Trumpenomics

mark46 said:

Sanders and the left have supported protectionist tariffs for many decades. They lose ALL credibility when they oppose aluminum, steel, auto and other focused tariffs.

And yes, it is the Democrats who have opposed NAFTA and CAFTA (and NAFTA 2 under Trump 1).
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Trump SHOULD do a NAFTA 3 and take credit for the improvements over NAFTA 1 and NAFTA 2. That was supposed to happen in 2026. My hope is that it still happens.
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Trump believes in using tariffs to raise money, to get access to foreign markets (e.g. for cars and agriculture), and generally to make better deals for the US with many, many new trade arrangements.

It is not at all clear that the result will be bad for the US (or for Europe I might add). European consumers will like to get more US goods at lower prices.

Japan will increasingly bring its expertise to US auto factories and now to steel factories while giving US companies more access to their market. Don't worry about the increased cost of Japanese goods. That has been in control of the Japanese government for decades. They regulate the prices through subsides and taxation and then sell electronics to SF consumers cheaper then to Tokyo customers.
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THE BOTTOM LINE
is that rules-based regulated free market capitalism is by far the best system the world has even seen. And, yes, the system since WWII has favored the US and allow us to be the giant economic power that we are. Trump's policies may or may not give us a better future system. However, there may be much more competition in many countries than there has been for decades.

Of course, the biggest faults with what is happening is that Trump has been so awful in his methods that there will be lasting negative effects of countries looking to other trade alliances to protect themselves and their citizens. The most obvious effect will be from policies regard Canada. I don't believe that anything will restore the level of US sales bought in stores or restore the level of Canadian travel to the US. This type of unintended consequence is comparable to the ICE raids greatly reducing tax income because many immigrants will be afraid to file, and no, the reduced number of IRS agents will not help turn the tide. The action of such reduction will have its own negative effect on the amount of taxes collected,

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Always in His Presence said:

Nah…. Wait. Next week there will be more

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Bradskii said:

How come there is never anything right now. How come it's all 'just wait and see'. How come it's all going to be uncovered. How come you keep falling for it?

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A2SG said:

I'm still busy waiting for Hilary to be locked up and a replacement for Obamacare to be enacted, now we have to wait for the DOJ to indict President Obama AND more examples of shooting the messenger?

So much waiting.

-- A2SG, oh look, Godot showed up!

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Bradskii said:

The Ukraine war is still going. I thought that was going to be ended before Trump took office. And all those prices dropping. What date is Day One on this year?

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Bradskii said:

We should revisit this in...um...two weeks.

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Akita Suggagaki said:

I am neither Democrat nor liberal but I can still recognize that "every issue, every statement from President Trump, and every tweet" is basically lie, exaggeration or pure fiction.

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Bradskii said:

How come there is never anything right now. How come it's all 'just wait and see'. How come it's all going to be uncovered. How come you keep falling for it?

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Bradskii said:

This is the mosr* egregious example of shooting the messenger that I can recall.

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• His tie causes offence
• His hugging the flag causes offence
• The number of pieces of cake causes offence
• His tweets cause offence
• His silence causes offence
• His constant talking causes offence
• His not answering question causes offence
• His wife's shoes cause offence
• Him not waiting for his wife causes offence
• His holding his wife's hand is fake and causes offence
• His eating McDonald's causes offence
• His eating high end food at a state dinner causes offence
• His building a 200 million dollar grand ballroom for the Government causes offence
• His building the ballroom at no cost to the federal government causes offence
• His not taking a salary causes offence

A2SG said:

I'm still busy waiting for Hilary to be locked up and a replacement for Obamacare to be enacted, now we have to wait for the DOJ to indict President Obama AND more examples of shooting the messenger?

So much waiting.

-- A2SG, oh look, Godot showed up!

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Fantine said:

How odd that you neglected the most serious concerns.

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Fantine said:

What you mentioned pales against his trivializing the Constitution and the rule of law, assembling a cabinet of henchmen who are destroying our public health system, removing independent media voices through a corrupt FCC, and more.
If you think your list is why liberals are concerned, you are on the Titanic with the iceberg in sight, distracted by the ballroom.

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loveofourlord said:

they oppose because your not protecting anything cause you know what? You need something to protect. The us doesn't have the means to produce more steel and aluminum for years, so what exactly is being protected? The us gets it from us because you need it.

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Always in His Presence said:

Has not happened.

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Oompa Loompa said:

Not happening.

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1. Temu is a digital retailer popular for its cheap goods that are primarily from China. The company announced that prices will increase beginning April 25, but it didn’t provide a concrete rate.
2. Shein is a digital marketplace and fast-fashion retailer, also known for its cheaply priced Chinese products. Like Temu, it will implement new price policies starting April 25.
3. Newegg is a digital retailer that specializes in electronics and computer hardware. The company increased prices in February and, like others on this list, cited Trump’s tariffs as the reason.
4. Asus is a Taiwanese electronics manufacturer. Asus increased prices by $50 to $100 per laptop in response to the tariffs.
5. Anker is a Chinese tech company that primarily sells products like portable power banks and phone cases. The company increased prices on a fifth of its products, with an average increase of 18%.
6. Foreo is a Swedish brand that sells skin and oral care products, but it largely produces them in China. They’ll raise U.S. prices by 20% to 30% beginning April 22.
7. Ferrari does all of its manufacturing in Italy, but with every country subject to some level of tariffs, they aren’t immune. Ferrari says it’ll increase prices on all models imported after April 2 by no more than 10%.
8. Zwilling is based in Germany and is one of the oldest producers of kitchen knives. It announced that prices will rise on June 1, stating, “There’s just no way around it.”
9. Bogg Bag is raising the prices of its trendy tote bags by $5 to help offset the cost of tariffs, Bloomberg reports.
10. Vego Garden makes modular raised beds and other gardening products. Founder and CEO Robert Xiong explained on the company’s website that it will be “paying most of the extra costs associated with the tariffs” but has been “forced to implement a modest price increase,” effective April 18.
11. Jolie Skin produces filtered-water shower heads. Founder Ryan Babenzien says, “Technically, WE are not raising our prices, but the Tariff will make it more expensive for American consumers to buy a Jolie.”
12. Dame focuses on sexual wellness, producing adult toys and personal care items. The company has implemented a $5 “Trump tariff surcharge” which is being automatically added to customers’ online shopping carts at checkout.
13. Supernote is an e-notebook that has a paper-like feel and is used for writing, sketching and note-taking. The company posted a statement online saying that, because of the tariffs, prices for U.S. customers will rise at the end of April.
14. Loftie produces unique versions of bedside goods like alarm clocks and lamps. The company’s website states that the cost of a Loftie Lamp will increase on May 1.
15. Christopher Ward is a luxury watchmaker based in the U.K. It recently emailed U.S. customers, explaining that consumers will be responsible for paying the 31% duty on the brand’s Swiss-made watches.
16. Framework manufactures laptops and has changed its pricing to follow the tariffs — upping or lowering prices when tariffs increase or decrease. It also offered partial refunds on items — like laptops and smartphones — that fell into a newly reduced tariff category.
17. Foam produces travel coolers using a special material from China. Founder Chad Lee says the company’s tariff bill rose to more than $22,800 from about $4,500, so he’s raising cooler prices from $99 to $125.
18. Plugable Technologies focuses on portable chargers and docks, and despite already diverting production from China and into Vietnam and Thailand, the company will incur hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional tariff-related costs. So, costs for popular products will rise by as much as 30%.
19. Freewrite, a brand of distraction-free writing devices (think modern, electronic typewriters), is based in Detroit but assembles its products in China. It raised prices on April 14.
20. Various coffee shops are having to adjust prices because of tariffs. For example, The Crown in California is raising nearly all item prices by 50 cents.

mark46 said:

If Japan weren't pressured by Trump (tariffs and just plain bullying), we would have lost thousands of steel industry jobs, and thousands of future ones.

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mark46 said:

Hmm

So, how do voters make their judgements? How do businesses?

Voters look at their own life and at costs, stability of jobs, and availability of services (especially health care).

Businesses look to private estimates of the economy and their own and AI analysis.
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And yes, BOTH look at the stock market where businesses and 1/2 of voters make financial decisions. And, YES, the stock market is indeed ONE indicator of how well the economy is doing.

And just BTW, US markets are higher than ever in history, setting records yesterday. Is it POSSIBLE that Trump's policies won't send us in a depression as predicted by Democrats and others before he was elected and again after the tariffs were announced?

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Laodicean60 said:

She should have been fired during the Biden administration.

"Yes, the Government Just Erased More Than 800,000 Jobs. Here’s What It MeansThe Bureau of Labor Statistics just revised its payroll count by the most in 15 years."

https://www.inc.com/phil-rosen/economic-outlook-labor-market-jobs-recession-markets-fed-rate-cuts.html

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loveofourlord said:

but it's not a good one, many times when americans are doing the worse, the stock market goes up, it CAN be, but often not connected.

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Say it aint so said:

20 Companies who have raised prices. That as late April and others have followed. I mean the outright denial that prices are not raising is just an outright denial of reality.

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mark46 said:

The U.S. inflation rate for the first half of 2025, specifically from January to June, ranged from 2.7% to 3.1%, according to an inflation calculator website. The rate for June 2025 was 2.7%. Monthly inflation rates for March, April, May, and June 2025 were -0.1%, 0.2%, 0.1%, and 0.3% respectively, according to a CPI and inflation data website.

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