The title on my blog posting today duplicates the title given to a column by Bret Stephens, who writes for The New York Times. Stephens is pictured above.
Stephens' column, his "Democracy Dies In Dumbness" discussion, appeared in The Times on March 12, 2025. Stephens' point? Trump's commitment to the use of tariffs is bad economics, bad politics, and is all wrong.
Trump's commitment to the (sometimes seemingly random) imposition of tariffs is obviously an issue of concern for those who do not quail from being called "conservative." Stephens is definitely on the "conservative" side of the political spectrum, as I have noted before, but he writes for what is thought to be a "liberal" newspaper, The New York Times. Of course, The Wall Strteet Journal (another one of the papers I read daily), is proud of its "conservative" slant on news and comment, and The Journal has lots of "conservative" columnists.
The conservative columnists who write for The Wall Street Journal basically agree with Stephens. Trump's use of tarrifs, as a mainstay of his approach to economics, national politics, and international relations, is an idea whose time came, and then went, back in the 1930s. Again, this is a perspective that is coming from "conservative" columnists. Here's a listing from the March 12, 2025, edition of The Wall Street Journal:
- Holman W. Jenkins, Jr. - Is Trump Throwing It Away?
- William A. Galston - Trump Bets The Economy on Tariffs
- Editorial Board - How Do You Like the Trade War Now?
I completely concur with the various statements I have just mentioned, and have linked to. Let me say, though, that I do not believe that our current president's use of tariffs as a tool of policy is based on any genuine belief that "tariffs are "beautiful."
Trump likes tariffs because they are a tool that he can be used to "bully" others.
Trump's a bully, first and foremost. That is Trump's modus operandi, and let's not forget it. Trump's not "brilliant." He's just a bully!
As of the time I am posting this, the United States Government has a website that is intended to help those who are being subjected to the kind of bullying tactics that the president has elevated into governmental policy. Query how long that site will still stay up on the internet. Click the following link to see if it's still there: StopBullying.gov.
That website (an official government website), says we can stop bullying by being an "Upstander."
We should all try that out, don't you think? All of us! And I DO include members of Congress!
Foundation of Freedom
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