Additional nontechnical information on tariffs in the United States EconoFact: Tariff Payback Tariff Payback This week, the Trump administration began accepting requests for refunds of more than $166 billion in tariff payments following the Supreme Court’s February ruling: “the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the President to impose tariffs.” Who Benefits: But while the refunds […]
Republicans are letting rural hospitals, small hospitals, and hospitals at risk close in areas most in need of them due to a lack of funding. We also have t__mp’s Big Beautiful Bill to contend with in the Senate. Some Senators have shown support for it. And some Senators such as Thom Tillis have not shown […]
Musk has lost his shine with Trump so he has been sidelined. Instead, Musk has become critical of Trump and what he is doing. In this case Musk is calling Trump’s latest “This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. […]
It’s not an easy day, but I’m remembering better times, such as when Mandy Patinkin translated Paul Simon’s “American Tune” into its native language: And then I remember that this was a sad song, that even though Simon wrote that last verse of “Loves Me Like a Rock,” he wasn’t always so obeisant to the […]
When an economy produces goods and services above and beyond the requisite, i.e., produces an abundance, it creates wealth. Ten-eleven thousand years ago, this wealth was likely food stored for winter, that rainy day, that dry season, … . Today, for some, this abundance/wealth might include assets such as fine houses, lifestyle, money, …; and […]
Atlantic’s Lora Kelley asks “What Do Democrats Do Now?” Or sorta like that. Trump is such a great story teller and caster of false narratives. People were looking for what they thought would be solutions to what they perceive as issues during and coming out of the pandemic. Maybe a recession would have been better […]
If I had to bet, I would say Trump is more likely to die.
Between the Russian invasion of Ukraine and COVID outbreaks in China, it certainly seems likely that supply shortfalls and upward pressure on prices will continue. This raises difficult questions about politics and economic policy. On the political side of the ledger, I think that President Biden’s strategy should be predicated on continued inflation; if inflation […]
Been chatting (email) with a friend based in North Carolina. I thought I would share the comments at AB. ———————- I had to spend a good deal of time cleaning up after the remnants of Zeta. We got 5 inches of rain and 45 mph winds. I managed to get leaves out of the ditches […]
Donald Trump seems to be missing some sort of a regulator that prevents him from simply saying what temporarily happens to be on his mind. That made it inevitable that he would treat his audience to a regular stream of faux pas. However, I think both the degree and severity of the mess may be […]