President Trump sent two of his minions out yesterday to lie about this question. Kudlow:
We are not in a trade war. What this is is an attempt to right some of the wrongs with respect to China.
Our Treasury Secretary said essentially the same thing:
Our objective is still not to be in a trade war with [China] … I’m cautiously optimistic that we will be able to work this out.”.
We could go back to 2002 and how the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 was sold to people like Senator John Kerry and Senator Hillary Clinton. The Bush-Cheney White House sold this as a means to encourage Iraq to comply with certain UN resolutions and not necessarily a prelude to war. Of course the White House was lying as we knew by March 2003. Of course Bush-Cheney lied about a lot of things with respect to Iraq back then including its forecast that an invasion would be quick, low cost, and very effective in establishing a Western democracy in Iraq. How did that work out exactly? Kudlow helped the White House cheerlead for this invasion arguing it would lead to so much Iraqi oil production that oil prices would fall to $12 a day. How did that work out again? We should have listened to Anthony Zinni:
Former Centcom Chief General Anthony Zinni Calls Iraq War a Blunder
He was saying invading Iraq would be a blunder even back in 2002. Of course Trump says we will win the trade with China. On Trump’s absurd claim, perhaps we should listen to Luke Skywalker :
This Is Not Going To Go! The Way You Think
To say she was duped is a long stretch.
I do not know about Kerry but Clinton’s link to the neocon wind machine in State and the pentagon go back to 1993. Both Clintons are long standing in the Wolfowitz, Feith, Kagan clan
If Hillary is so dupable then Trump was right choice.
geez
Yeah, 1 + 1 = 37
Leave it to Ilsm to defend Cheney’s lies!
Kudlow announces a “trade coalition of the willing!
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kudlow-doesnt-have-much-to-show-for-promised-trade-coalition-of-the-willing
Gee – is The Onion writing their copy?
Emike,
Never attribute to ignorance what is explained by duplicity.
Same duplicity today toward Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Yemen, Qatar and Syria
Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Yemen, Qatar and Syria?
How is this relevant to the Trump trade war? Oh wait – maybe this is Kudlow’s trade coalition of the willing!
The Iraq War wasn’t “sold” to Kerry and Clinton–they were handed the propaganda they needed to do what they wanted to do anyway.
But while the Iraq War was a grievous wrong, any trade war that curtails international shipping and the production of cheap, crappy consumer goods is a an unmitigated positive for the environment and the planet’s long term climate health. Let’s hope it goes “nuclear.”
Karl:
Read this:U.S.-China Trade, 1971–2012: Insights into the U.S.-China Relationship 米中貿易 1971〜2012年 中日関係についての洞察 Don’t mind the Chinese. Another thing to point out is what Spencer has repeatedly said with regards to Reagan’s tax breaks and Trump’s. I would add Boy-George Bush to the list also.
Spencer has said this any number of times out here and it is a fact which has impacted investment in manufacturing. No savings plays into no investment
Another pretty good artilce here: Reagan Set Up The Death Of The Middle Class, But China Was The Clincher Don’t be fooled by the title.
Karl, this is my livelihood to minimize the costs of manufacturing through improved throughput.
Pgl, instead of asking Are We in a Trade War, perhaps the more accurate question is: When Were We NOT in a Trade War?
CoRev makes a point but me thinks not the one he intended. Yes – Republicans from Lincoln to Reagan and George W. Bush have always loved protecting the U.S. steel industry from foreign competition.
Pgl, what was your point? You confirmed that trade restrictions/protections on foreign & US products and industries are the norm. Citing Republicans should elicit the Democrat corrections to these examples???? I’ll wait.
BTW, to my memory the only time we were not in a trade war was in the 50s when we were the only major producer in the world.
“the only time we were not in a trade war was in the 50s when we were the only major producer in the world.”
Is that your Nirvana? That the rest of the world be bombed to hell so we dominate world production? I guess you idolize John Bolton!
Navarro’s nonsense can be found here:
https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/meet-press-april-8-2018-n863726
Let’s see – he claims that steal our stuff which has led to 70 thousand factories being sold. Ahem! Of course this is what gets his goat:
‘China comes in to our homes, the businesses, our government agencies, and the damage is on the order of about $1 billion a day. And then, when you add to that damage the billion dollars a day in the trade deficit in goods we face, this country is losing its strength and wealth even as China has grown its economy from $1 trillion since 2002—-to over $12 trillion today.’
Not sure where he gets his $1 billion a day but that figure for Chinese GDP growth is not inflation adjusted. But yea – China has seen impressive real income growth. And Navarro hates that!
The last time we were in a full-blown trade war was after the Smoot-Hawley tariff was passed in 1930. Our trade partners retaliated and global trade collapsed as we fell into the depths of the Great Depression, which led to Hitler coming to power in Germany and leading to millions dead in WW II. Yes, Karl Kolchak, crashing world trade is a good thing.
So after the war the victors (aside from the USSR, which isolated itself in the Cold War) realized the 1930s was a big mistake. However, negotiating trade agreements is a politically difficult and time consuming process as it involves a bunch of nations each agreeing to shaft import competing industries in their nations for the benefits of a freer global trade system. The system was still highly protectionist in the 1950s, and it took a long time to dismantle the trade war restrictions left over from the 1930s.
So now we are scuttling all that, with lots of people fairly mindlessly cheering this out of historical ignorance. I am reminded of the fools parading and cheering and predicting quick victories on all sides as WW I began. If you do not know about all that tragic foolishness, go read Barbara Tuchman’s The Guns of August.
OTOH, this current “trade war” may not amount to anything more than a lot of political posturing by Trump, given that he seems inclined to withdraw most of his threatened tariffs when suitably challenged. We shall see.
Barkley:
I agree with your last sentence. I think it is another deflection tactic.