Channeling William McKinley, Trump's executive order on "America First Trade Policy" features a ludicrous proposal to establish an "external" version of the Internal Revenue Service.
As always, a great read from Stephen Roach! I've been reading his work for 30 years and his analyses have been consistently well reasoned and insightful.
Albert Brooks today wrote a great article on the Progressive way forward in reaction to those issues punched by populists; build the institutional framework to solve them.
Trump is not a problem solver or even one who attempts to govern. His is all about how he is perceived, his brand, and if you will, it’s all about the Wizard of Oz syndrome.
The point is the public has responded to the problems he amplifies, falsely or now. These issues he is incapable of solving through looking at his reflection on a flat panel TV, wherever it’s made.
Post-McKinley we were given Teddy Roosevelt, a manly man of progressive values who solved problems. Trump idolizes one president nearly assassinated (Jackson) and one who was (McKinley).
It’s time the progressives accept that people care about the problems that got Trump elected and start working out an effective plan to create the institutions to solve them. It’s about time that their weather forecasts age not generated by Accu-Weather, the Weather Channel, WeatherBug, etc but rather by a government institution housed in the commerce department.
Agree on the important point you make about the Trump brand — his marketing “strategy” is about disruption and his command of screen time. He cares nothing about real problems and possible solutions. That’s why I wrote the piece on the so-called External Revenue Service. As I said, “It is beyond ludicrous!”
Great to hear from you Jim. Thanks for 30 years of loyal readership!
As always, a great read from Stephen Roach! I've been reading his work for 30 years and his analyses have been consistently well reasoned and insightful.
Albert Brooks today wrote a great article on the Progressive way forward in reaction to those issues punched by populists; build the institutional framework to solve them.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/23/opinion/trump-mckinley-populism.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
Trump is not a problem solver or even one who attempts to govern. His is all about how he is perceived, his brand, and if you will, it’s all about the Wizard of Oz syndrome.
The point is the public has responded to the problems he amplifies, falsely or now. These issues he is incapable of solving through looking at his reflection on a flat panel TV, wherever it’s made.
Post-McKinley we were given Teddy Roosevelt, a manly man of progressive values who solved problems. Trump idolizes one president nearly assassinated (Jackson) and one who was (McKinley).
It’s time the progressives accept that people care about the problems that got Trump elected and start working out an effective plan to create the institutions to solve them. It’s about time that their weather forecasts age not generated by Accu-Weather, the Weather Channel, WeatherBug, etc but rather by a government institution housed in the commerce department.
Agree on the important point you make about the Trump brand — his marketing “strategy” is about disruption and his command of screen time. He cares nothing about real problems and possible solutions. That’s why I wrote the piece on the so-called External Revenue Service. As I said, “It is beyond ludicrous!”