Trumpenomics

[Horace]

Art Laffer, former Reagan economist, loves Trump, and thinks his first term was the best economically in presidential history. He believes term two will be even better. Because he believes these tariffs are 100% negotiating tactic. Put him in the camp of "it's too crazy for Trump to do this".

That part is at 8:23.

Link to video

[LuFins Dad]

@jon-nyc said in Trumpenomics:

@LuFins-Dad

Bessent seems to be pushing him toward negotiations, Miller and Navarro for permanence.

Today the White House retweeted and then deleted a tweet from Navarro saying they were here to stay.

Seems like a battle is going on.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/07/trump-bessent-trade-deals-tariff-endgame-messaging-00277395

Elon and Navarro are going at it.

[LuFins Dad]

Elon has been very quiet about the tariffs until the last few days.

[jon-nyc]

Yeah. Very quiet.

[LuFins Dad]

@jon-nyc said in Trumpenomics:

Yeah. Very quiet.

But not so much the last two days. What happens as the split widens over tariffs?

[Renauda]

Musk has now called out Navarro as being “dumber than a sack of bricks”:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdrgx4ky1xxo

Sounds like the malice in wonderland theatrical hit of the first term may be on for an encore.

[Horace]

Trump just posted about all of the "negotiations" he's doing with other countries. That is an easy off-ramp from the tariffs, if he chooses to take it.

[Jolly]

Don't buy the bullshit.

Example: On supposedly Black Monday, CNN was running the stock tickers all day and telling us all how bad Trump had screwed up.

Today, the market is up a bit and a stock ticker is no longer scrolling across the bottom of the screen. The media is going to do everything it can to generate clicks through Trump doomporn.

I haven't been adding to my investments in awhile. I think today I start dollar averaging the Roth and will continue to do so for the next 18 months.

[LuFins Dad]

Okay, so moving beyond the outright tariff policies, there has been a lot of talk about non-tariff trade barriers including currency manipulation. Is that accurate? And what are the other trade barriers they are alluding to?

And as a side note, Netanyahu is now saying he planes on eliminating the trade deficit between Israel and the US. Please explain to me how a nation of 10M can possibly equal the economic consumption of a nation of 350M? Especially when much of that trade is based on precious jewels, which the US has little industry in mining…

[Horace]

@LuFins-Dad said in Trumpenomics:

Okay, so moving beyond the outright tariff policies, there has been a lot of talk about non-tariff trade barriers including currency manipulation. Is that accurate? And what are the other trade barriers they are alluding to?

I think they've pivoted to this because they can hand-wave "non-tariff barriers", but not tariffs, which are publicly known and unambiguous. The example of a non-tariff barrier I've heard them use is a VAT, or sales tax, in Europe, and I've heard that calling that a barrier is nonsense, because it applies to Europe's own domestic products too.

And as a side note, Netanyahu is now saying he planes on eliminating the trade deficit between Israel and the US. Please explain to me how a nation of 10M can possibly equal the economic consumption of a nation of 350M? Especially when much of that trade is based on precious jewels, which the US has little industry in mining…

I'm hoping "trade deficits" are computed per-capita. They still wouldn't be a bad thing per se, but at least they would be a reasonable thing to talk about.

[Horace]

@Jolly said in Trumpenomics:

Don't buy the bullshit.

I don't think the damage done to the world economy by universal tariffs, is bullshit.

There is a case to be made that a more protectionist America is a more economically resilient America, so there is that, but the economic efficiency of tariff-free trading will be missed hugely, and everybody will feel it, if it goes.

[89th]

It was only the worst 3-day run for the S&P since the 1987 crash, and as CNN displayed the ticker, Fox removed their stock ticker for the first time to hide the news from granny in the nursing home.

[89th]

@Horace said in Trumpenomics:

And as a side note, Netanyahu is now saying he planes on eliminating the trade deficit between Israel and the US. Please explain to me how a nation of 10M can possibly equal the economic consumption of a nation of 350M? Especially when much of that trade is based on precious jewels, which the US has little industry in mining…

I'm hoping "trade deficits" are computed per-capita. They still wouldn't be a bad thing per se, but at least they would be a reasonable thing to talk about.

I'm a bit concerned there is a concern about trade deficits in the first place. They aren't inherently bad, and one could argue in the current environment, they're actually a good thing most of the time. We're also in a global economy...different countries produce different goods with respective efficiencies. Let USA focus on what we're good at, let China do what they're good at. Plus it promotes peace, to an extent, too.

[Doctor Phibes]

The idea that trade deficits are inherently bad really is surprisingly stupid. Does Trump actually believe this?

[jon-nyc]

@LuFins-Dad said in Trumpenomics:

And as a side note, Netanyahu is now saying he planes on eliminating the trade deficit between Israel and the US. Please explain to me how a nation of 10M can possibly equal the economic consumption of a nation of 350M? Especially when much of that trade is based on precious jewels, which the US has little industry in mining…

Buy more weapons.

[Renauda]

@Doctor-Phibes

The idea that trade deficits are inherently bad really is surprisingly stupid. Does Trump actually believe this?

Yes, I am convinced he actually does. He also equates purchasing something as a subsidy. He is quite thick headed that way.

[LuFins Dad]

Broad swaths of Western PA, Eastern Ohio, and Michigan view trade deficits as the reason why they and their communities are riddled with drugs, overdoses, and rusted out husks of factories. They don’t blame their unions, which essentially drove the factories into bankruptcy, but instead blame the foreign manufacturers. Japanese steel, in particular. Trump feels beholden to those groups. They got him elected, after all.

[kluurs]

@jon-nyc said in Trumpenomics:

@LuFins-Dad said in Trumpenomics:

And as a side note, Netanyahu is now saying he planes on eliminating the trade deficit between Israel and the US. Please explain to me how a nation of 10M can possibly equal the economic consumption of a nation of 350M? Especially when much of that trade is based on precious jewels, which the US has little industry in mining…

Buy more weapons.

We'll have to give them more money to do that - so perhaps, they should arrange to contribute more to Trump, his relative and of course, to member of congress and their families.

[Renauda]

@LuFins-Dad

Broad swaths of Western PA, Eastern Ohio, and Michigan view trade deficits as the reason why they and their communities are riddled with drugs, overdoses, and rusted out husks of factories. They don’t blame their unions, which essentially drove the factories into bankruptcy, but instead blame the foreign manufacturers. Japanese steel, in particular. Trump feels beholden to those groups. They got him elected, after all.

That very well may be the case, although I hope the angry proletarian rabble understands that it is just a matter of time before Trump will turn against their sacred cow labour unions. Cost of hourly US labour plus benefits is far too high for the Trump agenda (if there is indeed one) to even get off the ground.

That may be the time you predicted to see Vance’s exit; either sidelined from the Emporer’s court or jettisoned altogether.

[jon-nyc]

He was elected. Trump can’t fire him.