Post # 30, Bob McKnight's Subscription Commentary

It's the Tariffs Stupid!

As I have said on a number of occasions, don't count out President Donald Trump either in his re-election effort or even the upcoming Mid-Term Election. He can plant candidates to drain off Democratic votes, and few campaigners are as good in invigorating his base of 35-40% of the electorate. Now he has come up with a near can't miss strategy. There are caravans of immigrants demanding entrance through the US-Mexico border. Trump's vitriol about the impact of these thousands on our jobs, welfare, crime, and social services is hard to match even with reason.

Most Democrats miss the opportunity to brand an effective counter strategy--tied to the economy and jobs. Attacks on Trump's integrity and lying are so obvious that they have become largely ineffective.

A strategy that would work for the Democrats are the tariffs that Trump has wielded without a plan. In addition to diluting the effectiveness of NAFTA (as reported by the Wall Street Journal), Trump has withdrawn the Trans-Pacific Partnership and threatens to also abandon the World Trade Organization. These organizations are targeted for free traders, normally a Republican bastion. Trump is said to be doing this to appease certain targeted businesses like steel and aluminum to the detriment of the American consumer. It is confirmed that consumers are paying more for beer, boats, food, and products with steel and aluminum like washers and dryers. Manufacturers and farmers are losing vital foreign markets.

The solution is for Congress to act like an equal branch of government and pass laws requiring advise and consent on the Presidential Tariffs as part of the budget process.

It is the Tariffs Stupid.