“This moment of unusual alliance was long expected. As a candidate, Trump
made his populist and protectionist positions on trade quite clear, at
times hitting the same themes as one of the Democratic presidential
candidates, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.”
Yes, as I’ve probably run into the ground and then some, Populism is populism is the same goddamn road to nativism, isolationism and fascism no matter who the hell is pushing it.
Wonder what happened to whoever it was yesterday who was so outraged when I pointed this out then?
The time to protect our steel industry in this fashion was decades ago. That ship sailed and sunk some time back. I believe going after individual bad apples (looking at you, China) is the way to go today.
World wide protests make Trump feel important and makes the Republicans who support him look impotent.
He’s really doubling down on this crazy idea. It appears as though he’s mad at everyone now because he knows he’s in trouble. He’s like a small child who wants to “make us all pay” for punishing him… except, he really can make us all pay.
How long before conservatives start to feel as frightened as the rest of us have been for the last year and a half? Oh, you didn’t really believe that having a totally unglued POTUS could crash your precious stock market on a whim and cost you tens of millions of dollars overnight? Are you starting to see why a Trump Presidency might have been a bad idea?
Maybe when the DOW goes below ten thousand and we’re in a deep recession a few of Trump’s ardent supporters will start to sober up. Then again, maybe not.
It appears that way and feels that way and smells and looks and sounds just like that. He’s in trouble so he’s hitting out.
Yeah on top of the threatened tariffs on Harley Davidson and Kentucky bourbon. Not a good trade policy for Turtle man at all.
Between this and some of his comments on firearms, I have tremendous sympathy for the Secret Service Agents tasked with protecting him right now.
On the other hand, he’s pretty beefy, so they can take cover behind him.
America’s steel industry was sacrificed to kill the steel worker unions. Thanks Republicans.
Please forgive my ignorance, but does the president* have carte blanche to institute tariffs? There’s no checks or balances?
In some cases, yes. Definitely in “time of war,” or during “a national emergency.” In this case, however, there’s one Act that empowers him to go after steel and aluminum, the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.
ETA: Congress may want to revisit this provision. Revoking this broad authority might even survive a veto.
The end result could erode the president’s base of support with rural America and even the blue-collar workers the president says he trying to help.
Jobs will be lost and beer prices will go up. Double whammy for the Deplorables.
“Good, finally,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat and progressive as he cheered Trump’s move. Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, a Democrat who has called for Trump to resign, agreed.
“I urge the administration to follow through and to take aggressive measures to ensure our workers can compete on a level playing field,” Casey tweeted.
WTF is wrong with these people? Republicans are going to eat themselves alive and they’re providing cover for Trump and dividing the dems in response? Just shut the fuck up.
But China is mice nuts in terms of these imports. So we trash our relationship with Canada? How does that make any sense/
That was my point – if China is the bad apple, go after them, not Canada and others. Target just the bad guys, not the whole industry (of imports for steel … or whatever product we’ve decided is being manipulated.
The level of stupid policies is getting incrementally worse with each one they make. When Scott Walker tells you it’s not a great idea and to reconsider the tariff then you really have to realize how dumb Trumps decision is. Another in a long line of not very well thought out decisions emanating from the Trump White House.
Incrementally? More like exponentially.