clever Rhetoric, Especially on Brett Kavanaugh
The View from the Middle
You’ve probably heard the old joke, “How do you know when politicians are lying? When their lips move!” These people will say anything to get their way and to eventually get re-elected. Consequently, we must be vigilant to sort through the mountains of their BS to glean the tiny particles of truth hidden underneath.
“But” you say to me, “this duplicity goes on every day. What set you off?” The other day I heard the Representative from Texas, Henry Cuellar, try to defend his lack of support for enhanced security on our southern border. He said that a wall is a, “14th century solution to a 21st century problem.” Now, I thought, that sounds clever, and if you don’t scratch at all below the surface, you might accept his implication that walls don’t work because they are an old idea. The problem for Representative Cuellar is that neither one of these insinuations are correct.
Some very old ideas are as relevant today as they were thousands of years ago. The wheel, for example, was invented more than 5,000 years ago and is still working just fine today. Anyone want to get rid of all of our wheels today? The door lock was invented over 6,000 years ago. How many locks are on your house today?
The wall was actually used for the first time over 4,000 years ago, so let that be the first correction to Mr. Cuellar bogus statement. And, look around you. Count how many walls or fences or barriers you see today. Why are we still using them? Because they work. Just ask Israel or San Diego where walls delivered a 90% reduction in illegal crossings. And just consider the effectiveness of the Berlin wall. Of course, we were all appalled by its purpose, but no one can argue against its effectiveness. Don’t believe the bombast. Walls work!!
Here are some more contradicting terms that may sound good to you until you unpack their true meaning. Safe spaces. Safe for whom? Remember the University of Missouri professor who had conservatives threatened physically for entering her “safe zone”. Pro Choice. Again, for whom? Certainly not for the baby in its mother’s womb. That new person has “no voice” and “no choice”. This should be called the “No Choice” movement.
And what about the claim to “go high when they go low”. This statement couldn’t be more ludicrous and ridiculous. So now the definition of “going high” is to call anyone who disagrees with you a Nazi. Now, they have defined “going high” as screaming in Pam Bondi’s face (Florida AG) so fiercely and so closely that they actually spit in her face. Then they taunted and threatened her date, and to add a touch of irony to this disgusting scene, they did this after Ms. Bondi and her date attended a movie about Mr. Rogers called, “Won’t You be My Neighbor”. So, I guess Maxine Waters is the new face of “the high road”. If that doesn’t give you a chill, nothing will.
The other way they mislead and divide us at the same time is through the constant use of hyperbole. Remember Nancy Pelosi suggesting that President Trump’s tax cuts would lead to “Armageddon”. It also seems like Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” statement just doesn’t go far enough these days. Now, if you support increased border security or, heaven forbid, voted for Donald Trump, you are a Nazi. Worse yet, you are Hitler himself. Wow, do you think we actually have 60+ million Hitlers in this country? This rhetoric is an insult to Jews, Catholics and the entire gay community who were prime targets of the real Hitler and his Nazi party. This drivel is not only absolutely false and divisive, it is an insult to history.
And just to make sure these over exaggerations are still the accepted practice, the Left has now suggested that the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to The Supreme Court would cause, “the death of our democracy as we know it” and that, “thousands of women will die”. Really? Brett Kavanaugh is a Yale Law School grad who was hired by Elena Kagan to teach at Harvard. He has worked on The DC Circuit Court for a dozen years, written over 300 opinions and his decisions have been upheld by the Supreme Court a dozen times. This man will be “the death of our democracy”? This man will kill thousands of women? By the way, he reveres his mother and his wife and coaches his daughter’s basketball team. Far from a threat, I see him as a blessing to our country.
When will we learn? We, as a people, need to not only disregard this bizarre, hypocritical, divisive rhetoric, we need to punish it. And our only recourse is to use our votes wisely. But, before you vote, do as Professor Harold Hill pleaded in “The Music Man”. “Think, men. Think!”
The View from the Middle
You’ve probably heard the old joke, “How do you know when politicians are lying? When their lips move!” These people will say anything to get their way and to eventually get re-elected. Consequently, we must be vigilant to sort through the mountains of their BS to glean the tiny particles of truth hidden underneath.
“But” you say to me, “this duplicity goes on every day. What set you off?” The other day I heard the Representative from Texas, Henry Cuellar, try to defend his lack of support for enhanced security on our southern border. He said that a wall is a, “14th century solution to a 21st century problem.” Now, I thought, that sounds clever, and if you don’t scratch at all below the surface, you might accept his implication that walls don’t work because they are an old idea. The problem for Representative Cuellar is that neither one of these insinuations are correct.
Some very old ideas are as relevant today as they were thousands of years ago. The wheel, for example, was invented more than 5,000 years ago and is still working just fine today. Anyone want to get rid of all of our wheels today? The door lock was invented over 6,000 years ago. How many locks are on your house today?
The wall was actually used for the first time over 4,000 years ago, so let that be the first correction to Mr. Cuellar bogus statement. And, look around you. Count how many walls or fences or barriers you see today. Why are we still using them? Because they work. Just ask Israel or San Diego where walls delivered a 90% reduction in illegal crossings. And just consider the effectiveness of the Berlin wall. Of course, we were all appalled by its purpose, but no one can argue against its effectiveness. Don’t believe the bombast. Walls work!!
Here are some more contradicting terms that may sound good to you until you unpack their true meaning. Safe spaces. Safe for whom? Remember the University of Missouri professor who had conservatives threatened physically for entering her “safe zone”. Pro Choice. Again, for whom? Certainly not for the baby in its mother’s womb. That new person has “no voice” and “no choice”. This should be called the “No Choice” movement.
And what about the claim to “go high when they go low”. This statement couldn’t be more ludicrous and ridiculous. So now the definition of “going high” is to call anyone who disagrees with you a Nazi. Now, they have defined “going high” as screaming in Pam Bondi’s face (Florida AG) so fiercely and so closely that they actually spit in her face. Then they taunted and threatened her date, and to add a touch of irony to this disgusting scene, they did this after Ms. Bondi and her date attended a movie about Mr. Rogers called, “Won’t You be My Neighbor”. So, I guess Maxine Waters is the new face of “the high road”. If that doesn’t give you a chill, nothing will.
The other way they mislead and divide us at the same time is through the constant use of hyperbole. Remember Nancy Pelosi suggesting that President Trump’s tax cuts would lead to “Armageddon”. It also seems like Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” statement just doesn’t go far enough these days. Now, if you support increased border security or, heaven forbid, voted for Donald Trump, you are a Nazi. Worse yet, you are Hitler himself. Wow, do you think we actually have 60+ million Hitlers in this country? This rhetoric is an insult to Jews, Catholics and the entire gay community who were prime targets of the real Hitler and his Nazi party. This drivel is not only absolutely false and divisive, it is an insult to history.
And just to make sure these over exaggerations are still the accepted practice, the Left has now suggested that the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to The Supreme Court would cause, “the death of our democracy as we know it” and that, “thousands of women will die”. Really? Brett Kavanaugh is a Yale Law School grad who was hired by Elena Kagan to teach at Harvard. He has worked on The DC Circuit Court for a dozen years, written over 300 opinions and his decisions have been upheld by the Supreme Court a dozen times. This man will be “the death of our democracy”? This man will kill thousands of women? By the way, he reveres his mother and his wife and coaches his daughter’s basketball team. Far from a threat, I see him as a blessing to our country.
When will we learn? We, as a people, need to not only disregard this bizarre, hypocritical, divisive rhetoric, we need to punish it. And our only recourse is to use our votes wisely. But, before you vote, do as Professor Harold Hill pleaded in “The Music Man”. “Think, men. Think!”
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