Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

Don’t make deals with terrorists

This is why nations shouldn’t pay ransom. “The president reacted to the Supreme Court’s judgment by initially announcing a new universal 10% levy, using a different legal framework for the latest tariffs, but then increased the global tariff rate to 15% — the legal maximum which can be in place for 150 days before congressional […]

Long leading indicators in Q4 GDP suggest worsening conditions for an economy barely keeping its head above water

 – by New Deal democrat Last week’s Q4 GDP release, as usual, updated two long leading indicators: proprietors’ income (a placeholder for corporate profits, which won’t be reported until next month at the earliest), and private residential fixed investment, a proxy for housing. They were of particular interest this time because, while the normalized yield […]

Unitary executive theory and the Führerprinzip

SCOTUS Chief Justice John Roberts subscribes to the unitary executive theory of American government and Constitutional interpretation. The unitary executive theory posits that the President possesses total, unrestrained authority over the entire executive branch, including the power to direct, supervise, and remove all officers within it. If that sounds familiar, it’s probably because it’s been […]

SCOTUS Decision

There is quite a lot occurring with our fearless leader in charge who believes he can make decisions regardless of the results of his decision with regard to the Constitution. Congress can impose Tariffs. The president can not. “The Context You Need to Understand the Supreme Court’s Tariffs Decision,” Civil Discourse, Joyce Vance Thanks for […]

Trump’s Tariffs Will Still Cost Households

Erica York (VP Tax Foundation) discusses Trump’s imposing tariff, there being struct down and his reimposing other tariffs using Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. The president then has the authority to impose temporary restrictions such as tariffs or quotas on goods from other countries based on specific conditions. The temporary surcharge cannot exceed […]

More on Cuba

Brief update on the impact of Trump’s efforts to bring Cubans and Cuba to its knees. A small nation which has not had much of an impact on the United States. At best Cuba is an annoyance to the U.S. Its ability to directly threaten U.S. security interests is limited. The United States can afford […]

What Does One Do When Confronted by a Conundrum?

I do not know and you had better be damn sure you are right, Being a Senator or a Congressional Representative gives you an edge. Good chance the rest of us would lose. Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the U.S. Manual for Courts-Martial, “service members must obey lawful orders” and disobey […]

Largest Mined Military Base in the Western Hemisphere

That was a few decades ago. Not sure what they are doing today. Having served at Gitmo for almost 10 months, I can clearly state there is not much threat to the United States coming from Cuba. Indeed, we would get people coming over the fence to escape. The Cubans on base were happy we […]

A Battle Over High School Emails

It appears Michigan Republican politicians are afraid of high school students protesting the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Present Congress man Tom Barrett is seeking information about a high school walk out. A candidate running to replace Tom Barrett talked to students. Tom’s organization filed a FOIA to find out what opposing Democrat […]