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« Reply #1 on: June 29, 2018, 04:34:48 PM » |
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The Patriot Post Digest 6-29-2018
From The Federalist Patriot
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So much for the dire warnings of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who harshly derided the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 as a “scam” that was “simply theft, monumental, brazen theft from the American middle class and from every person who aspires to reach it.” She added that the “GOP tax scam is not a vote for an investment in growth or jobs.”
“Crumbs.” That’s what she called the $1,000-, $2,000- and $3,000 bonuses that many American workers were receiving due to that reduction in the corporate tax rate.
So that’s why Democrats keep losing power at all levels of government.
Back in the real world, the benefits of the tax cuts are clearly having an impact on the way Americans perceive the national economy.
According to the latest CNBC All-America Economic Survey, Trump’s economic approval rating surged six points to 51%. Moreover, 54% say the economy is good or excellent, the highest recorded by CNBC in the 10 years of the survey.
The survey even shows that nearly a third of Democrats give the president support for the economy.
There is one dark cloud, however. While President Trump and Republicans should be applauded for their pro-business policies, the long-term impact of the president’s decision to impose tariffs is still unknown. Never underestimate the importance of free trade34.
It’s one thing for Trump to call out countries that have long enjoyed a massive trade surplus with the United States or who are clearly engaging in unfair trade behavior. But it’s another thing for a sitting president to directly threaten American companies for their decision to move operations overseas. Recently, Harley-Davidson announced that it would be moving more production abroad in response to Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on some European countries.
The Washington Post reports35, “The company’s announcement sparked a massive sell-off in the stock market amid fears that other companies might follow suit, worried about getting caught in the middle of Trump’s trade war with Europe, Canada, Mexico, China, Japan and possibly India.”
Since his days on the campaign trail, the president has used the threat of levying taxes on companies that leave the U.S. And as president-elect, Trump convinced36 Carrier to keep some of its operations in the U.S. rather than outsourcing jobs to Mexico.
But Trump also warned of similar consequences for other companies that considered pulling up the stakes here at home. Clearly, this was more than mere campaign rhetoric. The president continues to hold this threat over the heads of other companies who worry about a trade war.
And while the president slams Harley-Davidson for abandoning America after more than a century of motorcycle production, it’s moving only a portion of production. As the Washington Examiner’s Philip Wegmann writes37, “Harley-Davidson will make motorcycles for the European market in Europe because Trump’s trade war threatens to eat into their profits. According to a report filed with the SEC, retaliatory tariffs on aluminum and steel, which just so happen to be the main materials on a motorcycle, would increase sticker price overnight by more than $2,200.”
No doubt Trump’s moves are in part an effective strategy to keep his political base energized, but we still have to worry about the long-term implications of tariffs on the national economy. For now, the president seems to be holding back from a full-scale trade war, though he’s clearly willing to use a strong economy to his advantage in setting about to clean up a decade of malaise, his way. Tariffs are just one chess piece.
Meanwhile, Democrats are hoping that painting immigration restrictions38 or Anthony Kennedy’s retirement15 as the end of “democracy” as we know it might turn Americans away from Republicans and President Trump, but for now the largely fantastic economic news is trumping all other issues. As Bill Clinton’s political adviser James Carville once famously said, “It’s the economy, stupid.”
If the economy keeps roaring at its current pace, Democrats will have a hard time convincing Americans that we need a change in leadership on Capitol Hill this November.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/56867-a-booming-economy-but-tariffs
MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST
Mexico’s Rising Communist Regime39 — Our neighbors are about to elect a communist president backed by the drug cartels.
Pence Delivers a Message on Mass Migration40 — To South America: “The U.S. respects your borders and your sovereignty. We insist that you respect ours.”
Facebook Cracks Down on ‘Bad Actors’41 — The social media giant takes another step to aggressively limit fake news and “hate speech.”
Video: Gowdy on Russia Probe: ‘Finish It the Hell Up’42 — “Russia isn’t being hurt by this investigation right now. This country is being hurt by it.”
OPINION IN BRIEF
Marc A. Thiessen: “Democratic senators such as Joe Manchin III (WV), Heidi Heitkamp (ND), Jon Tester (MT), Claire McCaskill (MO), and Joe Donnelly (IN) … are running for reelection in states Trump won by double digits. Their political survival depends on being perceived as centrists, and they will now have to spend months campaigning while caught in the crossfire of a liberal-conservative battle royal over a Trump-nominated Supreme Court justice. Vote yes, and their liberal base will be apoplectic; vote no, and their pro-Trump constituents could revolt. For all these reasons, Trump’s appointee is likely to be confirmed. If that happens, Trump will have led one of the most consequential conservative presidencies in modern American history. Not only is Trump expanding the conservative Supreme Court majority, he is also moving at record pace to fill the federal appeals courts with young conservative judges who will preside for decades. Imagine if it were Clinton making all these appointments. The consequences for human life, religious liberty, the Second Amendment and limited government would have been disastrous. Instead, the choice of the next Supreme Court justice is in President Trump’s hands. So, to all the conservatives who cast their ballots in 2016 for just this moment — you did the right thing.”
SHORT CUTS
Observations: “By being the deciding vote on so many issues, [Justice Anthony] Kennedy in effect became the Court itself, making him the de facto incarnation of the judicial branch, the way the president is the physical personification of the executive branch. This became all the more problematic because Kennedy’s philosophy of judicial review all too often took the form of a deep personal inventory of his feelings rather than of Constitution’s text. Thus, Kennedy’s decision not to live forever — or at least until a Democratic appointee could replace the Reagan-appointed justice — was seen as a personal betrayal, because the political has become so personal for so many.” —Jonah Goldberg
Demo-gogues: “The menacing truth is that we have to face a reality coming at us where we might lose some of the precious ideals of our country. And I stand here to say, ‘This will not happen without a fight.’” —Sen. Cory Booker
Bad precedent: “I view Roe v. Wade as being settled law. It’s clearly precedent and I always look for judges who respect precedent.” —Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) (We suppose that means she’d have been in favor of the infamous Dred Scott “precedent.”)
Apples and oranges: “If Republicans were consistent they would wait to consider Justice Kennedy’s successor until after the midterm elections. … Why should a midterm election by any less important than a presidential election? Leader McConnell is simply engaging in hypocrisy.” —Chuck Schumer
Non Compos Mentis: “As a woman, I think you’re trying to take my rights away. … If you take my right away from me, to judge what I do for my family and my body, I got a little problem with that. You got a problem. You don’t want people to take your guns? Get out of my behind! Get out of my gotcha11! Get out!” —constitutional scholar Whoopi Goldberg
Braying Jackass: “[Justice Kennedy’s leaving] creates an opportunity for those who don’t believe in our Constitution to lock in an anti-American majority for a long time to come."—Sen. Jeff Merkley
That escalated quickly: "I believe that [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] has become a deportation force. … I believe [we] should get rid of it, start over, reimagine it and build something that actually works.” —Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
And last… “Maybe if government didn’t interfere so much in our lives, every Supreme Court decision wouldn’t be such a life-or-death deal.” —Jon Gabriel
https://patriotpost.us/articles/56871-friday-short-cuts
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