Canada, Greenland, Mexico, etc - USA Tariffs / Trade War commencing March 2025 #4

[TootsieFootsie]

Thanks for this article on Kamala Harris.... I saved it.... because there appears to be rich content that needs to be absorbed..... I certainly hope she has a second life. She got screwed in a number of ways.

Yes she has been really busy lately. I've seen a few of her speeches, very impressive.

 

[detective.moon]

Now why do we think that Elon Musk might have just posted a video of Milton Friedman using the example of a pencil to highlight the importance of free trade? For all his DOGE-yness, Musk does understand how international trade works, as, I think, does Scott Bessent, who is also apparently looking for a way off the Trump autarky train.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1909169096391811304

i have to say, i’m having some schadenfreude because i bet we will have a public fallout between trump and musk soon and musk’s time as the unofficial president of the US will be over. i just hope it won’t lead to more unhinged and destructive decisions by either of them.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

''It's a form of colonisation because of what prospective members are forced to give up in order to join.'

No. it is not. It is a voluntary matter, and would be subject to the other nations agreeing, it isn't just ask to join and you become .. it isn't like the USA taking over Hawaii, or American Samoa, or Guam .and dispossing the orginal inhabitants of their heritage, it is a whole other thing altogether, and is worth the time to learn about it in a systematic way

Of course joining the EU is a voluntary matter, but the existing terms are very harsh and include agreement to whatever the EU decides to do in future. The UK joined the former EEC, which was ostensibly just a trading block, in 1973.

In the decades since, the EU repeatedly moved the goalposts over regulation, law, taxation, membership, the respective powers of the European Parliament and the European Commission. Any new member has effectively to agree not only to the current situation but to whatever else the EU decides to do in future without the slightest idea what that may be. As an organisation it is moving towards removal of individual member veto and the complete harmonisation of the tax system with no scope for members to set different rates of income or corporation tax.

In effect, new members give it carte blanche to do what the hell it likes with them and their people. And that's the point - a new member has no idea what it is ultimately signing up to.

Britain still has colonies, so how it became a member of the CPTPP must be a mystery.. Cayman Island ., Bahamas, Muarituos, South Georgia, Chagossian ... Gibraltar, Pitcairn Island.. and so on.

No, we don't. They are all British Overseas Territories with varying degrees of self-government. None has been a colony for over 20 years.

ETA that Mauritius has been independent for over 50 years.

 

[Trooper]

Of course joining the EU is a voluntary matter, but the existing terms are very harsh and include agreement to whatever the EU decides to do in future. The UK joined the former EEC, which was ostensibly just a trading block, in 1973.

the decades since, the EU repeatedly moved the goalposts over regulation, law, taxation, membership, the respective powers of the European Parliament and the European Commission. Any new member has effectively to agree not only to the current situation but to whatever else the EU decides to do in future without the slightest idea what that may be. As an organisation it is moving towards removal of individual member veto and the complete harmonisation of the tax system with no scope for members to set different rates of income or corporation tax.In

In effect, new members give it carte blanche to do what the hell it likes with them and their people. And that's the point - a new member has no idea what it is ultimately signing up to.

No, we don't. They are all British Overseas Territories with varying degrees of self-government. None has been a colony for over 20 years.

ETA that Mauritius has been independent for over 50 years.

'No, we don't. They are all British Overseas Territories with varying degrees of self-government. None has been a colony for over 20 years.'

Yes, they are, they are certainly not in the same league as France's overseas territories, where the inhabitants are legally citizens of France. British over seas territorians do not have that privilege and probably never will, hence, they are colonies

'''These former parts of the British Empire are not part of the UK proper, but the British crown and parliament has full sovereignty over each. They have varying degrees of delegated internal self-governance. The UK counts a total of 14 such territories. This includes the UK's view that its Antarctic claim is a dependency, though internationally its legal status is governed by the Antarctic Treaty.

'''United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), also known as British Overseas Territories (BOTs), have constitutional and historical links with the United Kingdom, but do not form part of the United Kingdom itself.'''

This bit is misleading,

'''' the decades since, the EU repeatedly moved the goalposts over regulation, law, taxation, membership, the respective powers of the European Parliament and the European Commission. Any new member has effectively to agree not only to the current situation but to whatever else the EU decides to do in future without the slightest idea what that may be. As an organisation it is moving towards removal of individual member veto and the complete harmonisation of the tax system with no scope for members to set different rates of income or corporation tax.''''
''''

the EU does not exist without it's Parliament. The Brits had parliament representation, by people in Britain casting their vote in a free and fare election, as to whom was to represent them. That their representers were not particularly bright, is no fault of the EU, It was a choice Brits made all on their own..

 

[Summerliz03]

My guess is that he is going to ask the reporters which publication they work for.


Hordern then tried to return to the topic of tariffs, but Trump used his now familiar tactic of asking: “Who are you with?” ― to sidestep the question.

When told Bloomberg, he called on another journalist and said, “She asks too many questions.”

Donald Trump Loses It Over Reporter’s Straightforward Tariffs Question: ‘So Stupid’

The president also deployed a familiar tactic to sidestep another awkward question.

www.yahoo.com

My favorite part is when he says “we have been treated so horribly by other countries and we had terrible leadership that allowed it to happen” as if he wasn’t president 4 short years ago And he was bragging about how his trade deal with Canada and Mexico, that he signed in 2020 and at the time said it was the “greatest trade deal ever made”.

President Donald J. Trump’s United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Delivers a Historic Win for American Workers – The White House

trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov

 

[MelmothTheLost]

'No, we don't. They are all British Overseas Territories with varying degrees of self-government. None has been a colony for over 20 years.'

Yes, they are, they are certainly not in the same league as France's overseas territories, where the inhabitants are legally citizens of France. British over seas territorians do not have that privilege and probably never will, hence, they are colonies

Nope. Under the terms of the British Overseas Territories Act 2002, "all who were British Overseas Territories citizens (apart from those solely connected with the Cyprus Sovereign Base Areas) immediately prior to 21 May 2002 automatically became full British citizens on that date (previously full British citizenship was either automatically accorded or granted without conditions on request only to people from Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands)."

British Overseas Territories Act 2002 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

This bit is misleading,

'''' the decades since, the EU repeatedly moved the goalposts over regulation, law, taxation, membership, the respective powers of the European Parliament and the European Commission. Any new member has effectively to agree not only to the current situation but to whatever else the EU decides to do in future without the slightest idea what that may be. As an organisation it is moving towards removal of individual member veto and the complete harmonisation of the tax system with no scope for members to set different rates of income or corporation tax.''''
''''

the EU does not exist without it's Parliament. The Brits had parliament representation, by people in Britain casting their vote in a free and fare election, as to whom was to represent them. That their representers were not particularly bright, is no fault of the EU, It was a choice Brits made all on their own..

You have misunderstood the significance of the European Parliament within the EU's infrastructure. Power within the EU lies with the unelected officials of the European Commission. The EP exists essentially as a talking shop and to rubber stamp legislation and regulations prepared by the Commission. It doesn't have any real powers of its own.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Maybe the Brits.... they are a desperate bunch, a trading nation with no place to trade with... Trump and Putin have the Brits right where they want them .. out in the cold, scrambling to conclude a trade deal with ANYONE, anywhere,

As of 2023, the UK was ranked 4th globally in exports of goods and services. Our exports to the EU have actually increased since Brexit. Not bad for a "desperate bunch".

UK trade in numbers (web version)

www.gov.uk

they were over the moon when Australia offered to export beef, the problem was , Boris Johnson could not quite understand the process, and signed off on a deal that meant the Brits bought and paid for, the tails, hide, and bone of the beef, ( top price, too!! ) as well as the roasts and steaks.. Not Britains finest moment, actually.. The Australians managed to keep a straight face at the signing of the contract, how I do not know..

A fair point, but one which illustrates a point I made earlier. As a member of the EU, the UK did not and could not negotiate its own trade agreements as that was of necessity delegated to the EU. As a result, over the decades we lost the knowledge, skills and experience in negotiating trade deals for ourselves. The UK government recognised this and acknowledged that mistakes would be made as the country re-learned this from scratch. We'll get there. We are, historically, a trading nation.

 

[detective.moon]

Trump: 'Tariffs work, oil price drops!'

Tariffs are working, Trump just concluded on his social media platform Truth Social. According to Trump, oil prices are falling, interest rates and food prices are falling. And according to him, there is no inflation. He says the “biggest abuser,” China, was punished in the stock market today.

The US president seems to ignore the trillions of dollars that have also evaporated on US stock markets in recent days. The price of oil is indeed falling, but as for interest rates, food prices and inflation, it is not clear what Trump is basing this on.

Beperkte verliezen op Amerikaanse beurs • Trump dreigt met extra heffing voor China

Door de aangekondigde importheffingen van de VS gaan beurzen opnieuw hard onderuit. In dit blog houden we je op de hoogte van wat er gebeurt en wat het betekent.

nos.nl

 

[Lyanna]

Trump: 'Tariffs work, oil price drops!'

Tariffs are working, Trump just concluded on his social media platform Truth Social. According to Trump, oil prices are falling, interest rates and food prices are falling. And according to him, there is no inflation. He says the “biggest abuser,” China, was punished in the stock market today.

The US president seems to ignore the trillions of dollars that have also evaporated on US stock markets in recent days. The price of oil is indeed falling, but as for interest rates, food prices and inflation, it is not clear what Trump is basing this on.

Beperkte verliezen op Amerikaanse beurs • Trump dreigt met extra heffing voor China

Door de aangekondigde importheffingen van de VS gaan beurzen opnieuw hard onderuit. In dit blog houden we je op de hoogte van wat er gebeurt en wat het betekent.

nos.nl

He really is delusional isn't he?



Moo

 

[sds71]

President Trump tries to quell any Republican pushback to his tariffs by dubbing them “PANICANS.”

https://twitter.com/x/status/1909232828815933853

 

[iamshadow21]

President Trump tries to quell any Republican pushback to his tariffs by dubbing them “PANICANS.”

https://twitter.com/x/status/1909232828815933853

I agree for once with the word, if with the opposite sentiment.

Don't be a mug.

Pannikin

Description: A metal drinking vessel, slightly smaller at the top than the bottom. It had a curved handle affixed at the top to the wire rim of the pannikin, allowing movement. A piece of metal is rivetted to... | Read the full record details for Object: Pannikin

collections.history.sa.gov.au

Question everything.

MOO

 

[detective.moon]

Nationwide anti-Trump protest planned for April 19—What to know

The 50501 movement is planning for a national day of demonstrations after taking part in the April 5 "Hands Off!" protests.

www.newsweek.com

more protests planned for april 19th!

 

[sds71]

U.S. stocks were slammed for a third day on Monday as the White House remained defiant even after President Donald Trump’s rollout of shockingly high tariff rates on most key U.S. trading partners has caused a market meltdown.

The S&P 500 lost 3.5%. If the benchmark closes there, it will bring its losses from its closing record touched in February to 20%, a bear market in Wall Street terms.

The Dow Jones Industrial average tumbled 1,200 points, or 3.2%. The Nasdaq composite dropped 3.7%, further into bear territory, as investors sold their tech winners to raise cash.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/06/stock-market-today-live-updates.html

 

[detective.moon]

President Trump tries to quell any Republican pushback to his tariffs by dubbing them “PANICANS.”

https://twitter.com/x/status/1909232828815933853

it’s a good sign there’s enough republican pushback for trump to comment on it!

 

[LoveyG]

Someone upthread, I think it was Otto, said that US products are not known for quality.

That is true now, but as an old, I know it wasn't always true. "Made in the USA" when I was young was a mark of quality and not just an advertising slogan. Products labeled "Made in Japan" were seen as cheap, inferior goods.

Mr. Izzy and I have been married for 26 years and our washer is a Maytag that he bought at a garage sale before we even met, when it was already about 20 years old.

At nearly 50 years old, it's still going, although it does have its issues.

Somewhere along the line someone decided that making products that last wouldn't be nearly as profitable as making products with a much shorter lifespan. And here we are.

I agree. I just, last year, replaced my washer made in 1973. It finally developed a leak. Now I wish I had tried to repair it. The replacement brand new washer does a terrible job.

 

[detective.moon]

Turbulenzen in der Weltwirtschaft: EU bietet USA Abschaffung gegenseitiger Zölle auf Industriegüter an

Die US-Zölle sorgen weltweit für Verwerfungen. Nun erklärt EU-Kommissionspräsidentin von der Leyen, sie habe Trump mehrfach die Aufhebung von Zöllen auf Industriegüter angeboten. Eine »angemessene Reaktion« blieb demnach aus.

www.spiegel.de

[…] EU Commission President von der Leyen has now stated that she has offered Trump several times to lift tariffs on industrial goods. An “appropriate response” was not forthcoming.

According to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the EU has proposed to US President Donald Trump that all tariffs on industrial goods be abolished on both sides. “We have offered zero-for-zero tariffs on industrial goods,” said von der Leyen in Brussels on Monday.

The EU has “repeatedly” offered to abolish reciprocal tariffs, for example in the automotive sector, said von der Leyen. “But there was no appropriate response to this offer”. She emphasized that the EU is “always ready to make a good deal”.

The EU is hoping for a negotiated solution in the trade dispute with US President Donald Trump. However, the EU Commission and the member states are also preparing a series of countermeasures in response to the US tariffs. Counter-tariffs are to gradually come into force from mid-April.

 

[iamshadow21]

Turbulenzen in der Weltwirtschaft: EU bietet USA Abschaffung gegenseitiger Zölle auf Industriegüter an

Die US-Zölle sorgen weltweit für Verwerfungen. Nun erklärt EU-Kommissionspräsidentin von der Leyen, sie habe Trump mehrfach die Aufhebung von Zöllen auf Industriegüter angeboten. Eine »angemessene Reaktion« blieb demnach aus.

www.spiegel.de

[…] EU Commission President von der Leyen has now stated that she has offered Trump several times to lift tariffs on industrial goods. An “appropriate response” was not forthcoming.

According to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the EU has proposed to US President Donald Trump that all tariffs on industrial goods be abolished on both sides. “We have offered zero-for-zero tariffs on industrial goods,” said von der Leyen in Brussels on Monday.

The EU has “repeatedly” offered to abolish reciprocal tariffs, for example in the automotive sector, said von der Leyen. “But there was no appropriate response to this offer”. She emphasized that the EU is “always ready to make a good deal”.

The EU is hoping for a negotiated solution in the trade dispute with US President Donald Trump. However, the EU Commission and the member states are also preparing a series of countermeasures in response to the US tariffs. Counter-tariffs are to gradually come into force from mid-April.

That's a very diplomatic way of phrasing it. 'No appropriate response'. Meaning there was a response, but it was not even in the realm of acceptability.

What is he demanding, I wonder?

MOO

 

[Herat]

That's a very diplomatic way of phrasing it. 'No appropriate response'. Meaning there was a response, but it was not even in the realm of acceptability.

What is he demanding, I wonder?

MOO

I think it is very smart of Von der Lyden not to get involved in his shouty, bullying, name-calling public responses.

It's not productive and it's highly manipulative to make him look strong to his adoring fans

 

[Lyanna]

Turbulenzen in der Weltwirtschaft: EU bietet USA Abschaffung gegenseitiger Zölle auf Industriegüter an

Die US-Zölle sorgen weltweit für Verwerfungen. Nun erklärt EU-Kommissionspräsidentin von der Leyen, sie habe Trump mehrfach die Aufhebung von Zöllen auf Industriegüter angeboten. Eine »angemessene Reaktion« blieb demnach aus.

www.spiegel.de

[…] EU Commission President von der Leyen has now stated that she has offered Trump several times to lift tariffs on industrial goods. An “appropriate response” was not forthcoming.

According to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the EU has proposed to US President Donald Trump that all tariffs on industrial goods be abolished on both sides. “We have offered zero-for-zero tariffs on industrial goods,” said von der Leyen in Brussels on Monday.

The EU has “repeatedly” offered to abolish reciprocal tariffs, for example in the automotive sector, said von der Leyen. “But there was no appropriate response to this offer”. She emphasized that the EU is “always ready to make a good deal”.

The EU is hoping for a negotiated solution in the trade dispute with US President Donald Trump. However, the EU Commission and the member states are also preparing a series of countermeasures in response to the US tariffs. Counter-tariffs are to gradually come into force from mid-April.

They are moving to trigger ACI, negotiations have failed with the Trump administration

moo

 

[Herat]

Secretary of Commerce Lutnik is making gigglingly euphoric predictions of a return to a prosperous US economy by 4th Quarter 2025 ( ie: September). That is only 5 months from now. Consumer confidence is low and fallilng, as ordinary people see their savings and retirement funds dropping significantly. If consumer confidence is low, people stop making purchases and as there are few all-US non-tariff options out there, whatever "revenue" Lutnik thinks is going to break out in the next 5 months is all wishful thinking. Oh, and all those manufacturing plants are going to be up and running in 5 months?

Tesla has dropped below the level Lutnik says they would never get to.

Major US investment and financial CEOs are all diametrically opposite of Lutnik, as well as European heads are saying long-term damage has been done.