China and the US apparently have reached a deal although it is short-term and without much in the way of specifics other than addressing the US need for rare earth minerals and establishing a 50% Chinese tariff. It is clear that what the Chinese have done is “string it out” as they make piece meal deals and essentially slow roll it. The fact that Chinese goods will be subject to a 50% tariff also raises questions about what the value of the deal is to the American public, as much of that expense is going to be passed on to us, so even if it is only 10% that is passed on that still creates increases at an inflationary rate. Who knows what is in Trump’s mind.
Lots of questions about how the deportation protests are being handled versus the January 6th insurrectionist. Mr. Trump didn’t call out the National Guard then and certainly not the military to quell that insurrection. The double standards and Mr. Trump and his cabinet’s attempts to explain it are at best duplicitous and to any reasonable person, not believable.
The laugh of the week comes from Tulsi Gabbard who created a video that attempts to mimic a Fox News show in order to give the President his daily security briefing, or maybe his every third day briefing. The level of cartoonish to this approach is, again, one of those things that is very hard to explain, but does indicate the limits of Mr. Trump’s intellect, although he has great political instincts.
It appears it is time to revisit posse comitatus which was legislation passed after the Civil War that limits the use of the military for policing action, in other words, the police cannot be used for that purpose inside the United States. It appears that Mr. Trump’s activation of the National Guard and the Marine Corp battalion is contrary to that act, as the Governor of California has indicated in his lawsuit. A judge apparently agrees and has ordered the cessation of the use of the Guard for this purpose, while not ruling on the Marine Corp issue because they had not taken any actual steps to intervene in the protests. This is a very dangerous precedent, and you may recall that General Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, refused to employ the military to disperse rioters in Washington, DC. It is worth repeating that Mr. Trump did not employ the National Guard during the January 6th insurrection which was an act well within the definition of the permissible use of the military under posse comitatus.
Mr. Trump has decided to scale back immigration raids on AG and hotels. Lobbyists of those groups must have sent a harsh message that delivered reality to Mr. Miller and Mr. Trump. He TACO’d again.
Republicans are in a quandary over Isreal and Iran. Who should they support? Will they support Isreal with words? Munitions? Equipment? Troops? We’ll have to wait and see.
Isreal struck Iran in spectacular fashion, attacking nuclear facilities and killing a number of high-ranking military officials. Iran is countering with drone attacks and ballistic missiles. These attacks and counterattacks are on their 4th day. Will this lead to a more violent encounter, spread throughout the region, will the US and Russians become involved? Who knows. This action is potentially bad for Isreal, Iran, the region and potentially the world. Mr. Trump obviously has not been successful in quelling this dispute and reaching agreement. Another one of his failed promises which has real consequences for the world.
China is not responding to opening its markets as in fact its imports are stagnant while exports soar. Mr. Trump can hope that his bargain to secure rare earth minerals from China will work and that imports into China will increase. As we noted earlier, that helps American consumers how?
Bill Owens is a former member of Congress representing the New York 21st, a partner in Stafford, Owens, Piller, Murnane, Kelleher and Trombley in Plattsburgh, NY and a Strategic Advisor at Dentons to Washington, DC.
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