Good job, Jim. The left just hates facts and the truth. Yes, it will be a bit bumpy but I too think it needs to be done and support our president. We dodged a cannon shot. If Harris had gotten in it would have been business as usual. Not cutting waste. Millions still pouring in from around the world. Rapists and murderers having free rein on our streets. The market may have taken a hit but in the long run our taxes would continue to climb, get less in return and then watch our version of Rome burn.
Great article, Jim, on the decline of our country and the monumental job ahead of righting the years of mismanagement and corruption. It should be obvious to all that Trump will be the scapegoat for the Biden/Harris et al fiasco. Hopefully Trump and his administration can turn things around even though that might bother some of the Trump hating readers and the mainstream media.
We live in an era when people think that because they can spout off online that means they know what Trump should be doing better. In the most moment to moment way.
If they really think they're such brilliant doers in the political realm, then they should run for office in Santa Barbara and prove how good they are.
Since he took office, Trump has done more positive things for this country than any other president in my lifetime, and under ridiculously adversarial conditions.
Secy of Treasury Scott Bessant offers insights in his recent interview with Tucker Carlson about the current market situation with reminders of past performance histories and why have we chosen to rely on stock prices as the only measurement of national economic health.
He suggests it was the surprise introduction of China's Deep Seek that first rattled the market since this radically impacted the prior Wall Street darlings The Magnificent Seven, who were a large part of many wealth fund investments. They went down first. The current litany of Trump, Trump, Trump is specious as usual, and intentional. Just look at every over-wrought news story headlines in the WSJ dripping in Trump-Trump-Trump purple prose to wonder who in fact is attempting to manipulate the markets, and why?
Additionally, Bessant reminds us the health of Main Street is equally important as the health of Wall Street, for the country as a whole and how we are required to spend tax dollars. One must also be reminded how much the Left vilifies Wall Street and "corporations" as the personification of human evil, until their own portfolios start losing value. More Democrat amnesia and self-serving hypocrisy.
What good are paper investments when our nation rots from within and life is no longer safe and our children's futures are compromised from birth? Who in fact is killing Social Security and Medicare when children are no longer getting educated, other nations are rotting out our middle class and we become a nation dependent only on the mercurial good will of other countries who in fact plot our economic demise?
Equally important, Secy of Treasury Bessant reminds us of the "chaos" of the Reagan administration efforts to refigure markets with tax cuts and deregulation and their relationships to government meddling as well.
How chaotic was the air traffic controllers strike - having been stranded in the South Pacific myself at the time not knowing day by day if we would ever get home. Plus finally having a connector airline to Santa Barbara go out of business in the short period time between departure and arrival on that same trip. Remind yourself how much feel-good mileage did successor President Clinton enjoy primarily due to those "chaotic" Reagan tax cuts?
Somehow America survived when only an Autopen was running this country for the past four years and there were no-one but faceless bureaucrats spending ceaseless and unaccountable billions of our tax dollars? Thank you very much, but I will choose more solid and accountable footings for my own financial future for the long term, rather than the erratic fumes driven only by this current Democrat and unelected deep state partisan vindictiveness.
The animal spirts of the marketplace were euphoric sensing there would be a Trump victory in 2024. The poetry part of the 2024 Trump election The animal spirits were rudely shot down when Trump was immediately faced with the calculated and organized Democrat activist judge lawfare, cynically intended to sabotage every single move Trump made - the prose part of actual governance.
People can be both fickle and craven. And easily spooked, which is why Warren Buffet remained so successful in the long run - he recommends looking at investments on an annual basis; not this current hysteria-inducing hour by hour micromanagement.
L. Livingston: Just love the level of conversation you bring to the table. My son, a teenager at the time (he's now 44) noticed the hollowing out of our cities in what we derisively refer to as the "Rust Belt," when he attended the University of Kansas and drove through the heartland. That rusting belt was once the center of America's strength and it would be great if it came back. What happened was that the factories that made "stuff" like cars, machinery, and the like, moved offshore and government "welfare" replaced a working man's paycheck. Good-bye self respect; hello dependence and self-loathing. Drug abuse was quick to follow.
My own first experience moving out of California was to Dayton Ohio in the mid 1960's, to the illustrious midwest Great Industrial North East. First surprise was not seeing wall to wall factories and smokestacks, as that term always invoked in my younger California mindset.
It was in fact quite bucolic and rural, save for the concentrated economic power houses in the larger cities. However the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland had caught on fire at that time, so all was not well either. Industrial power had its excesses, so the "environmental" movement was also being aborn at that time too. But with true American spirit we did go on to ensure clean air and water was also part of our American commitment. Well before that clean environment idealism got highjacked into the ruinous ESG and "climate change" hysteria that defines it today.
But the second surprise was not be able to turn a corner and not seeing the headquarters of practically every single American brand now right in my new Dayton, Ohio backyard. Demographically, the "typical American" lived in Kettering Ohio, a Dayton suburb. Everything that we used in California was somehow made in Dayton Ohio. Yet today, Dayton is just one more rotting rust belt hulk.
"The jackals are already out, smugly cackling on MSNBC, CNN, and in various daily newspapers, that Trump’s hopes and dreams – and frankly those of most of us who support him – are about to be dumped into the ashcan of history."""""""
Again who is this Buckley guy? How dare he malign the Democrat machine and their boys in the press(?).
How about this look at Liberation Day?
What was the inflation of the Stock Markets do to excessive government spending over decades? Along with that what was the supposed great news the DOW HIT ANOTHER RECORD HIGH?
People most of that inflation was hot air supported by the Drive By Media (or is that bye.. so confused) stating how great the Socialist State and the Socialist Party now called Democrat are.
Instead of looking at the $ Dollars lost on Liberation Day look at the percent drop in the markets!!! When viewed in that light it is a far less grim story the bye bye media has been pumping. Let's bring it to California. The retirement system for government employees has been for years BROKE. Every hard look states there is not enough money in the system to cover retirement pay and benefits. How did it happen? Simple you have stupid elected officials who granted pay raises and benefit packages the "Local" (read that as you and me taxpayer) boys and girls cannot pay for with taxes. (did someone mention SB sales tax increases / Goleta sale tax increase / increase occupancy taxes in the county?)
Was it a shock to the average taxpayer to hear DOOM AND GLOOM? Of course. Was and is it far less when adjusted for stupid stock market inflation due to government spending?
YOU BETCHA BUCKWHEAT!
When the dust settles and more and more books and articles are published showing how feckless and incompetent Biden was as President. When it becomes more and more obvious how the Presidency of this country was run by a committee. Liberation Day is most likely going to be a foot note of history.
As a friend says "Be of Good Cheer"
Now again who is the Buckly guy or is it Buckley? (so confused, I've been watch net work news)
The kool aid you are drinking has blinded your ability to think logically.
The 'golden age' of prosperity. Huh? That makes no sense. We have been in it! You just didn't like the person(s) who put us there.
Bush Jr. did not create a problem, Bernake did. Bernake decided to raise interest rates in a near vertical path for a period of time trying to slow down the economy. Instead of staggering the rate increases over a longer period of time, he shocked the economy. That, along with the loosening of mortgage approval and the fraud that ensued created the crash.
But by all means, let's look at the DJIX from when Obama took over to when Trump came into office: 7949. He left with it at 19,804. Trump left the first time and it was at 31186. When Biden left 43487. That is a generation of time. The dow almost 5 times its value in one generation. How was that not prosperous?
Trump is currently on a path of destruction. He is in the process of making the republican wet dream of dismantling FDRs work come true. That is not progress. That is not prosperity. That is regression.
David, Your love of the ephemeral "prosperity" we enjoyed over the past thirty, even forty years, is misplaced. We (Americans) were all living on borrowed money. We spent (and borrowed) ourselves into penury. Some of the proceeds of our livelong endeavours should have gone to our children and grandchildren, but instead we've left each of them hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. We indeed had it good; unfortunately now the credit card has been canceled and the outstanding balance needs to be repaid. But, hey, it was fun while it lasted!
Thank you for the response. Thank you for tweaking your article a tiny bit :)
We have a philosophical difference. My interpretation that you have written is that you feel that debt is bad. I disagree with that blanket statement. I believe that debt that you can not repay is bad debt. I believe that not taking on debt is not taking on investment.
In the 1980s, Reagan took on massive debt. His reason was to bankrupt the USSR. It was a gamble that the US could absorb the debt and wipe out communism. Was that good debt?
In the 1950s, Eisenhower took on massive debt. His reason was to build out the national highway system, mimicking what he saw in Germany. Was that good debt?
Debt is also a tool that allows the US to have the world's currency. If you or I owe a bank $1mm and we default, it is our problem. If we were to owe $1bn, it is the banks problem. The power dynamic shifts when you have that amount of debt.
Debt is the difference between income and expenses when expenses go beyond the amount of income. I do not think we have a debt problem, I think we have an income problem. Sure, there will always be some expenditure that is wasteful. Sure, there will always be some fraud in the system. Using those tiny, insignificant amounts to justify a position that everything has to be destroyed is immature.
Warren Buffett pointed out numerous times that our taxation system is the issue. One of his latest mentions of it was regarding Berkeshire's tax payment. Berkshire paid 5bn in taxes. He stated that if 800 companies paid that amount, there would be no need for any other taxes. Think hard about that. Eight hundred countries in the US paying that amount of taxes covers EVERY expense. No need for personal, no need for tariffs, no need for anything else.
Ask yourself, why a company that had 100bn or more in corporate profits does not pay at least 5bn in taxes. That, to me, illustrates a huge problem with our tax system. Since Reagan, the tax laws have shifted the burden from being corporate covering about 50% of the tax revenue down to less than 8% today. The burden has shifted from the corporation to the individual. And yet, we have a current President who wants to do what? He wants to cut corporate even more and cut personal taxes. Uhh, that is where the income comes in to pay for the services that Americans demand. So the solution is what? To remove the services?
If you think that Trump is a savior, why is his proposed tax cuts adding over 5 trillion to the debt? This is where I think you are drinking Kool Aid. I get it, you want to reduce the debt. Wouldn't an option be to keep tax rates the same and reduce expenses, thus hopefully having a surplus that year to buy down the debt?
I think you are also misunderstanding that there will always have to be debt. Yes, this is by law :) SS takes in more than it sends out. What does it do with the excess cash? That cash is used to purchase T-Bills. That creates debt, but it is our left pocket owing our right pocket.
So while I applaud your concept of removing debt, I believe that Trumps methods are dangerous, will not decrease the debt, but just destroy FDR's work. And as an American, I feel ashamed that my fellow Americans are gleeful that other Americans are going to feel pain. I find that abhorrent.
David, While I agree that debt is not all bad (we wouldn't have been able to buy the Louisiana Territory from France or Alaska from Russia I suspect). But, the problem in the U.S. is that we are spending with abandon only because we are the currency of last resort. I've had a mortgage but I'll tell you now that I don't and actually own my home, it sure is a good feeling. I did need to borrow money in the beginning, but I was cautious about purchasing only something I felt I could afford. This is the path the U.S. needs to take now.
See, this is where I have an issue with your article. The generalization of things. Can you look at things with defining things instead of generalizations? When you state that we are spending with abandon, what does that mean? Is it that we spend on our military? Is it that we spend on studies? Is it that we give money to other countries? Is it medicare? Is it SS? What does that phrase of yours mean?
If you want to use your analogy of the house, then you should not have written the article that you wrote. The US is quite capable of paying the debt that we have. You would have to extract what the left hand/right hand debt is, because, well, that is just an accounting shift. Now, the actual debt, i.e. bonds to other countries, individuals, etc. That can be covered by fixing loopholes, aka corporate welfare, probably within ~7 years. But by doing that, that would make the US vulnerable to having our currency not be the currency of the world. That would give other countries enough to replace the SWIFT system. IMO, that would be the worst thing ever for the US in protecting the citizens.
David: 1) "spending with abandon" means there has been no budget, no attempt to rein in spending, simply raising spending every fiscal year. 2) I don't profess to know what the military may or may not need, but there didn't seem to be any oversight from anyone in the administration or Congress. 3) We probably do spend way too much in fraudulent payments in both Medicare and Social Security. 4) You say "The US is quite capable of paying the debt that we have." Well, maybe until we're not. 5) "Corporate welfare?" you're kidding, right? I don't know how you arrive at the conclusion that if we got our fiscal house in order we'd no longer be he currency of the world. That sounds like a call to continue spending with abandon.
Again, thanks for the cordial response. It is appreciated and respected.
I do notice that you like to tie things together that are separate subjects. Try breaking things down and see if you feel the same. Your first point is 3 different subjects. Having a budget is just as simple as not having a budget. This is not a huge issue IMO. The way that spending is setup, there is mandatory and discretionary. The discretionary is so tiny compared to the mandatory that having a budget is meh. Mandatory is 3.8tn, discretionary is 1.7tn.
Reining in spending, is not tied to the budget. That is a separate topic. As I mentioned, Congress can NOT touch mandatory, so it is discretionary that can be touched. As a percent of GDP, defense is less today than it was in 2003. Non-defense was trending to be below 2003, but due to Covid spiked and is now basically at 2003 levels. Considering that the population increased by nearly 50 million people during that time, I'd say that those departments have maintained incredible efficiency.
Raising spending is the third subject. Population grows. You have to spend more each year or have a declining population. It is that simple. Scale on services is not infinite, it is finite. A person can only handle x number of calls per day. If you have more people calling, what happens? You either do not service the caller or you add more people to support the calls.
In regards to the military, that is always a political football. The military is basically a jobs type of program for the US. The military directly and indirectly employees a LOT of people. The DoD is the largest direct employer in the world! Now add in the indirect, support related employment and if you were to reduce that, well, now you see why it is political. Try closing down a base of anytype and watch the politicians in that district scream bloody murder to keep it open. How you solve that, well, I do not know. That becomes a deeper philosophical discussion. What would happen if Edwards were closed? You would immediately lose 10,000 jobs. You would destroy the cities around it. Now, those people would be forced to move to larger cities that have jobs.
Again, tying things together :) Medicare and SS. Those are two separate things. The 'error' rate for SS is less than 1%. Errors are defined as overpayments, fraud, and underpayments. https://oig.ssa.gov/news-releases/2024-08-19-ig-reports-nearly-72-billion-improperly-paid-recommended-improvements-go-unimplemented/ Will Trump implement those suggestions? That is a good question to ask. But, in the scheme of things, 10bn a year in overpayments and getting 75% of it back, netting 2.5bn per year is peanuts when you are talking about 6 trillion in spending. 2.5bn is way more than I have nor will ever have, so yes, it is a huge amount, but again, the concept of destruction for something so insignificant is ludicrous.
Medicare is a different beast. In 2023, it was estimated that there was 31bn in fraud. That was 7% of the expenditures. That becomes a more interesting situation because it is criminal and the majority of the fraud comes from doctors. When they are caught, it means the judicial kicks in and that takes time to recover the money. Do they get all of it? Nah. Do they get a chunk? Yes. As there are humans involved, there will always be fraud. I'd like to see them get that to the SS level of less than 1%. Again, to destroy the whole thing over this, it is a pittance in the whole scheme of things. Even if it stayed at this level, SS and Medicare, getting 50% back, you would be looking at 20bn a year out of 6 trillion spent. That puts it at .33% of the budget. Yes 1/3rd of 1 percent of the budget. This is the huge FRAUD problem that is being sold to America?
You have an assumption, the whole premise of your argument, that our fiscal house is out of order to the tune of it not being viable. No, our fiscal house is NOT perfect. It is in fine shape though. Our debt is payable. Our debt is used as leverage to control the world. Our democracy, our RULE OF LAW, is what gets us investment in the country. That is a key reason why I am irked with Trump's policies.
Companies, countries and individuals invest in America. They do it because they know that if something goes wrong, there is a court of law and it will be resolved. Once that trust level is taken away, those with capital to invest will look elsewhere. That will harm the US.
The Senate just did a massive voteorama. They are going to push in the coming months tax cuts. In that 'one big, glorious bill,' is a line item to increase the debt by FIVE TRILLION dollars. If you are concerned about the debt, why did you not include that in your article?
The Dow is not an indication of prosperity without considering the value of a dollar. When you consider that a dollar buys half of what it did 5 years ago, the market should be at 60000 instead of 43000 to just break even.
Jeff, I think you are not looking at this accurately.
Does a dollar buy you half? Nah. I keep around a device that I bought in 1995 as a simple reminder. That year Panasonic introduced the first portable DVD player. I remember getting yelled at for buying it for $995. My wife said it was stupid. She was partly right :) It was expensive, but I bought it because it meant when we went on road trips with our child, that we could now drive 2-3 hours before stopping instead of barely an hour because our child was bored. Yes, I bought a baby sitter :) Today, I could buy something like it, before Trump tariffs for $30.
There are lots of things like that DVD player as an example.
Now, to prove I am not cherry-picking and saying that you are completely wrong, yes, there are things that a $1 buys less. That is inflation.
However, I think you are excluding the income side of the equation. An hour of time today earns MOST people more than it did in the past. That trading time for income has increased. If you wish to discuss how not raising the min wage is creating a new class system, lets do it :)
Great, electronic trinkets made in China are less expensive but all of life's essentials like gasoline, food and housing are getting more expensive at a rate exceeding the gains that have been made in the stock market since monkey ears and dementia face have been in office. The recent drop in the major indices is a purely emotional reaction to perceived future downward pressure and to fear. The market is fueled by fear and greed, today by fear, tomorrow by greed. Trump is doing exactly the right things to bring manufacturing back to the USA. It is a mistake to only look at money and markets without considering productivity of the American workforce. I would bet your pay check that the markets will recover before the summer is over.
The returns were incredible. This is why Buffet states that he will always invest in America. It makes money!
The housing argument is interesting. Is it more expensive than in 2000? Yes. Was that more expensive than 1980? Yes. Was that more expensive than 1960? Yes. Was that more expensive than 1940? Yes. Notice a trend here? Housing always goes up. Are you arguing that housing should not?
The recent drop is NOT emotional. It is reactionary based on the actions of Trump. Have you ever run a business that imports? I have. I owned a factory in Mexico. I imported from China. IMO people have no idea how tariffs and businesses work.
As a business, I have a target margin I shoot for. This is for me to determine the best use of my capital. Let me do a simple mathematical explanation. If I have 1mm to deploy, I know I can buy the safest investment and get 4% on my money. The higher the return I am looking for means the more risk I am willing to take with that capital. Now with that said, let's say I am looking for 12% net. This means, after taxes, I need to add 120k to that capital.
I can sell a product for $100 at wholesale. What do I need to pay for it, to hit that margin? This is where things get interesting. Because now volume gets into play. But for ease of illustration, the demand for the product is 10,000 units. That is $1mm at wholesale. Assuming I have a 20% effective tax rate, I am now at $85 in COGS + SG&A + other expenses. Assuming that my SG&A and other expenses are 35% of the expenses, that means I am paying $55.25 per unit with 'Pre-Trump' tariffs. Trump slapped on a 35% tariff. Now, my cost is $74.59 per unit. My SG&A + other expenses, I am trying to keep in check, but they were 29.75 per unit. Now my cost is 104.34.
1. I am now $4.34 per unit over the wholesale price I had pre-trump.
2. For me to keep my 12% net margins, assuming the demand for 10k units is still there, I need to sell at wholesale, the unit for ~119.40.
What do you think the units were sold at retail for pre-trump? What do you think they are sold at now? Now this depends upon the item. Some items have incredible margins at retail because they turn slow, some have tiny margins because they turn fast. But, what most people do not realize is that retail stores are really in the real estate business. They have a cost per sq ft and they want a return per sq ft. Macy's as an example had 55% gross margins. Costco has 40% gross margins. This, of course is NOT in food.
Pre tump, that product at retail would have sold for ~$150. Now, post trump, ~$185. That ~$19 tariff cost increase that I paid, turned into $35 at retail.
That $19 increase, along with the tariff goes where? It goes to the US government. Trump, effectively has put in a silent VAT for all consumers.
Please, educate me, how is this good?
I sincerely doubt that you know this, but the US is second in the world in manufacturing. Is this a race to get back to number 1? It is not going to happen. The US citizen will NOT pay the prices for US regulations and labor. Capitalism knows no boundaries.
So you agree with me that tariffs will increase the price of imported goods or that portion of a finished product that is made overseas. Therefore it incentivizes buying American products and employing American workers to build those products. Shame on you for manufacturing in Mexico. When you build in America you employ American workers who now can buy the car they build or in your case a lifelike vibrator. America is a distant second to China in manufacturing but we are the number one consumers and used to be the number one manufacturer. Manufacturing in America has dropped by 50% in the last 20 years and you brush it off as nothing. Why are you making excuses for failure? It is a failure to drop from number one to a distant second to China and their abysmal worker treatment and human rights atrocities. I am 1% Uyghur. Let me ask you, did you vote for Trump? Are you a Democrat? Do you hate everything Trump does cause you hate him as a man. Have you personalized your hatred like a good little Alinskyite?
First off, try hitting the enter key to create a new paragraph. It is much easier to discern what you are trying to convey.
Yes, tariffs are a tax on the consumer. It makes goods that are brought into the country cost more with that additional cost going straight to the government.
It is NOT an incentive to buy American. That is the hugest misunderstanding. Consumers, when presented with like goods will always choose the cheaper one. So, for there to be an incentive, the American goods need to be cheaper. I have seen this game before. I have seen the results. After Hurricane Andrew hit Florida, the insurance companies were going to leave the state. The state, in their wisdom, created Citizens, a state run insurance company. What they did, to make sure that people used them as the last resort was to set their prices higher than the insurance companies. The insurance companies applauded that decision. Why? That was the license to raise their prices. They would straddle the new floor for pricing. When they wanted business, they would lower it below the state, when they didn't, they would be above the state price.
This is where the fallacy in your argument lies. Tariffs will raise prices, but if even paying the tariffs is cheaper than manufacturing in the US, it will NOT have people buy American made. This is just simple math. Here is an easy way to look at things. If labor is 50% of the cost to make, apply it to this concept. In the US, a guy basically gets $100 a day, fully burdened. In Mexico a guy gets about $100 a week. In China, a guy gets about $150 a month. However, they also get room and board plus 3 meals a day. Now, with that concept in play, the cost per hour is significantly cheaper in China than it is in the US. If I were forced to make in the US, what would I do? There would be a HUGE CapEx number put on automation.
Automation still exists, but automation, not Chinese labor has taken away manufacturing from the US. There are certain items that automation still is not there for yet. As an example, automation for clothing manufacturing still is not there. With these tariffs, you are not going to see JOBS added, you are going to see ROBOTS added.
In regards to owning a factory in Mexico, this is where you are completely misguided. I had over 2000 employees in the US. The factory employed about 250. Had I not had that factory, I would have had less than 500 employees in the US. Your concept of having manufacturing here means employees here means a viable business is mistaken.
Manufacturing in the US has not dropped off 50% in the last 20 years. That is another statistic that you are pulling out of your behind. https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/USA/united-states/manufacturing-output Manufacturing as a percent of GDP has dropped in the last 30 years, but that can EASILY be attributed to the expansion of more services being purchased. Look at the revenue of Facebook, Google, Microsoft, etc. Those guys are in the services business and they EXPANDED the GDP base. Manufacturing kept chugging along.
Do not bring up human rights in China until you bring up human rights in the US. I can argue that in China they at least house and feed their min wage workers, can you say the same in the US? In China there is no medical bankruptcy. The working conditions you mention are worse than in the US, but by no means the level that you are implying.
Asking me my political information is your method to try and deflect from the argument posed. My argument would be the same regardless of who did these acts. I sincerely doubt that yours would. I believe that Obamacare confused you. The fact that it was from Obama, you hated, but when you learned that it was a republican idea, one that originated at the Heritage Foundation, you thought, well, wait, I am supposed to like them, but the mean black man made it a law. My points stand regardless of who I voted for, the party that I am affiliated with. Trying to extract that, as a means to counter shows that you have no argument, you just have an unfounded opinion that you want to spew because you have not learned about the subject or are incapable of learning about the subject.
How heavily are you invested in the stock market, David. Do you have a Plan B? (Only ask that, no need to answer that.) Or do you speak out of both sides of your mouth - vilifying Wall Street yet have secretly investing your own sense of future well-being in its singularly ephemeral nature. Or do you just love hating Trump?
Hard to ascribe something as complex as the stockmarket to only a "President" when multiple other factors move and sway its volatile nature. As Scott Bessant just stated - rotting out Main Street is a high price to pay for celebrating only Wall Street.
Quoting billionaires who have earned their money in the system telling you that they have to destroy it because it does not work sounds counterintuitive to me.
I do not have to be invested in WS to feel the impact of Trump's policies. I am indirectly invested in WS because the purchases I make impact the companies on WS.
I have no problem vilifying parts of WS. I have no problem praising parts of WS. I think unregulated, unfettered capitalism is dangerous. I do not like usury laws being thwarted.
Generally, I would agree with you about ascribing the ups/downs of the stockmarket to a president, but the last two days should show you that I was wrong. A SINGLE PERSON, who I think is doing this unlawfully and his croonies in congress are allowing it to happen, shows that one person can destroy the livelihood of 350mm people. Why you think that is good boggles my mind.
Does TDS now come as a new Vape-Pen flavor? Destroying the livelihood of 350 million people in ......just two days? That sounds a lot more like Biden's "covid" policies, than Trump re-starting the American economy.
Nice definition of "being in the stock market" simply by making daily consumer choices. Can't argue with that purest definition - a one person boycott or a one person market enthusiast.
Thank you for your honesty regarding the state of our country. Blindness seems to be the state of the Republicans, trying to create a Whole from the Master Shredder’s chaos…..one unhealthy President who hates everything and everyone, including his well-deserved hateful self. I am only surprised he hasn’t deported his immigrant wife.
Nice article. The fact that the middle class has been decimated from loss of “muscular jobs-(MANUFACTURING) is easy to see. Drive through most cities-there is not a lot of industry or manufacturing. Since the 1970’s the wealth of the upper class has increased to the detriment of the middle class. Jobs/ manufacturing shipped overseas. The reason the MSM is crying right now is because they reflect the upper 10%. These globalist investors are losing money in our over valued stock market—MSM does not reflect the middle class or those concerned about a fair wage for EVERY American-and a SOVEREIGN, self sustaining America.
We learned from the Pandemic that from a National Security perspective being dependent on Nations for basic supplies; drugs, precious metals, minerals, food, & gas puts us at whim of those Nations. Remember, during the Pandemic as small jobs were shut down? It was the “greatest transfer of wealth from small businesses to mega corporations.”
Trump is an out of the box thinker bringing back manufacturing, and business to support our society and all Americans. Trump has a commitment of over 5 Trillion dollars for investment in American manufacturing! Unheard of!!! He has taken on a Herculean task of battling Lawfare, tariffs and many other false fronts while the “elite 10% who own 88% of the wealth” are trying to keep the status quo alive—FOR THEMSELVES! To turn this Titanic around will take time and an attitude of “delayed gratification.” There will be gaps, it will be bumpy.
BRAVO TO PRESIDENT TRUMP WHO
HAS THE IRON WILL to carry it out! May AMERICANS wake up for the future of our children and our great Nation!
"Remember, during the Pandemic as small jobs were shut down? It was the “greatest transfer of wealth from small businesses to mega corporations"
Are we forgetting the Industrial revolution and the rise of capitalism, where family owned businesses and local businesses were put out of business and people had to move to cities to find work...
Getting rid of waste in the federal government is undoubtedly a good thing to do. We'll see if tariffs end up helping out. It seems most economists don't think so, but again, we'll see.
What I don't understand is why we're making enemies of nations that have been our allies for 80-plus years. It seems as if we're being openly hostile to Canada, of all places. The nation that hid our embassy folks during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis no doubt risked their deaths. The same Canada that supported the United States in both Gulf Wars and the war in Afghanistan.
TJ Why are you assuming we are making enemies, rather than mutually respectful trading partners?
Trump honors the rest of the world are no longer America dependency client states, and have now achieved instead equal footing as post WWII trading partners. Post WWII America was an artificial construct - nice while it lasted. But both realism and celebration today now shares economic vigor with a much larger post WWII world.
Truth be told, I do miss Europe on $5 ad day. Glad I was able to experience it then. But respectful their boats got lifted too in this rising global economy.
I think it's more than trade. You'll note my two examples were not Canada supplying us car parts.
The world is more than dollars and cents. I help and get along with the neighbors on my street. We all help each out and have never exchanged a dollar.
Ah yes, the good old days when Dayton, Ohio was a primary source of car parts. Bringing belated wisdom now to that hoary statement .....what is good for General Motors is good for the country.
Auto unions did this to the auto industry with their unfunded pension and benefit liabilities We should never lose sight of that. Who in fact made the decision to bail out GM? And prop up Chrysler Jeep.
Quality control must come with any new trade protection favoritism granted the auto industry this time around. We stopped buying American cars way back when, for many reasons.
We need to be mindful of the 7 dimension chess game we are now playing. A scalpel, not a sledge hammer to recently quote President Donald J Trump.
Why you ask is Trump making enemies? Because the USA is the biggest, baddest, most wonderful country in the world. Why is Trump, excuse me for saying, shitting on every country? Oh wait, except Russia?
Wow, you really think Trump, having spent two hours alone with Putin in Helsinki has a better plan for the USA? Really? Gorge Patton is turning in his grave.
Joan, my next rainy day is not only how often to overwhelm the comments but how far off 100% you are to commenting on my posts. It's a wonderful day. Go test drive a Tesla.
Gentleman, how about we take a break and accept each other’s POV? I certainly do and find both your posts interesting. As for JL, what can I say? Her retorts are legendary and I certainly value. I’ve learned the hard way over conflicts with my own family, better to move on with the conversation. Opinions are just that, nothing more.
I am a Trump supporter and wish he and his team well. I think we all hope that over time his actions accomplish his/our goals as they will make our country better. The work of DOGE is great and when coupled with spending discipline should improve our cash flow and balance sheet. I do have some problems with the discussion on trade. I do believe that our vulnerabilities and national security risks should be addressed immediately, but under the guise of priority issues not based on a phony calculation based on third grade math coupled with a Greek letter to impress people, the data presented was not current tariffs and currency manipulation as was represented. I also do not believe that all trade deficits are bad, that our export of services matter to the calculation, and that trade policy is an important part of statecraft. Simply put, I would have preferred a more limited, targeted approach to tariffs.
Jim, I like you and I have no problem with our political differences on a national level. Because I know it's irrelevant to both of our lives. At the same time I really enjoy reading the posts and comments on this site on a daily basis. Just like I enjoyed the Montecito Journal when you were publisher, not so much these days. . .
I remember a day back in late 2017 when we stood in your driveway and I asked if you had any "buyers remorse" over endorsing Trump in 2016. Your response was, "I wake up every day gladly knowing I don't hear the voice of Hillary Clinton." Funny thing is, I would say the same thing about Kamala having voted for her. I can't stand the sound of her voice and I'm okay that Trump won fair & square.
So I have little sympathy for you and others that voted for Trump. He said he was going to do this, right? He's also a "businessman" who had six, yes that is SIX bankruptcies. Why would you put your trust in that guy, I ask myself? Because I'm a gardener and I know nothing of economics, the stock market and the term, Globalism. . . I am 100% fine that Kamala lost, but y'all should not be complaining or wringing your hands about what Trump is doing! You voted for him!
And I really do miss the old Montecito Journal. Your version.
Dan, Six bankruptcies, yes I guess that's true (who's counting?) But then Thomas Edison had about a thousand failures until he finally found the right kind of element for his light bulb. Nevertheless, Trump seems to have done alright for himself.
Oh come on Jim. Edison was an inventor. Name something Trump invented? You are not going to win this. You as a Vietnam vet, and my former boss McCain, you both served the country and Trump evaded. . . So yeah, he did alright for himself.
I love Trumpy because the doesn't believe Mary Poppins - "A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down." After 50 years of the feds simply borrowing and printing more & more money with the devil taking the hindmost he's saying "Enough! It's time for a reckoning!"
Great Article Jim…yes there will be short term turbulence as Trump reset finances for US, BUT, We are moving off the federal income tax, shrinking the federal government to a manageable size where tariffs can pay for it, and preparing to end the Federal Reserve and the fiat currency debt slave system. Good time to build a life raft of Gold & SILVER, Constitutional money…
A targeted program of real reciprocal tariffs directed toward China to get them to curb their unfair trade practices is warranted but what Trump did will hurt the very people he is trying to help much more with higher prices (who can least afford them) than the remote possibility that you can bring back manufacturing jobs in the next 4 yrs. Levying broad tariffs of 30% or more on countries like Australia, Switzerland and South Korea that have no tariffs on American goods makes no sense. How are they going to reduce our trade deficit when they already got rid of their tariffs? As for cars, the reason why we run trade deficits with South Korea, Japan and Europe is because Americans don't like American cars. If Ford and General Motors made good cars that people liked, the problem would take care of itself. Don't blame other countries because our cars suck.
I love American cars. Never owned an American car that gave me less than excellent service. Fords all the way baby. I think you are about as right on this one as you were in feeling that only lipless Nikki Haley could win but you were wrong then and you are wrong now.
Jeff, unless you're driving a Mustang, there are several Hondas made with a higher percentage of American-made components than the rest of the Fords. If you want a higher percentage of US components than the Mustang, you'd have to get a Tesla.
We're talking cars here. I'm betting the Ford/etc. trucks have lots of US parts.
Oh there you go again regurgitating the results of a Google search. I am still driving my 1966 Mustang which I have owned since 1979 and today I cant get any original style brake parts not made in China. I refuse to use so i upgraded to D11 Wilwood front calipers and discs and a Wilwood compact master all made in the USA. in the rear i am running original 10.5 inch drums with porterfield shoes made in the USA. I had to rebuild the original rear cylinders using an NOS kit from Ebay since all current cylinders and kits are from China. It is challenging but I refuse to put Chinese crap on my Mustang. Have you driven a Mustang GT with a coyote engine? For the money it would be hard to beat with any imported piece of shit. I have two other fords 2017 and will you look up the imported part content for me? I think you get off on the Google thing. For me, I prefer to not use it. Much of the information is bullshit. Kind of like using a tuner for your guitar instead of your ear. Do you play? Do you use a tuner? Could you engage in a debate without your phone?
Grumpy Grumpy. I used to be on the selling end to various agencies where US content mattered. So it's still something I track. Like why your era TV show CHIPs, where the CHPs road Kawasaki's instead of Harleys. The cop bikes were made in Nebraska and more USA parts than the Milwaukee rattle can.
Were you once a Democrat? I can smell a Democrat a mile away and the odor lingers on former Democrats for considerable time. From the first comment you ever made here I detected that telltale bouquet in your writing.
Just the libtards and libtard adjacent who hate everything American. Get out of California and you will see far fewer imports. I have worked on Ford's, Chevrolet's, Fiats Mercedes and Jaguars and from what I have seen the only real difference is the price of the parts. It does seem easier to pick up women in a jag but they usually turn out to have herpes. You will pick up a keeper in a Ford, I can tell you from experience.
Jim, thank you for the good summary of Trump's actions. Trump is taking the correct steps to undo the slow but steady managed decline ( poorly managed decline) which has occurred over the past many decades.
Well stated Jim on the decline of American exceptionalism, cheered on by the liberal establishment, globalists and MSM. Yes, those on the Left are actually cheering for the demise of our country! Just look at the massive demonstrations held today, across the country.
The reality is, virtually every government program established by the left is on the verge of collapse as documented by Musk and Doge. One need only look locally at our one party rule, and how it has affected our public schools; Carpinteria, Santa Maria and SB school districts, all on the verge of financial collapse due to mismanagement, incompetence, litigation and teacher unions. And to think another 5,000 students could be added to the rolls by virtue of thousands of studio apartments being crammed in and coming on line. All mandated by Sacramento, who itself is facing insolvency! What’s the common denominator in this dire situation? Liberal, left wing lunacy!
As for Trump and tariffs, we are at the crossroads of success, prosperity and a golden era versus despair, instability and insolvency. The trade imbalances are nothing new and have been going on for decades, promoted by both parties. Now is the time to right the wrong and prioritize American workers. The Trump trade tariffs are in essence directed at China and the EU. We really couldn’t care less about Mozambique or Albania. Who will blink first? Both China and the EU need us more than we need them. China cannot afford social unrest. That would be disastrous for them and us.
The intangible in all this is a war with Iran or China thinking “screw it” and moving on Taiwan. Another intangible is our own Judiciary, clearly overstepping the division of powers and trying to legislate from the bench.
Let’s hope the market corrects itself and as Trump suggests, we are all made whole and wealthy again. I for one am getting anxious and can’t afford too many more six figure losses in a single day. Trump has a short time to turn this around and get this right.
"American exceptionalism "has become a misused term. It was applied originally to the untried system of voter-participation governance, unheard of anywhere in the world at the time. No kings, no military, no oligarchs running things, just the votes of legal citizens choosing their own elected representatives (and getting stuck with those we may not agree with until the next election.). The term somehow morphed into the more arrogant interpretation by anti-American forces into "we are better than anyone else".
Time to re-own American exceptionalism on our upcoming 250th anniversary, when we still remain a beacon of hope for the rest of the world. Our messy, messy experiment of government of the people, by the people and for the people. Which is reason number one we simply cannot afford to rot from within.
It remains a beacon of liberty, freedom and justice for all. It is not to be shunned or mocked, because we are truly different from all other people. Superior no, but there is reason why millions risk life and limb to come here. We should not offer apologies for American exceptionalism.
To those on the left and those who oppose Trump and his tariffs, I would pose the question(s), if not now, when? If not tariffs, how? How do you erase over $100-250 trillion in actual accumulated debt?
To continue to ignore the facts, continue to kick the can down the road, continue to deny human biology, continue to deny our freedom is granted by God, not government, we run the risk of a complete collapse and downfall. Running the risk of becoming a modern day confederacy of states similar to former Yugoslavia, each state having its own culture, identity and economy. Yes, the Balkanization of America.
"Each having it's own culture and identity, and economy"
Goodness me, how horrid! How dare a nation be an organic patchwork of localities, communities, and provinces that are united under God, King, and country!
We need nationalism to impose a single identity on all of us... just ignore that globalism does the same even though I condemn it...
It’s times as these I am reminded of the late, great conservative, Barry Goldwater when he lamented “Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice and moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!”
Good job, Jim. The left just hates facts and the truth. Yes, it will be a bit bumpy but I too think it needs to be done and support our president. We dodged a cannon shot. If Harris had gotten in it would have been business as usual. Not cutting waste. Millions still pouring in from around the world. Rapists and murderers having free rein on our streets. The market may have taken a hit but in the long run our taxes would continue to climb, get less in return and then watch our version of Rome burn.
Great article, Jim, on the decline of our country and the monumental job ahead of righting the years of mismanagement and corruption. It should be obvious to all that Trump will be the scapegoat for the Biden/Harris et al fiasco. Hopefully Trump and his administration can turn things around even though that might bother some of the Trump hating readers and the mainstream media.
We have a role turning things around too. We too are part of the animal spirits of the market place.
We live in an era when people think that because they can spout off online that means they know what Trump should be doing better. In the most moment to moment way.
If they really think they're such brilliant doers in the political realm, then they should run for office in Santa Barbara and prove how good they are.
Since he took office, Trump has done more positive things for this country than any other president in my lifetime, and under ridiculously adversarial conditions.
Right on Pol.
Secy of Treasury Scott Bessant offers insights in his recent interview with Tucker Carlson about the current market situation with reminders of past performance histories and why have we chosen to rely on stock prices as the only measurement of national economic health.
He suggests it was the surprise introduction of China's Deep Seek that first rattled the market since this radically impacted the prior Wall Street darlings The Magnificent Seven, who were a large part of many wealth fund investments. They went down first. The current litany of Trump, Trump, Trump is specious as usual, and intentional. Just look at every over-wrought news story headlines in the WSJ dripping in Trump-Trump-Trump purple prose to wonder who in fact is attempting to manipulate the markets, and why?
Additionally, Bessant reminds us the health of Main Street is equally important as the health of Wall Street, for the country as a whole and how we are required to spend tax dollars. One must also be reminded how much the Left vilifies Wall Street and "corporations" as the personification of human evil, until their own portfolios start losing value. More Democrat amnesia and self-serving hypocrisy.
What good are paper investments when our nation rots from within and life is no longer safe and our children's futures are compromised from birth? Who in fact is killing Social Security and Medicare when children are no longer getting educated, other nations are rotting out our middle class and we become a nation dependent only on the mercurial good will of other countries who in fact plot our economic demise?
Equally important, Secy of Treasury Bessant reminds us of the "chaos" of the Reagan administration efforts to refigure markets with tax cuts and deregulation and their relationships to government meddling as well.
How chaotic was the air traffic controllers strike - having been stranded in the South Pacific myself at the time not knowing day by day if we would ever get home. Plus finally having a connector airline to Santa Barbara go out of business in the short period time between departure and arrival on that same trip. Remind yourself how much feel-good mileage did successor President Clinton enjoy primarily due to those "chaotic" Reagan tax cuts?
Somehow America survived when only an Autopen was running this country for the past four years and there were no-one but faceless bureaucrats spending ceaseless and unaccountable billions of our tax dollars? Thank you very much, but I will choose more solid and accountable footings for my own financial future for the long term, rather than the erratic fumes driven only by this current Democrat and unelected deep state partisan vindictiveness.
The animal spirts of the marketplace were euphoric sensing there would be a Trump victory in 2024. The poetry part of the 2024 Trump election The animal spirits were rudely shot down when Trump was immediately faced with the calculated and organized Democrat activist judge lawfare, cynically intended to sabotage every single move Trump made - the prose part of actual governance.
People can be both fickle and craven. And easily spooked, which is why Warren Buffet remained so successful in the long run - he recommends looking at investments on an annual basis; not this current hysteria-inducing hour by hour micromanagement.
L. Livingston: Just love the level of conversation you bring to the table. My son, a teenager at the time (he's now 44) noticed the hollowing out of our cities in what we derisively refer to as the "Rust Belt," when he attended the University of Kansas and drove through the heartland. That rusting belt was once the center of America's strength and it would be great if it came back. What happened was that the factories that made "stuff" like cars, machinery, and the like, moved offshore and government "welfare" replaced a working man's paycheck. Good-bye self respect; hello dependence and self-loathing. Drug abuse was quick to follow.
My own first experience moving out of California was to Dayton Ohio in the mid 1960's, to the illustrious midwest Great Industrial North East. First surprise was not seeing wall to wall factories and smokestacks, as that term always invoked in my younger California mindset.
It was in fact quite bucolic and rural, save for the concentrated economic power houses in the larger cities. However the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland had caught on fire at that time, so all was not well either. Industrial power had its excesses, so the "environmental" movement was also being aborn at that time too. But with true American spirit we did go on to ensure clean air and water was also part of our American commitment. Well before that clean environment idealism got highjacked into the ruinous ESG and "climate change" hysteria that defines it today.
But the second surprise was not be able to turn a corner and not seeing the headquarters of practically every single American brand now right in my new Dayton, Ohio backyard. Demographically, the "typical American" lived in Kettering Ohio, a Dayton suburb. Everything that we used in California was somehow made in Dayton Ohio. Yet today, Dayton is just one more rotting rust belt hulk.
"The jackals are already out, smugly cackling on MSNBC, CNN, and in various daily newspapers, that Trump’s hopes and dreams – and frankly those of most of us who support him – are about to be dumped into the ashcan of history."""""""
Again who is this Buckley guy? How dare he malign the Democrat machine and their boys in the press(?).
How about this look at Liberation Day?
What was the inflation of the Stock Markets do to excessive government spending over decades? Along with that what was the supposed great news the DOW HIT ANOTHER RECORD HIGH?
People most of that inflation was hot air supported by the Drive By Media (or is that bye.. so confused) stating how great the Socialist State and the Socialist Party now called Democrat are.
Instead of looking at the $ Dollars lost on Liberation Day look at the percent drop in the markets!!! When viewed in that light it is a far less grim story the bye bye media has been pumping. Let's bring it to California. The retirement system for government employees has been for years BROKE. Every hard look states there is not enough money in the system to cover retirement pay and benefits. How did it happen? Simple you have stupid elected officials who granted pay raises and benefit packages the "Local" (read that as you and me taxpayer) boys and girls cannot pay for with taxes. (did someone mention SB sales tax increases / Goleta sale tax increase / increase occupancy taxes in the county?)
Was it a shock to the average taxpayer to hear DOOM AND GLOOM? Of course. Was and is it far less when adjusted for stupid stock market inflation due to government spending?
YOU BETCHA BUCKWHEAT!
When the dust settles and more and more books and articles are published showing how feckless and incompetent Biden was as President. When it becomes more and more obvious how the Presidency of this country was run by a committee. Liberation Day is most likely going to be a foot note of history.
As a friend says "Be of Good Cheer"
Now again who is the Buckly guy or is it Buckley? (so confused, I've been watch net work news)
Jim,
The kool aid you are drinking has blinded your ability to think logically.
The 'golden age' of prosperity. Huh? That makes no sense. We have been in it! You just didn't like the person(s) who put us there.
Bush Jr. did not create a problem, Bernake did. Bernake decided to raise interest rates in a near vertical path for a period of time trying to slow down the economy. Instead of staggering the rate increases over a longer period of time, he shocked the economy. That, along with the loosening of mortgage approval and the fraud that ensued created the crash.
But by all means, let's look at the DJIX from when Obama took over to when Trump came into office: 7949. He left with it at 19,804. Trump left the first time and it was at 31186. When Biden left 43487. That is a generation of time. The dow almost 5 times its value in one generation. How was that not prosperous?
Trump is currently on a path of destruction. He is in the process of making the republican wet dream of dismantling FDRs work come true. That is not progress. That is not prosperity. That is regression.
David, Your love of the ephemeral "prosperity" we enjoyed over the past thirty, even forty years, is misplaced. We (Americans) were all living on borrowed money. We spent (and borrowed) ourselves into penury. Some of the proceeds of our livelong endeavours should have gone to our children and grandchildren, but instead we've left each of them hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. We indeed had it good; unfortunately now the credit card has been canceled and the outstanding balance needs to be repaid. But, hey, it was fun while it lasted!
Jim,
Thank you for the response. Thank you for tweaking your article a tiny bit :)
We have a philosophical difference. My interpretation that you have written is that you feel that debt is bad. I disagree with that blanket statement. I believe that debt that you can not repay is bad debt. I believe that not taking on debt is not taking on investment.
In the 1980s, Reagan took on massive debt. His reason was to bankrupt the USSR. It was a gamble that the US could absorb the debt and wipe out communism. Was that good debt?
In the 1950s, Eisenhower took on massive debt. His reason was to build out the national highway system, mimicking what he saw in Germany. Was that good debt?
Debt is also a tool that allows the US to have the world's currency. If you or I owe a bank $1mm and we default, it is our problem. If we were to owe $1bn, it is the banks problem. The power dynamic shifts when you have that amount of debt.
Debt is the difference between income and expenses when expenses go beyond the amount of income. I do not think we have a debt problem, I think we have an income problem. Sure, there will always be some expenditure that is wasteful. Sure, there will always be some fraud in the system. Using those tiny, insignificant amounts to justify a position that everything has to be destroyed is immature.
Warren Buffett pointed out numerous times that our taxation system is the issue. One of his latest mentions of it was regarding Berkeshire's tax payment. Berkshire paid 5bn in taxes. He stated that if 800 companies paid that amount, there would be no need for any other taxes. Think hard about that. Eight hundred countries in the US paying that amount of taxes covers EVERY expense. No need for personal, no need for tariffs, no need for anything else.
Ask yourself, why a company that had 100bn or more in corporate profits does not pay at least 5bn in taxes. That, to me, illustrates a huge problem with our tax system. Since Reagan, the tax laws have shifted the burden from being corporate covering about 50% of the tax revenue down to less than 8% today. The burden has shifted from the corporation to the individual. And yet, we have a current President who wants to do what? He wants to cut corporate even more and cut personal taxes. Uhh, that is where the income comes in to pay for the services that Americans demand. So the solution is what? To remove the services?
If you think that Trump is a savior, why is his proposed tax cuts adding over 5 trillion to the debt? This is where I think you are drinking Kool Aid. I get it, you want to reduce the debt. Wouldn't an option be to keep tax rates the same and reduce expenses, thus hopefully having a surplus that year to buy down the debt?
I think you are also misunderstanding that there will always have to be debt. Yes, this is by law :) SS takes in more than it sends out. What does it do with the excess cash? That cash is used to purchase T-Bills. That creates debt, but it is our left pocket owing our right pocket.
So while I applaud your concept of removing debt, I believe that Trumps methods are dangerous, will not decrease the debt, but just destroy FDR's work. And as an American, I feel ashamed that my fellow Americans are gleeful that other Americans are going to feel pain. I find that abhorrent.
David, While I agree that debt is not all bad (we wouldn't have been able to buy the Louisiana Territory from France or Alaska from Russia I suspect). But, the problem in the U.S. is that we are spending with abandon only because we are the currency of last resort. I've had a mortgage but I'll tell you now that I don't and actually own my home, it sure is a good feeling. I did need to borrow money in the beginning, but I was cautious about purchasing only something I felt I could afford. This is the path the U.S. needs to take now.
The difference is, Jim - you methodicaly paid your borrowed money back, unlike the federal government over the last 50 years.
See, this is where I have an issue with your article. The generalization of things. Can you look at things with defining things instead of generalizations? When you state that we are spending with abandon, what does that mean? Is it that we spend on our military? Is it that we spend on studies? Is it that we give money to other countries? Is it medicare? Is it SS? What does that phrase of yours mean?
If you want to use your analogy of the house, then you should not have written the article that you wrote. The US is quite capable of paying the debt that we have. You would have to extract what the left hand/right hand debt is, because, well, that is just an accounting shift. Now, the actual debt, i.e. bonds to other countries, individuals, etc. That can be covered by fixing loopholes, aka corporate welfare, probably within ~7 years. But by doing that, that would make the US vulnerable to having our currency not be the currency of the world. That would give other countries enough to replace the SWIFT system. IMO, that would be the worst thing ever for the US in protecting the citizens.
David: 1) "spending with abandon" means there has been no budget, no attempt to rein in spending, simply raising spending every fiscal year. 2) I don't profess to know what the military may or may not need, but there didn't seem to be any oversight from anyone in the administration or Congress. 3) We probably do spend way too much in fraudulent payments in both Medicare and Social Security. 4) You say "The US is quite capable of paying the debt that we have." Well, maybe until we're not. 5) "Corporate welfare?" you're kidding, right? I don't know how you arrive at the conclusion that if we got our fiscal house in order we'd no longer be he currency of the world. That sounds like a call to continue spending with abandon.
Jim,
Again, thanks for the cordial response. It is appreciated and respected.
I do notice that you like to tie things together that are separate subjects. Try breaking things down and see if you feel the same. Your first point is 3 different subjects. Having a budget is just as simple as not having a budget. This is not a huge issue IMO. The way that spending is setup, there is mandatory and discretionary. The discretionary is so tiny compared to the mandatory that having a budget is meh. Mandatory is 3.8tn, discretionary is 1.7tn.
Reining in spending, is not tied to the budget. That is a separate topic. As I mentioned, Congress can NOT touch mandatory, so it is discretionary that can be touched. As a percent of GDP, defense is less today than it was in 2003. Non-defense was trending to be below 2003, but due to Covid spiked and is now basically at 2003 levels. Considering that the population increased by nearly 50 million people during that time, I'd say that those departments have maintained incredible efficiency.
Raising spending is the third subject. Population grows. You have to spend more each year or have a declining population. It is that simple. Scale on services is not infinite, it is finite. A person can only handle x number of calls per day. If you have more people calling, what happens? You either do not service the caller or you add more people to support the calls.
In regards to the military, that is always a political football. The military is basically a jobs type of program for the US. The military directly and indirectly employees a LOT of people. The DoD is the largest direct employer in the world! Now add in the indirect, support related employment and if you were to reduce that, well, now you see why it is political. Try closing down a base of anytype and watch the politicians in that district scream bloody murder to keep it open. How you solve that, well, I do not know. That becomes a deeper philosophical discussion. What would happen if Edwards were closed? You would immediately lose 10,000 jobs. You would destroy the cities around it. Now, those people would be forced to move to larger cities that have jobs.
Again, tying things together :) Medicare and SS. Those are two separate things. The 'error' rate for SS is less than 1%. Errors are defined as overpayments, fraud, and underpayments. https://oig.ssa.gov/news-releases/2024-08-19-ig-reports-nearly-72-billion-improperly-paid-recommended-improvements-go-unimplemented/ Will Trump implement those suggestions? That is a good question to ask. But, in the scheme of things, 10bn a year in overpayments and getting 75% of it back, netting 2.5bn per year is peanuts when you are talking about 6 trillion in spending. 2.5bn is way more than I have nor will ever have, so yes, it is a huge amount, but again, the concept of destruction for something so insignificant is ludicrous.
Medicare is a different beast. In 2023, it was estimated that there was 31bn in fraud. That was 7% of the expenditures. That becomes a more interesting situation because it is criminal and the majority of the fraud comes from doctors. When they are caught, it means the judicial kicks in and that takes time to recover the money. Do they get all of it? Nah. Do they get a chunk? Yes. As there are humans involved, there will always be fraud. I'd like to see them get that to the SS level of less than 1%. Again, to destroy the whole thing over this, it is a pittance in the whole scheme of things. Even if it stayed at this level, SS and Medicare, getting 50% back, you would be looking at 20bn a year out of 6 trillion spent. That puts it at .33% of the budget. Yes 1/3rd of 1 percent of the budget. This is the huge FRAUD problem that is being sold to America?
The debt can be paid. I showed you how. You have to look at congress and how they will bend over and do anything that the corporate overlords want. Since Reagan, the amount of taxes as a percent that the corporations pay have dropped drastically. https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/americas-finance-guide/government-revenue/ a nice chart for the last 10 years, https://www.pgpf.org/article/six-charts-that-show-how-low-corporate-tax-revenues-are-in-the-united-states-right-now/ Shows more, but uses % of GDP. Raise corporate taxes, maintain spending at the same % of GDP as 2003 and you will have no deficit, and a surplus. That is how simple it is. Ask yourself, why Apple . . . https://theweek.com/articles/476005/how-apple-dodges-billions-taxes-concise-guide
Corporate welfare exists. It is much higher than personal welfare. It is written in the tax code. It is written in the subsidies. One of the KINGS of corporate welfare was Richard Shelby, the former senator in Alabama. https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/story/news/2003/09/21/incentives-package-caused-early-controversy/27848187007/ And then, the Walmart scenario with security guards and putting their employees on SNAP. That is corporate welfare by letting Walmart burden shift. Here is just one story: https://projects.tampabay.com/projects/2016/public-safety/walmart-police/
You have an assumption, the whole premise of your argument, that our fiscal house is out of order to the tune of it not being viable. No, our fiscal house is NOT perfect. It is in fine shape though. Our debt is payable. Our debt is used as leverage to control the world. Our democracy, our RULE OF LAW, is what gets us investment in the country. That is a key reason why I am irked with Trump's policies.
Companies, countries and individuals invest in America. They do it because they know that if something goes wrong, there is a court of law and it will be resolved. Once that trust level is taken away, those with capital to invest will look elsewhere. That will harm the US.
The Senate just did a massive voteorama. They are going to push in the coming months tax cuts. In that 'one big, glorious bill,' is a line item to increase the debt by FIVE TRILLION dollars. If you are concerned about the debt, why did you not include that in your article?
The Dow is not an indication of prosperity without considering the value of a dollar. When you consider that a dollar buys half of what it did 5 years ago, the market should be at 60000 instead of 43000 to just break even.
Jeff, I think you are not looking at this accurately.
Does a dollar buy you half? Nah. I keep around a device that I bought in 1995 as a simple reminder. That year Panasonic introduced the first portable DVD player. I remember getting yelled at for buying it for $995. My wife said it was stupid. She was partly right :) It was expensive, but I bought it because it meant when we went on road trips with our child, that we could now drive 2-3 hours before stopping instead of barely an hour because our child was bored. Yes, I bought a baby sitter :) Today, I could buy something like it, before Trump tariffs for $30.
There are lots of things like that DVD player as an example.
Now, to prove I am not cherry-picking and saying that you are completely wrong, yes, there are things that a $1 buys less. That is inflation.
However, I think you are excluding the income side of the equation. An hour of time today earns MOST people more than it did in the past. That trading time for income has increased. If you wish to discuss how not raising the min wage is creating a new class system, lets do it :)
Great, electronic trinkets made in China are less expensive but all of life's essentials like gasoline, food and housing are getting more expensive at a rate exceeding the gains that have been made in the stock market since monkey ears and dementia face have been in office. The recent drop in the major indices is a purely emotional reaction to perceived future downward pressure and to fear. The market is fueled by fear and greed, today by fear, tomorrow by greed. Trump is doing exactly the right things to bring manufacturing back to the USA. It is a mistake to only look at money and markets without considering productivity of the American workforce. I would bet your pay check that the markets will recover before the summer is over.
Jeff,
Let's start with reality, not your perception.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/a-final-look-at-how-the-u-s-stock-markethasperformed-under-joe-biden-2d454bdb
Scroll down and look at the data table.
The returns were incredible. This is why Buffet states that he will always invest in America. It makes money!
The housing argument is interesting. Is it more expensive than in 2000? Yes. Was that more expensive than 1980? Yes. Was that more expensive than 1960? Yes. Was that more expensive than 1940? Yes. Notice a trend here? Housing always goes up. Are you arguing that housing should not?
The recent drop is NOT emotional. It is reactionary based on the actions of Trump. Have you ever run a business that imports? I have. I owned a factory in Mexico. I imported from China. IMO people have no idea how tariffs and businesses work.
As a business, I have a target margin I shoot for. This is for me to determine the best use of my capital. Let me do a simple mathematical explanation. If I have 1mm to deploy, I know I can buy the safest investment and get 4% on my money. The higher the return I am looking for means the more risk I am willing to take with that capital. Now with that said, let's say I am looking for 12% net. This means, after taxes, I need to add 120k to that capital.
I can sell a product for $100 at wholesale. What do I need to pay for it, to hit that margin? This is where things get interesting. Because now volume gets into play. But for ease of illustration, the demand for the product is 10,000 units. That is $1mm at wholesale. Assuming I have a 20% effective tax rate, I am now at $85 in COGS + SG&A + other expenses. Assuming that my SG&A and other expenses are 35% of the expenses, that means I am paying $55.25 per unit with 'Pre-Trump' tariffs. Trump slapped on a 35% tariff. Now, my cost is $74.59 per unit. My SG&A + other expenses, I am trying to keep in check, but they were 29.75 per unit. Now my cost is 104.34.
1. I am now $4.34 per unit over the wholesale price I had pre-trump.
2. For me to keep my 12% net margins, assuming the demand for 10k units is still there, I need to sell at wholesale, the unit for ~119.40.
What do you think the units were sold at retail for pre-trump? What do you think they are sold at now? Now this depends upon the item. Some items have incredible margins at retail because they turn slow, some have tiny margins because they turn fast. But, what most people do not realize is that retail stores are really in the real estate business. They have a cost per sq ft and they want a return per sq ft. Macy's as an example had 55% gross margins. Costco has 40% gross margins. This, of course is NOT in food.
Pre tump, that product at retail would have sold for ~$150. Now, post trump, ~$185. That ~$19 tariff cost increase that I paid, turned into $35 at retail.
That $19 increase, along with the tariff goes where? It goes to the US government. Trump, effectively has put in a silent VAT for all consumers.
Please, educate me, how is this good?
I sincerely doubt that you know this, but the US is second in the world in manufacturing. Is this a race to get back to number 1? It is not going to happen. The US citizen will NOT pay the prices for US regulations and labor. Capitalism knows no boundaries.
So you agree with me that tariffs will increase the price of imported goods or that portion of a finished product that is made overseas. Therefore it incentivizes buying American products and employing American workers to build those products. Shame on you for manufacturing in Mexico. When you build in America you employ American workers who now can buy the car they build or in your case a lifelike vibrator. America is a distant second to China in manufacturing but we are the number one consumers and used to be the number one manufacturer. Manufacturing in America has dropped by 50% in the last 20 years and you brush it off as nothing. Why are you making excuses for failure? It is a failure to drop from number one to a distant second to China and their abysmal worker treatment and human rights atrocities. I am 1% Uyghur. Let me ask you, did you vote for Trump? Are you a Democrat? Do you hate everything Trump does cause you hate him as a man. Have you personalized your hatred like a good little Alinskyite?
Jeff,
First off, try hitting the enter key to create a new paragraph. It is much easier to discern what you are trying to convey.
Yes, tariffs are a tax on the consumer. It makes goods that are brought into the country cost more with that additional cost going straight to the government.
It is NOT an incentive to buy American. That is the hugest misunderstanding. Consumers, when presented with like goods will always choose the cheaper one. So, for there to be an incentive, the American goods need to be cheaper. I have seen this game before. I have seen the results. After Hurricane Andrew hit Florida, the insurance companies were going to leave the state. The state, in their wisdom, created Citizens, a state run insurance company. What they did, to make sure that people used them as the last resort was to set their prices higher than the insurance companies. The insurance companies applauded that decision. Why? That was the license to raise their prices. They would straddle the new floor for pricing. When they wanted business, they would lower it below the state, when they didn't, they would be above the state price.
This is where the fallacy in your argument lies. Tariffs will raise prices, but if even paying the tariffs is cheaper than manufacturing in the US, it will NOT have people buy American made. This is just simple math. Here is an easy way to look at things. If labor is 50% of the cost to make, apply it to this concept. In the US, a guy basically gets $100 a day, fully burdened. In Mexico a guy gets about $100 a week. In China, a guy gets about $150 a month. However, they also get room and board plus 3 meals a day. Now, with that concept in play, the cost per hour is significantly cheaper in China than it is in the US. If I were forced to make in the US, what would I do? There would be a HUGE CapEx number put on automation.
Automation still exists, but automation, not Chinese labor has taken away manufacturing from the US. There are certain items that automation still is not there for yet. As an example, automation for clothing manufacturing still is not there. With these tariffs, you are not going to see JOBS added, you are going to see ROBOTS added.
In regards to owning a factory in Mexico, this is where you are completely misguided. I had over 2000 employees in the US. The factory employed about 250. Had I not had that factory, I would have had less than 500 employees in the US. Your concept of having manufacturing here means employees here means a viable business is mistaken.
Manufacturing in the US has not dropped off 50% in the last 20 years. That is another statistic that you are pulling out of your behind. https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/USA/united-states/manufacturing-output Manufacturing as a percent of GDP has dropped in the last 30 years, but that can EASILY be attributed to the expansion of more services being purchased. Look at the revenue of Facebook, Google, Microsoft, etc. Those guys are in the services business and they EXPANDED the GDP base. Manufacturing kept chugging along.
Do not bring up human rights in China until you bring up human rights in the US. I can argue that in China they at least house and feed their min wage workers, can you say the same in the US? In China there is no medical bankruptcy. The working conditions you mention are worse than in the US, but by no means the level that you are implying.
Asking me my political information is your method to try and deflect from the argument posed. My argument would be the same regardless of who did these acts. I sincerely doubt that yours would. I believe that Obamacare confused you. The fact that it was from Obama, you hated, but when you learned that it was a republican idea, one that originated at the Heritage Foundation, you thought, well, wait, I am supposed to like them, but the mean black man made it a law. My points stand regardless of who I voted for, the party that I am affiliated with. Trying to extract that, as a means to counter shows that you have no argument, you just have an unfounded opinion that you want to spew because you have not learned about the subject or are incapable of learning about the subject.
How heavily are you invested in the stock market, David. Do you have a Plan B? (Only ask that, no need to answer that.) Or do you speak out of both sides of your mouth - vilifying Wall Street yet have secretly investing your own sense of future well-being in its singularly ephemeral nature. Or do you just love hating Trump?
Hard to ascribe something as complex as the stockmarket to only a "President" when multiple other factors move and sway its volatile nature. As Scott Bessant just stated - rotting out Main Street is a high price to pay for celebrating only Wall Street.
Quoting billionaires who have earned their money in the system telling you that they have to destroy it because it does not work sounds counterintuitive to me.
I do not have to be invested in WS to feel the impact of Trump's policies. I am indirectly invested in WS because the purchases I make impact the companies on WS.
I have no problem vilifying parts of WS. I have no problem praising parts of WS. I think unregulated, unfettered capitalism is dangerous. I do not like usury laws being thwarted.
Generally, I would agree with you about ascribing the ups/downs of the stockmarket to a president, but the last two days should show you that I was wrong. A SINGLE PERSON, who I think is doing this unlawfully and his croonies in congress are allowing it to happen, shows that one person can destroy the livelihood of 350mm people. Why you think that is good boggles my mind.
Does TDS now come as a new Vape-Pen flavor? Destroying the livelihood of 350 million people in ......just two days? That sounds a lot more like Biden's "covid" policies, than Trump re-starting the American economy.
Nice definition of "being in the stock market" simply by making daily consumer choices. Can't argue with that purest definition - a one person boycott or a one person market enthusiast.
You are adding nothing to the conversation with the childish responses.
Trump's 'liberation day' directly impacted every citizen financially.
Keep up with the ad-hominen attacks and you will not like the responses.
Mirror, mirror on the wall .........
Proving that you are a clueless, mindless, feeble, insecure little person.
Was your mother proud that you finally passed kindergarten at 10?
To call your comments hyperbolic would understate your projection.
David Bergerson,
Thank you for your honesty regarding the state of our country. Blindness seems to be the state of the Republicans, trying to create a Whole from the Master Shredder’s chaos…..one unhealthy President who hates everything and everyone, including his well-deserved hateful self. I am only surprised he hasn’t deported his immigrant wife.
Nice article. The fact that the middle class has been decimated from loss of “muscular jobs-(MANUFACTURING) is easy to see. Drive through most cities-there is not a lot of industry or manufacturing. Since the 1970’s the wealth of the upper class has increased to the detriment of the middle class. Jobs/ manufacturing shipped overseas. The reason the MSM is crying right now is because they reflect the upper 10%. These globalist investors are losing money in our over valued stock market—MSM does not reflect the middle class or those concerned about a fair wage for EVERY American-and a SOVEREIGN, self sustaining America.
We learned from the Pandemic that from a National Security perspective being dependent on Nations for basic supplies; drugs, precious metals, minerals, food, & gas puts us at whim of those Nations. Remember, during the Pandemic as small jobs were shut down? It was the “greatest transfer of wealth from small businesses to mega corporations.”
Trump is an out of the box thinker bringing back manufacturing, and business to support our society and all Americans. Trump has a commitment of over 5 Trillion dollars for investment in American manufacturing! Unheard of!!! He has taken on a Herculean task of battling Lawfare, tariffs and many other false fronts while the “elite 10% who own 88% of the wealth” are trying to keep the status quo alive—FOR THEMSELVES! To turn this Titanic around will take time and an attitude of “delayed gratification.” There will be gaps, it will be bumpy.
BRAVO TO PRESIDENT TRUMP WHO
HAS THE IRON WILL to carry it out! May AMERICANS wake up for the future of our children and our great Nation!
"Remember, during the Pandemic as small jobs were shut down? It was the “greatest transfer of wealth from small businesses to mega corporations"
Are we forgetting the Industrial revolution and the rise of capitalism, where family owned businesses and local businesses were put out of business and people had to move to cities to find work...
Getting rid of waste in the federal government is undoubtedly a good thing to do. We'll see if tariffs end up helping out. It seems most economists don't think so, but again, we'll see.
What I don't understand is why we're making enemies of nations that have been our allies for 80-plus years. It seems as if we're being openly hostile to Canada, of all places. The nation that hid our embassy folks during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis no doubt risked their deaths. The same Canada that supported the United States in both Gulf Wars and the war in Afghanistan.
TJ Why are you assuming we are making enemies, rather than mutually respectful trading partners?
Trump honors the rest of the world are no longer America dependency client states, and have now achieved instead equal footing as post WWII trading partners. Post WWII America was an artificial construct - nice while it lasted. But both realism and celebration today now shares economic vigor with a much larger post WWII world.
Truth be told, I do miss Europe on $5 ad day. Glad I was able to experience it then. But respectful their boats got lifted too in this rising global economy.
I think it's more than trade. You'll note my two examples were not Canada supplying us car parts.
The world is more than dollars and cents. I help and get along with the neighbors on my street. We all help each out and have never exchanged a dollar.
Ah yes, the good old days when Dayton, Ohio was a primary source of car parts. Bringing belated wisdom now to that hoary statement .....what is good for General Motors is good for the country.
I guess that's why the US gov bailed GM out for 50 billion in '08. Great time to buy Ford stock was the same time.
Auto unions did this to the auto industry with their unfunded pension and benefit liabilities We should never lose sight of that. Who in fact made the decision to bail out GM? And prop up Chrysler Jeep.
Quality control must come with any new trade protection favoritism granted the auto industry this time around. We stopped buying American cars way back when, for many reasons.
We need to be mindful of the 7 dimension chess game we are now playing. A scalpel, not a sledge hammer to recently quote President Donald J Trump.
Why you ask is Trump making enemies? Because the USA is the biggest, baddest, most wonderful country in the world. Why is Trump, excuse me for saying, shitting on every country? Oh wait, except Russia?
Dan, Why do so many people think they "know" what they can't possible know? Maybe Trump has a better plan for Russia. Who knows? Not you nor I!
Wow, you really think Trump, having spent two hours alone with Putin in Helsinki has a better plan for the USA? Really? Gorge Patton is turning in his grave.
Russia is already under sanctions, so there was no need for tariffs. That is why "except Russia." Remind us what we want to buy from Russia anyway?
Again, it's not only about "buy from..." Dan is talking about shit talking all the nations that used to be our allies (not just trading partners).
You mean all those countries who are paying their fair share to remain under the US/NATO umbrella. Those allies?
Joan, my next rainy day is not only how often to overwhelm the comments but how far off 100% you are to commenting on my posts. It's a wonderful day. Go test drive a Tesla.
Please stop. You know the phrase, "It's better to remain silent and appear dumb than to speak, and remove all doubt."
Gentleman, how about we take a break and accept each other’s POV? I certainly do and find both your posts interesting. As for JL, what can I say? Her retorts are legendary and I certainly value. I’ve learned the hard way over conflicts with my own family, better to move on with the conversation. Opinions are just that, nothing more.
I am a Trump supporter and wish he and his team well. I think we all hope that over time his actions accomplish his/our goals as they will make our country better. The work of DOGE is great and when coupled with spending discipline should improve our cash flow and balance sheet. I do have some problems with the discussion on trade. I do believe that our vulnerabilities and national security risks should be addressed immediately, but under the guise of priority issues not based on a phony calculation based on third grade math coupled with a Greek letter to impress people, the data presented was not current tariffs and currency manipulation as was represented. I also do not believe that all trade deficits are bad, that our export of services matter to the calculation, and that trade policy is an important part of statecraft. Simply put, I would have preferred a more limited, targeted approach to tariffs.
Might be too early to award an immediate flunking report card today, Mark?
Jim, I like you and I have no problem with our political differences on a national level. Because I know it's irrelevant to both of our lives. At the same time I really enjoy reading the posts and comments on this site on a daily basis. Just like I enjoyed the Montecito Journal when you were publisher, not so much these days. . .
I remember a day back in late 2017 when we stood in your driveway and I asked if you had any "buyers remorse" over endorsing Trump in 2016. Your response was, "I wake up every day gladly knowing I don't hear the voice of Hillary Clinton." Funny thing is, I would say the same thing about Kamala having voted for her. I can't stand the sound of her voice and I'm okay that Trump won fair & square.
So I have little sympathy for you and others that voted for Trump. He said he was going to do this, right? He's also a "businessman" who had six, yes that is SIX bankruptcies. Why would you put your trust in that guy, I ask myself? Because I'm a gardener and I know nothing of economics, the stock market and the term, Globalism. . . I am 100% fine that Kamala lost, but y'all should not be complaining or wringing your hands about what Trump is doing! You voted for him!
And I really do miss the old Montecito Journal. Your version.
Dan, Six bankruptcies, yes I guess that's true (who's counting?) But then Thomas Edison had about a thousand failures until he finally found the right kind of element for his light bulb. Nevertheless, Trump seems to have done alright for himself.
Oh come on Jim. Edison was an inventor. Name something Trump invented? You are not going to win this. You as a Vietnam vet, and my former boss McCain, you both served the country and Trump evaded. . . So yeah, he did alright for himself.
I love Trumpy because the doesn't believe Mary Poppins - "A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down." After 50 years of the feds simply borrowing and printing more & more money with the devil taking the hindmost he's saying "Enough! It's time for a reckoning!"
Excellent article. Thank you so much for explaining the path to Liberation Day!
Great Article Jim…yes there will be short term turbulence as Trump reset finances for US, BUT, We are moving off the federal income tax, shrinking the federal government to a manageable size where tariffs can pay for it, and preparing to end the Federal Reserve and the fiat currency debt slave system. Good time to build a life raft of Gold & SILVER, Constitutional money…
A new day for America & Americans!
A targeted program of real reciprocal tariffs directed toward China to get them to curb their unfair trade practices is warranted but what Trump did will hurt the very people he is trying to help much more with higher prices (who can least afford them) than the remote possibility that you can bring back manufacturing jobs in the next 4 yrs. Levying broad tariffs of 30% or more on countries like Australia, Switzerland and South Korea that have no tariffs on American goods makes no sense. How are they going to reduce our trade deficit when they already got rid of their tariffs? As for cars, the reason why we run trade deficits with South Korea, Japan and Europe is because Americans don't like American cars. If Ford and General Motors made good cars that people liked, the problem would take care of itself. Don't blame other countries because our cars suck.
I love American cars. Never owned an American car that gave me less than excellent service. Fords all the way baby. I think you are about as right on this one as you were in feeling that only lipless Nikki Haley could win but you were wrong then and you are wrong now.
Jeff, unless you're driving a Mustang, there are several Hondas made with a higher percentage of American-made components than the rest of the Fords. If you want a higher percentage of US components than the Mustang, you'd have to get a Tesla.
We're talking cars here. I'm betting the Ford/etc. trucks have lots of US parts.
Oh there you go again regurgitating the results of a Google search. I am still driving my 1966 Mustang which I have owned since 1979 and today I cant get any original style brake parts not made in China. I refuse to use so i upgraded to D11 Wilwood front calipers and discs and a Wilwood compact master all made in the USA. in the rear i am running original 10.5 inch drums with porterfield shoes made in the USA. I had to rebuild the original rear cylinders using an NOS kit from Ebay since all current cylinders and kits are from China. It is challenging but I refuse to put Chinese crap on my Mustang. Have you driven a Mustang GT with a coyote engine? For the money it would be hard to beat with any imported piece of shit. I have two other fords 2017 and will you look up the imported part content for me? I think you get off on the Google thing. For me, I prefer to not use it. Much of the information is bullshit. Kind of like using a tuner for your guitar instead of your ear. Do you play? Do you use a tuner? Could you engage in a debate without your phone?
Grumpy Grumpy. I used to be on the selling end to various agencies where US content mattered. So it's still something I track. Like why your era TV show CHIPs, where the CHPs road Kawasaki's instead of Harleys. The cop bikes were made in Nebraska and more USA parts than the Milwaukee rattle can.
Your fellow Americans don't agree with you, otherwise they would buy American cars.
Were you once a Democrat? I can smell a Democrat a mile away and the odor lingers on former Democrats for considerable time. From the first comment you ever made here I detected that telltale bouquet in your writing.
LOL - Yeah I was a Democrat in 1976.
Just the libtards and libtard adjacent who hate everything American. Get out of California and you will see far fewer imports. I have worked on Ford's, Chevrolet's, Fiats Mercedes and Jaguars and from what I have seen the only real difference is the price of the parts. It does seem easier to pick up women in a jag but they usually turn out to have herpes. You will pick up a keeper in a Ford, I can tell you from experience.
Jim, thank you for the good summary of Trump's actions. Trump is taking the correct steps to undo the slow but steady managed decline ( poorly managed decline) which has occurred over the past many decades.
Berney Gans
Well stated Jim on the decline of American exceptionalism, cheered on by the liberal establishment, globalists and MSM. Yes, those on the Left are actually cheering for the demise of our country! Just look at the massive demonstrations held today, across the country.
The reality is, virtually every government program established by the left is on the verge of collapse as documented by Musk and Doge. One need only look locally at our one party rule, and how it has affected our public schools; Carpinteria, Santa Maria and SB school districts, all on the verge of financial collapse due to mismanagement, incompetence, litigation and teacher unions. And to think another 5,000 students could be added to the rolls by virtue of thousands of studio apartments being crammed in and coming on line. All mandated by Sacramento, who itself is facing insolvency! What’s the common denominator in this dire situation? Liberal, left wing lunacy!
As for Trump and tariffs, we are at the crossroads of success, prosperity and a golden era versus despair, instability and insolvency. The trade imbalances are nothing new and have been going on for decades, promoted by both parties. Now is the time to right the wrong and prioritize American workers. The Trump trade tariffs are in essence directed at China and the EU. We really couldn’t care less about Mozambique or Albania. Who will blink first? Both China and the EU need us more than we need them. China cannot afford social unrest. That would be disastrous for them and us.
The intangible in all this is a war with Iran or China thinking “screw it” and moving on Taiwan. Another intangible is our own Judiciary, clearly overstepping the division of powers and trying to legislate from the bench.
Let’s hope the market corrects itself and as Trump suggests, we are all made whole and wealthy again. I for one am getting anxious and can’t afford too many more six figure losses in a single day. Trump has a short time to turn this around and get this right.
"American exceptionalism "has become a misused term. It was applied originally to the untried system of voter-participation governance, unheard of anywhere in the world at the time. No kings, no military, no oligarchs running things, just the votes of legal citizens choosing their own elected representatives (and getting stuck with those we may not agree with until the next election.). The term somehow morphed into the more arrogant interpretation by anti-American forces into "we are better than anyone else".
Time to re-own American exceptionalism on our upcoming 250th anniversary, when we still remain a beacon of hope for the rest of the world. Our messy, messy experiment of government of the people, by the people and for the people. Which is reason number one we simply cannot afford to rot from within.
https://www.hoover.org/research/american-exceptionalism-new-era
It remains a beacon of liberty, freedom and justice for all. It is not to be shunned or mocked, because we are truly different from all other people. Superior no, but there is reason why millions risk life and limb to come here. We should not offer apologies for American exceptionalism.
Exceptionally degenerate, yes I can agree Americanis exceptional here.
To those on the left and those who oppose Trump and his tariffs, I would pose the question(s), if not now, when? If not tariffs, how? How do you erase over $100-250 trillion in actual accumulated debt?
To continue to ignore the facts, continue to kick the can down the road, continue to deny human biology, continue to deny our freedom is granted by God, not government, we run the risk of a complete collapse and downfall. Running the risk of becoming a modern day confederacy of states similar to former Yugoslavia, each state having its own culture, identity and economy. Yes, the Balkanization of America.
"Each having it's own culture and identity, and economy"
Goodness me, how horrid! How dare a nation be an organic patchwork of localities, communities, and provinces that are united under God, King, and country!
We need nationalism to impose a single identity on all of us... just ignore that globalism does the same even though I condemn it...
It’s times as these I am reminded of the late, great conservative, Barry Goldwater when he lamented “Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice and moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!”