It never ceases to amaze me that so many people would prefer Tim Cook to publicly shun Trump and refuse to work with him.
Gruber over on Daring Fireball was practically soiling himself in rage over Tim Cook congratulating Trump.
Just because Tim Cook is gay, people on the left seem to assume that he must be left leaning and woke to the core. They forget that he has plenty of centre right attributes that kind of matter in business. For all they know he might be a Republican voter!
People just need to move on. It makes good business sense to deal with Trump, end of discussion.
All of the complaints about Donnie are true, but Cook’s job as CEO is to do what’s best for Apple. In this case it means sucking up to a wannabe dictator. Fortunately for Tim it’s pretty easy - Kamala showed how easy it was to manipulate Trump in their debate.
Politics aside, I’m sure Cook had some people point out tariffs mean Apple can’t use US Dollar to set default prices for their products worldwide. indeed not just them all tech companies and once they uses a new default currency then well how long will USD be considered default.
Sure seems like the fastest way to give up your global position.
Sure they can. Get your products granted an exemption. Pretty simple.
Trump is smart enough to do it right, where adversarial nations feel the brunt and Americans don’t - - unlike Biden/harris with the Russian sanctions coupled with anti-oil initiatives that somehow only caused massive inflation in the US and not Russia, whose gods suffered a whopping 6 points.
Apple will do just fine. So will most American companies, who will find ways to either gain exemptions or work around a reliance on feeding China’s economy.
Trump seems to have certain doomsday markets in mind such as cheap slave labor Chinese EVs.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
Two ways to look at that one.
Biden had a lot of campaign money going to him. That wouldn’t have been able to be used by anyone but his partner Kamala. It seemed like an easy way to get a financial head start while also avoiding a late primary, which threatened to divide the democrat base. I
n a sense it was a sham. Never happened before and the American people never got to choose their candidate on the left. One was forced upon them. In that sense, I feel for my colleagues on the left, despite our differences. Then there is the unbelievable mismanagement and dishonesty. From celebrities getting paid for their “endorsement,” to flushing 1.5 billion dollars down the toilet and ending up in debt after such a short run. I saw the rallies, the appearances, etc. I saw the collateral that was produced and distributed. The unstoppable YouTube commercials that binaries the platform, etc. I heard about the staff taking private jets all over (in spite of climate change narrative). 1.5 billion plus? Really? In just a few months? Who wants that in charge of our economy?
I think the whole team behind this campaign, including Obama, underestimated the American people’s ability to smell something fishy. The country was tired of the lies, incompetence, and direction and wanted a proven and competent leader.
In the IS, people are smart enough to choose the hood stuff, like Apple products over inferior rivals no matter the smear campaigns. It’s possible then that this happened in the election as well.
Everyone seems to have theory on this. But I imagine it’s much more simple than some of the apologists would lead us to believe. People are smarter now. And gen a in particular seems to be very alert to the failures of preceding generations.
And then there is the fearmongering over apple. Cook is a very smart man. He knows relationships are what make the world go ‘round. There is the letter of something, then the spirit. The true stuff to be afraid of is a roughshod EU and draconian DOJ. Thankfully it appears both will be addressed.
Harris ... had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
The next candidate will face the same landscape.
Lesson #1 learned from the left in Europe is to fix the border. To voters everything was better in the cave, village, state, nation... voters are still tribal. Make it a crime to burn the flag, Bible, or constitution - you can get a lot of voters by doing so. Own the flag.
You need to make the economy work. Biden and his "you get a job and you get a job" caused massive inflation.
Move every federal agency to some odd state. Show that you care about those voters. This has been done in several European nations.
Voters are not woke vegans with a focus on LGBTQ-IA issues. Fix the basics. US roads, schools, and healthcare are failing and even if they are not then say they are. Make it an issue. Gretchen Whitmer got elected by fixing roads and pre-schooling.
Please choose someone more likeable than Hillary Clinton, AOC, and Pelosi. Someone that won't blame voters for simply existing like Harris did. JFK, Clinton, and Obama were all likeable politicians.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
Then go get a ticket, there are Black Friday sales
It never ceases to amaze me that so many people would prefer Tim Cook to publicly shun Trump and refuse to work with him.
Gruber over on Daring Fireball was practically soiling himself in rage over Tim Cook congratulating Trump.
Just because Tim Cook is gay, people on the left seem to assume that he must be left leaning and woke to the core. They forget that he has plenty of centre right attributes that kind of matter in business. For all they know he might be a Republican voter!
People just need to move on. It makes good business sense to deal with Trump, end of discussion.
All of the complaints about Donnie are true, but Cook’s job as CEO is to do what’s best for Apple. In this case it means sucking up to a wannabe dictator. Fortunately for Tim it’s pretty easy - Kamala showed how easy it was to manipulate Trump in their debate.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
Two ways to look at that one.
Biden had a lot of campaign money going to him. That wouldn’t have been able to be used by anyone but his partner Kamala. It seemed like an easy way to get a financial head start while also avoiding a late primary, which threatened to divide the democrat base. I
n a sense it was a sham. Never happened before and the American people never got to choose their candidate on the left. One was forced upon them. In that sense, I feel for my colleagues on the left, despite our differences. Then there is the unbelievable mismanagement and dishonesty. From celebrities getting paid for their “endorsement,” to flushing 1.5 billion dollars down the toilet and ending up in debt after such a short run. I saw the rallies, the appearances, etc. I saw the collateral that was produced and distributed. The unstoppable YouTube commercials that binaries the platform, etc. I heard about the staff taking private jets all over (in spite of climate change narrative). 1.5 billion plus? Really? In just a few months? Who wants that in charge of our economy?
I think the whole team behind this campaign, including Obama, underestimated the American people’s ability to smell something fishy. The country was tired of the lies, incompetence, and direction and wanted a proven and competent leader.
In the IS, people are smart enough to choose the hood stuff, like Apple products over inferior rivals no matter the smear campaigns. It’s possible then that this happened in the election as well.
Everyone seems to have theory on this. But I imagine it’s much more simple than some of the apologists would lead us to believe. People are smarter now. And gen a in particular seems to be very alert to the failures of preceding generations.
And then there is the fearmongering over apple. Cook is a very smart man. He knows relationships are what make the world go ‘round. There is the letter of something, then the spirit. The true stuff to be afraid of is a roughshod EU and draconian DOJ. Thankfully it appears both will be addressed.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
This. It wasn't a sea of lies, it was a tsunami of lies. He won because too many Dems stayed home. Too many Undecideds were selfish.
Main stream media, the news those not addicted to the FAUX News entertainment show watch, was silent on Trump's constant bald face lies. Fact checking was left to online sources that most older people never see. All they wanted to talk about was Biden's performance at the debate. But not one word about Trump's increasingly bizarre performance and memory lapses.
And too many stupid people blindly believed his and RNC's lies targeting their hate and discontent without any basis in truth. They weren't open-minded enough to see his actual character or lack of it. They actually believe life will be better under his rule. His cabinet recommendations don't bother them at all. "Soybeans? That was a one off. Couldn't possibly happen again." Sure.
A huge cloud is headed our way. We had a chance to prepare and ignored it. There is no silver lining for anyone but the 1%, and xenophobes who don't care what it costs, as long has he gets "them" the cause of all their troubles.
Democracy is being stabbed to death and as with Kitty Genovese too many are just ignoring it. And other "patriots" are cheering it on. Trump is escaping justice at every turn and he just gets bolder. His cult members apparently love a good grift.
Don’t bother trying to put lipstick on a pig. The next few years will be bad for everyone. Cook’s relationship with the man known for stabbing his friends in the back will not make any difference.
Well history of the first four years of the Trump Administration proved you wrong and most Americans, via the recent election, disagree with you.
You should revisit Trump's use of tariffs from his first term. The soybean tariffs were such a disaster for American farmers that Republicans had to do a taxpayer funded bailout of those same farmers. So instead of boosting trade, it depressed trade and created debt levels so high that it could have destabilized American soybean production.
Absolutely agree here and even as an outsider to US foreign policy, those tariffs were both directly and indirectly devastating for farmers who were already struggling. They were bailed out to the tune of billions but that only makes tariffs all the more laughable.
As for Tim Cook, he has no option but to table dialogue with whoever is running the show politically and in the interest of the company.
It's impossible to please everyone all the time so he will get flac from somewhere whatever he does but that's part and parcel of being a CEO.
Neither Trump nor Biden were fit for office (for different reasons) but of the two, Trump is by far the more reckless candidate on all fronts.
Stormy weather ahead and for multinational CEOs it's all about weathering the storm or somehow convincing Trump to listen to reason.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
This. It wasn't a sea of lies, it was a tsunami of lies. He won because too many Dems stayed home. Too many Undecideds were selfish.
Main stream media, the news those not addicted to the FAUX News entertainment show watch, was silent on Trump's constant bald face lies. Fact checking was left to online sources that most older people never see. All they wanted to talk about was Biden's performance at the debate. But not one word about Trump's increasingly bizarre performance and memory lapses.
And too many stupid people blindly believed his and RNC's lies targeting their hate and discontent without any basis in truth. They weren't open-minded enough to see his actual character or lack of it. They actually believe life will be better under his rule. His cabinet recommendations don't bother them at all. "Soybeans? That was a one off. Couldn't possibly happen again." Sure.
A huge cloud is headed our way. We had a chance to prepare and ignored it. There is no silver lining for anyone but the 1%, and xenophobes who don't care what it costs, as long has he gets "them" the cause of all their troubles.
Democracy is being stabbed to death and as with Kitty Genovese too many are just ignoring it. And other "patriots" are cheering it on. Trump is escaping justice at every turn and he just gets bolder. His cult members apparently love a good grift.
Look, I’m a total outsider seeing as I’m a Brit and don’t live in the states.
Using the logic of the Left, the Democrats just lost to an old, corrupt, crass, dishonest, convicted felon.
At what point do the Left accept that perhaps they didn’t offer a compelling narrative for the country.
Pointing out other peoples flaws without reflecting how you are better isn’t going to win an election.
radarthekat said: » show previous quotes Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
Also, one other point that bears mention:
harris did not have 4 months to introduce herself to the American people.
She had FOUR YEARS.
There was constant reporting that she was not a hard worker, difficult to work with, didn’t do her job, she was famous for her unpreparedness that turned into word salads, and that everything she was put in charge of either did not improve or became far worse such as the border. She famously claimed to be the last decision maker in the room to decide how to pull out of Afghanistan. We all know how that went.
The whole idea that this person, who we all knew already, who’d proven herself to be a liability, could be reinvented through a wham-bam PR campaign where Americans were supposed to forget recent history and pretend this was some brand new new ultra competent “joyful warrior” who’d lead us to prosperity and health — was not just disingenuous. It was outright and obviously deceptive. I know plenty of people who were very upset by that. As if we were living in some twilight zon bizarro world. It was weird, wrong, and woefully shameful.
That’s a big reason not only most of America voted for trump, but large swaths of blue states that went to Harris were voting red. There’s quite a telling map going around thst reveals just how close states like California were to adding to Trumps massive electoral count.
I think that’s a lesson for the left. Get you priorities in gear, stop stopping to anything just to stay in power, and be honest and real. Let the Americans decide if they want the real you or not. If you’re a great leader who shares our values, you’ll have a great shot. Likewise, if you an incompetent lazy person who tries to force your values and agenda, you probably won’t win. And that’s the key. It’s not about the candidate. It’s about the country. Put the country first instead of trying to remake it in your own image and that’s a great start.
radarthekat said: » show previous quotes Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
Also, one other point that bears mention:
harris did not have 4 months to introduce herself to the American people.
She had FOUR YEARS.
There was constant reporting that she was not a hard worker, difficult to work with, didn’t do her job, she was famous for her unpreparedness that turned into word salads, and that everything she was put in charge of either did not improve or became far worse such as the border. She famously claimed to be the last decision maker in the room to decide how to pull out of Afghanistan. We all know how that went.
The whole idea that this person, who we all knew already, who’d proven herself to be a liability, could be reinvented through a wham-bam PR campaign where Americans were supposed to forget recent history and pretend this was some brand new new ultra competent “joyful warrior” who’d lead us to prosperity and health — was not just disingenuous. It was outright and obviously deceptive. I know plenty of people who were very upset by that. As if we were living in some twilight zon bizarro world. It was weird, wrong, and woefully shameful.
That’s a big reason not only most of America voted for trump, but large swaths of blue states that went to Harris were voting red. There’s quite a telling map going around thst reveals just how close states like California were to adding to Trumps massive electoral count.
I think that’s a lesson for the left. Get you priorities in gear, stop stopping to anything just to stay in power, and be honest and real. Let the Americans decide if they want the real you or not. If you’re a great leader who shares our values, you’ll have a great shot. Likewise, if you an incompetent lazy person who tries to force your values and agenda, you probably won’t win. And that’s the key. It’s not about the candidate. It’s about the country. Put the country first instead of trying to remake it in your own image and that’s a great start.
According to the CA Secretary of State, California voted 58.6% for Harris and 38.2% for Trump. If you’re looking at a “map going around” that’s characterizing that as close, you should probably find better sources of information.
Pointing out other peoples flaws without reflecting how you are better isn’t going to win an election.
Uh, that was Trump's entire campaign. He didn't reflect on how he'd do better only that he would. OK he did promise deporting millions of people and establishing tariffs so yeah there's that. He might have even promised to rebuild The Wall.
Granted Harris' campaign should have been much better. Still the tried and true strategy of telling lies people would prefer to believe and stoking their biases and fears won the election. It got half the country to elect an authoritarian who's a despot in training. Voting for Trump or not voting at all because the Dems didn't have a candidate I might not have liked was never an option. Maybe Harris wouldn't have turned out to be a great POTUS but she wouldn't come close to being the worst POTUS ever or even a bad one.
Four years from now let's all meet here and list all the ways the US and not very wealthy individuals was so much better under the Grifter in Chief. We can count all the wealth we accumulated like Scrooge McDuck. I predict that will be a very short discussion and an even shorter counting session.
The only people missing those "good ol' days" will be the very wealthy and those happy to see Browns, Blacks, and furriners put in their place. Preferably outside the US. Yes don't forget women barefoot and pregnant as God [insert upside down Bible pic here] intended. But there will be some consolation with the political inertia from Trump's war on Democracy.
I'll take solace knowing I still can afford an iPhone (I understand, Tim really) but will have to sell my Trump NFCs to afford food and shelter. We'll always have soybeans.
radarthekat said: » show previous quotes Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
Also, one other point that bears mention:
harris did not have 4 months to introduce herself to the American people.
She had FOUR YEARS.
According to the CA Secretary of State, California voted 58.6% for Harris and 38.2% for Trump. If you’re looking at a “map going around” that’s characterizing that as close, you should probably find better sources of information.
No one here knew much if anything about Harris before she was at least rumored to get the nominee nod just a five months ago. A vice-president is effectually a nobody unless it's to break a tie in congress. They are there to do the President's bidding and not their own.
Vance is no exception. He says what the President wants him to say, and otherwide will be expected to shut up. We knew what he believed 6 years ago before he was on the ticket, only because the media was recently reporting on it. That's not even close to what he portends to believe now. Who he really is won't be clear until he's not second, or third, or 10th fiddle. The same was true for Kamala Harris.
Had we had a year to get to know her better as a candidate, not who the President expected her to be, we might have had different opinions. Water under the bridge now.
Footnote: Counter to what I had thought from listening to Fox with a side of NewsMax, the popular vote was a near split. Trump’s margin over Harris was 1.62 percent. That’s smaller than any winner since Bush in 2000. So Mandate, shmandate. The last true mandate was Obama's.
Don’t bother trying to put lipstick on a pig. The next few years will be bad for everyone. Cook’s relationship with the man known for stabbing his friends in the back will not make any difference.
Well history of the first four years of the Trump Administration proved you wrong and most Americans, via the recent election, disagree with you.
You should revisit Trump's use of tariffs from his first term. The soybean tariffs were such a disaster for American farmers that Republicans had to do a taxpayer funded bailout of those same farmers. So instead of boosting trade, it depressed trade and created debt levels so high that it could have destabilized American soybean production.
So soybeans, really that’s the issue of concern. Oh boy. 🧒
Don’t bother trying to put lipstick on a pig. The next few years will be bad for everyone. Cook’s relationship with the man known for stabbing his friends in the back will not make any difference.
Well history of the first four years of the Trump Administration proved you wrong and most Americans, via the recent election, disagree with you.
You should revisit Trump's use of tariffs from his first term. The soybean tariffs were such a disaster for American farmers that Republicans had to do a taxpayer funded bailout of those same farmers. So instead of boosting trade, it depressed trade and created debt levels so high that it could have destabilized American soybean production.
So soybeans, really that’s the issue of concern. Oh boy. 🧒
Yes, soybeans. Don't be such an elitist. That market is pretty important to the livelihood of many folks in flyover red-state territory. Retaliatory tariffs are a disaster for the US agricultural industry, which is largely dependent on export sales.
Don’t bother trying to put lipstick on a pig. The next few years will be bad for everyone. Cook’s relationship with the man known for stabbing his friends in the back will not make any difference.
Well history of the first four years of the Trump Administration proved you wrong and most Americans, via the recent election, disagree with you.
You should revisit Trump's use of tariffs from his first term. The soybean tariffs were such a disaster for American farmers that Republicans had to do a taxpayer funded bailout of those same farmers. So instead of boosting trade, it depressed trade and created debt levels so high that it could have destabilized American soybean production.
So soybeans, really that’s the issue of concern. Oh boy. 🧒
That's your takeaway? WTF. It's not the issue of concern. It's a bellwether of an issue of concern as in those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. Then again if they don't understand it in the first place memory will have taught them nothing. Trump has already threatened Mexico with a promised 25% tariff and Mexico says bring it. He thinks everyone will bow to his will. By the way he never made them pay for the wall.
Even when he's in agreement with someone, he's the scorpion/snake on their alligator back. Cook may be able to negotiate a no-tariff deal, but to Trump Tim Apple is a mere vassal same as any other US manufacturer that conducts some aspect of their business outside the US and its territories.
The one thing we can trust about Trump is that he can't be trust. And that he will grift as often as possible. That his ego knows no bounds and that he's no guitar hero. Ok that's four things. I hate to think about it but there's more.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
I am tired of the capitulation to T**** (the loser). He’s a criminal. That half of America voted for a criminal makes no difference3 in his criminal state.
When a corporation bows to a politician, it is called fascism, or state-capitalism. when a political leader determines the winner of an economic sector, it’s fascism.
He was voted in because dems had useless candidates, again. He won by default.
Harris had four months to mount a campaign, raise money and introduce herself and her excellent running mate to the American people. She had a huge uphill battle against a sea of lies told so often that people believed them and the media became exhausted debunking them.
This. It wasn't a sea of lies, it was a tsunami of lies. He won because too many Dems stayed home. Too many Undecideds were selfish.
Main stream media, the news those not addicted to the FAUX News entertainment show watch, was silent on Trump's constant bald face lies. Fact checking was left to online sources that most older people never see. All they wanted to talk about was Biden's performance at the debate. But not one word about Trump's increasingly bizarre performance and memory lapses.
And too many stupid people blindly believed his and RNC's lies targeting their hate and discontent without any basis in truth. They weren't open-minded enough to see his actual character or lack of it. They actually believe life will be better under his rule. His cabinet recommendations don't bother them at all. "Soybeans? That was a one off. Couldn't possibly happen again." Sure.
A huge cloud is headed our way. We had a chance to prepare and ignored it. There is no silver lining for anyone but the 1%, and xenophobes who don't care what it costs, as long has he gets "them" the cause of all their troubles.
Democracy is being stabbed to death and as with Kitty Genovese too many are just ignoring it. And other "patriots" are cheering it on. Trump is escaping justice at every turn and he just gets bolder. His cult members apparently love a good grift.
I read somewhere the following quote that helps me through the day: America will choose the right thing after first trying everything else. I guess this is the trying everything else fase…
Don’t bother trying to put lipstick on a pig. The next few years will be bad for everyone. Cook’s relationship with the man known for stabbing his friends in the back will not make any difference.
Well history of the first four years of the Trump Administration proved you wrong and most Americans, via the recent election, disagree with you.
You should revisit Trump's use of tariffs from his first term. The soybean tariffs were such a disaster for American farmers that Republicans had to do a taxpayer funded bailout of those same farmers. So instead of boosting trade, it depressed trade and created debt levels so high that it could have destabilized American soybean production.
So soybeans, really that’s the issue of concern. Oh boy. 🧒
It was simply a relevant example. Soybeans or not, it was billions of taxpayer dollars pumped into an industry (largely of Trump voters BTW) in order to save it from disappearing.
Maine lobster exports to China were also hit hard through retaliatory tariffs and losing trade to Canada.
Tariffs are often destructive. Trump learned the hard way last time and wasn't even close to winning the trade war he started.
Not least the the US trade deficit wasn't only with China, it was with most of the world. It's just that he targeted China for other reasons.
The question is, second time around, has he really learned the lesson or is he hell bent on repeating past mistakes and letting those who come after him pick up the pieces?
Don’t bother trying to put lipstick on a pig. The next few years will be bad for everyone. Cook’s relationship with the man known for stabbing his friends in the back will not make any difference.
Well history of the first four years of the Trump Administration proved you wrong and most Americans, via the recent election, disagree with you.
You should revisit Trump's use of tariffs from his first term. The soybean tariffs were such a disaster for American farmers that Republicans had to do a taxpayer funded bailout of those same farmers. So instead of boosting trade, it depressed trade and created debt levels so high that it could have destabilized American soybean production.
So soybeans, really that’s the issue of concern. Oh boy. ߧ⦡mp;nbsp;
It was simply a relevant example. Soybeans or not, it was billions of taxpayer dollars pumped into an industry (largely of Trump voters BTW) in order to save it from disappearing.
Maine lobster exports to China were also hit hard through retaliatory tariffs and losing trade to Canada.
Tariffs are often destructive. Trump learned the hard way last time and wasn't even close to winning the trade war he started.
Not least the the US trade deficit wasn't only with China, it was with most of the world. It's just that he targeted China for other reasons.
The question is, second time around, has he really learned the lesson or is he hell bent on repeating past mistakes and letting those who come after him pick up the pieces?
Comments
n a sense it was a sham. Never happened before and the American people never got to choose their candidate on the left. One was forced upon them. In that sense, I feel for my colleagues on the left, despite our differences. Then there is the unbelievable mismanagement and dishonesty. From celebrities getting paid for their “endorsement,” to flushing 1.5 billion dollars down the toilet and ending up in debt after such a short run. I saw the rallies, the appearances, etc. I saw the collateral that was produced and distributed. The unstoppable YouTube commercials that binaries the platform, etc. I heard about the staff taking private jets all over (in spite of climate change narrative). 1.5 billion plus? Really? In just a few months? Who wants that in charge of our economy?
Lesson #1 learned from the left in Europe is to fix the border. To voters everything was better in the cave, village, state, nation... voters are still tribal. Make it a crime to burn the flag, Bible, or constitution - you can get a lot of voters by doing so. Own the flag.
You need to make the economy work. Biden and his "you get a job and you get a job" caused massive inflation.
Move every federal agency to some odd state. Show that you care about those voters. This has been done in several European nations.
Voters are not woke vegans with a focus on LGBTQ-IA issues. Fix the basics. US roads, schools, and healthcare are failing and even if they are not then say they are. Make it an issue. Gretchen Whitmer got elected by fixing roads and pre-schooling.
Please choose someone more likeable than Hillary Clinton, AOC, and Pelosi. Someone that won't blame voters for simply existing like Harris did. JFK, Clinton, and Obama were all likeable politicians.
Main stream media, the news those not addicted to the FAUX News entertainment show watch, was silent on Trump's constant bald face lies. Fact checking was left to online sources that most older people never see. All they wanted to talk about was Biden's performance at the debate. But not one word about Trump's increasingly bizarre performance and memory lapses.
And too many stupid people blindly believed his and RNC's lies targeting their hate and discontent without any basis in truth. They weren't open-minded enough to see his actual character or lack of it. They actually believe life will be better under his rule. His cabinet recommendations don't bother them at all. "Soybeans? That was a one off. Couldn't possibly happen again." Sure.
A huge cloud is headed our way. We had a chance to prepare and ignored it. There is no silver lining for anyone but the 1%, and xenophobes who don't care what it costs, as long has he gets "them" the cause of all their troubles.
Democracy is being stabbed to death and as with Kitty Genovese too many are just ignoring it. And other "patriots" are cheering it on. Trump is escaping justice at every turn and he just gets bolder. His cult members apparently love a good grift.
As for Tim Cook, he has no option but to table dialogue with whoever is running the show politically and in the interest of the company.
It's impossible to please everyone all the time so he will get flac from somewhere whatever he does but that's part and parcel of being a CEO.
Neither Trump nor Biden were fit for office (for different reasons) but of the two, Trump is by far the more reckless candidate on all fronts.
Stormy weather ahead and for multinational CEOs it's all about weathering the storm or somehow convincing Trump to listen to reason.
Using the logic of the Left, the Democrats just lost to an old, corrupt, crass, dishonest, convicted felon.
Pointing out other peoples flaws without reflecting how you are better isn’t going to win an election.
harris did not have 4 months to introduce herself to the American people.
Granted Harris' campaign should have been much better. Still the tried and true strategy of telling lies people would prefer to believe and stoking their biases and fears won the election. It got half the country to elect an authoritarian who's a despot in training. Voting for Trump or not voting at all because the Dems didn't have a candidate I might not have liked was never an option. Maybe Harris wouldn't have turned out to be a great POTUS but she wouldn't come close to being the worst POTUS ever or even a bad one.
Four years from now let's all meet here and list all the ways the US and not very wealthy individuals was so much better under the Grifter in Chief. We can count all the wealth we accumulated like Scrooge McDuck. I predict that will be a very short discussion and an even shorter counting session.
The only people missing those "good ol' days" will be the very wealthy and those happy to see Browns, Blacks, and furriners put in their place. Preferably outside the US. Yes don't forget women barefoot and pregnant as God [insert upside down Bible pic here] intended. But there will be some consolation with the political inertia from Trump's war on Democracy.
I'll take solace knowing I still can afford an iPhone (I understand, Tim really) but will have to sell my Trump NFCs to afford food and shelter. We'll always have soybeans.
Vance is no exception. He says what the President wants him to say, and otherwide will be expected to shut up. We knew what he believed 6 years ago before he was on the ticket, only because the media was recently reporting on it. That's not even close to what he portends to believe now. Who he really is won't be clear until he's not second, or third, or 10th fiddle. The same was true for Kamala Harris.
Had we had a year to get to know her better as a candidate, not who the President expected her to be, we might have had different opinions. Water under the bridge now.
Footnote: Counter to what I had thought from listening to Fox with a side of NewsMax, the popular vote was a near split. Trump’s margin over Harris was 1.62 percent. That’s smaller than any winner since Bush in 2000.
So Mandate, shmandate. The last true mandate was Obama's.
Even when he's in agreement with someone, he's the scorpion/snake on their alligator back. Cook may be able to negotiate a no-tariff deal, but to Trump Tim Apple is a mere vassal same as any other US manufacturer that conducts some aspect of their business outside the US and its territories.
The one thing we can trust about Trump is that he can't be trust. And that he will grift as often as possible. That his ego knows no bounds and that he's no guitar hero. Ok that's four things. I hate to think about it but there's more.
Maine lobster exports to China were also hit hard through retaliatory tariffs and losing trade to Canada.
Tariffs are often destructive. Trump learned the hard way last time and wasn't even close to winning the trade war he started.
Not least the the US trade deficit wasn't only with China, it was with most of the world. It's just that he targeted China for other reasons.
The question is, second time around, has he really learned the lesson or is he hell bent on repeating past mistakes and letting those who come after him pick up the pieces?