Isn’t it funny — funny sad, not funny ha-ha — how politicians in Washington resort to the use of politispeak to make it appear they are keeping their promises while simultaneously lying to our faces?
When they promise to “cut” taxes, they do so by raising them by 5% instead of 10%, and then crow about the 50% tax break they gave us. Or take government spending . . . please! Instead of truly making cuts to their addictive spending habits, big government progressives in both parties make small, incremental increases to spending. Trillion dollar deficits are still the result, but at least it’s not as bad as it would have been had they not “reined in spending.”
If you understand the analogy I’m using, you’ll also understand how the Dealmaker-in-Chief’s recent claim that he has negotiated a “winning” new trade deal with China is nothing of the sort.
Originally proposed back in October, Trump’s “phase one” deal postponed a tariff increase from 25% to 30% on about $250 billion of imported goods in exchange for promises from China to enforce intellectual property rights, open Chinese markets, limit subsidies to China’s state-owned businesses, and purchase more agricultural goods from American farmers.
With Trump’s track record when it comes to keeping his word as the dealmaker, China refused to sign the deal at the time due to the possible tariff increases along with Trump’s decision a few months prior to their October meeting to officially designate China as a currency manipulator.
But that was then and this is now. With the 2020 presidential primary season now underway, and with recent news about how his trade war lies are killing the economy he claims is the “greatest in history,” Trump is resorting to the deceptive practices I mentioned earlier.
Using a 2.0 version of his October proposal, Trump has agreed to a new trade deal with China that will remove tariffs in exchange for dropping his designation of China as a currency manipulator — an unfounded claim to begin with. There’s only one problem: he won’t be removing the tariffs, at least not until after the 2020 election. Until then, $360 billion in scheduled tariffs will be kept in place, and even then “there is no agreement for future reductions in tariffs” according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
Besides being an obvious lie meant to hide his broken campaign promises, one has to wonder if Trump is attempting to do with China what he tried to do with Ukraine when he attempted a quid pro quo arrangement with President Zelensky.
In the days leading up to the October meeting between Trump and Chinese leaders, the House had begun the impeachment hearings. In an impromptu Q&A with reporters about the hearings, Trump was asked about his so-called “perfect call” with Zelensky and his demand that the Ukrainian president investigate Joe Biden in exchange for financial aid to the troubled country. Not only did Trump defend his attempted extortion, he stated that China should also investigate Biden.
Is Trump looking for China to help him with his re-election in exchange for ending the trade war? Is that why he’s keeping tariffs in effect until after the 2020 election? Things that make you go hmmm…
As most farmers struggle to survive despite $28 billion and counting in government welfare, with other farmers going bankrupt, and with the manufacturing industry he promised to revive dropping to the lowest levels in a decade, Trump is bragging about striking a trade deal with China while not striking one at all.
Washington politispeak at it’s finest.
David Leach is the owner of the Strident Conservative.
Follow the Strident Conservative on Twitter and Facebook.
Subscribe to receive podcasts of radio commentaries: iTunes | Stitcher | Tune In | RSS
