Donald Trump would like to personally run the economy.
In his second term, the president has attempted to bend the Federal Reserve to his will, threatened individual countries and even companies with tariffs, and gotten government stakes in major companies.
The Iran war is showing the costs of that approach, quite literally. Six months into a conflict Trump chose to launch and has chosen to continue, higher gas prices are hurting Americans. Since gas fuels the rest of the economy, that’s raising prices on everything from groceries to plane tickets.
But the war is not the only way Trump’s strongman economics are hurting consumers. His tariffs have invited retaliation from Canada. His interventions in government regulations haven’t led to lower prices on concert tickets. And his attempts to extract political favors from companies have left them scrambling ahead of expected Democratic wins in Congress.
In the end, strongman economics eventually fail both the strongman and the economy. Republicans have long argued that the economy works best when the invisible hand of the market works its magic. Democrats basically agreed, with the addition of a few more institutional guardrails and consumer protections.
Trump’s break with those traditions is costing him politically. But it’s costing the average American even more.
Canada punches back
As promised, Canada responded dollar-for-dollar to Trump’s tariffs on $20 billion in Canadian goods. Many of the levies target products from states where Republicans are in tight races. The decision is not risk-free for Canada’s economy and the retaliatory tariffs could hurt it more than the U.S. Then again, as The New York Times reports, the basis for Trump’s tariffs relies on a never-before-used part of a nearly 100-year-old authority that might not stand up in court, though it appears no one has yet filed suit.
Corporate America remembers Democrats
Companies that cozied up to Trump are now worrying about Democrats regaining control. Many eagerly donated to Trump’s campaign and later his ballroom and stood behind him at his inauguration and at state dinners. Now they’re concerned about subpoenas and Congressional investigations should Democrats win in November and have started to reach across the aisle and even make bigger campaign contributions. Looking at you, Big Tech.
Trump pushed to settle antitrust suit
Trump came into office promising to fight higher prices. According to The Wall Street Journal, a year later, he reportedly told the Justice Department to settle the antitrust case against Live Nation. The story, citing people familiar with the matter, includes lots of details including Trump’s meeting with Live Nation’s CEO to talk about better bookings at the Kennedy Center, how the CEO brought on Trump’s personal attorney who had little antitrust experience as well his former adviser Kellyanne Conway and how LiveNation’s in-house attorney and DOJ’s co-lead attorney were largely out of the loop.
A White House spokesperson told the Journal that the president “has not weaponized the Department of Justice against his political foes or used it to help his friends. The Department is focused on restoring law and order and keeping Americans safe.”
States step up on social media
Look past the billion-dollar settlement negotiated between Meta and state attorneys general to the changes in how children will use Instagram and Facebook — something Congress repeatedly failed to do. Yet at the same time, Meta remains the biggest spender from the tech industry actively lobbying to limit artificial intelligence regulation, especially at the state level. Perhaps it’s a sign the company is willing to move on after years of fighting over regulation of social media and kids because today, it’s all about AI.
AI: ‘There is no plan’
Bill Gates released a 12-page, nearly 5,800-word warning that The Wall Street Journal described as a “stark warning about AI’s risks to employment and the human condition, saying that companies were barreling ahead with the technology with no larger plan for the massive upheaval it would cause.”
Three years ago, he was more optimistic. Today? “There is no plan to ease the entry into the AI era.” His essay focuses on job losses, the loss of critical thinking and how taxes could play a role in creating a safety net for those who lose their jobs due to AI.
And it’s the weekend…
I’m going to spend some (more) time infinite scrolling about Dolly Parton, catching up on all the great stories about her while listening to her music.
The post The Iran war is showing the costs of Trump’s strongman economics appeared first on MS NOW.
Author: Source Author
From MS Now.
Leave a Reply