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TBH it’s fair to moan about stuff that directly affects you, and you can harasses your mp,set up a think tank to change policy in tufton st , vote in the next election for a group more focussed on Eunification etc 🙂
If was doing any of the things you have suggested he would be telling us all about it
Right now the rise of Trump and everything he has done so far, and the effect that has on emboldening the far right globally feels like a faster burning platform than our relationship with the EU
Unless the direction is halted, there may not be an EU worth rejoining in the years to come.
This, absolutely this, stemming the tide of the far right and the enabling oligarchs needs to be one of the governments main priorities. If our leaders keep burying their heads in the sand and paying lips service to the fascists, any effort to actually help the general population (whether we think that is currently sufficient or not) will be washed away by a flood of far right propaganda and oligarch financed political upheaval
It’s just someone being a dick to get attention from the MAGA wingnuts.
There's a whole crowd of them vying for the favour of the felon and his cronies. The Republican Senate and Congress are basically the Duma, just performative antics in support of Trump rather than Putin.
I see unqualified sex predator and drunk Hegseth got confirmed for Defence. There is really no depths this lot won't plumb.
It is also about creating "enemy of the people" scenarios, then using social media to amplify the hate against the sensible resistance of these idiotic proclamations.
What I don't get is that it's clearly trump 1st country.... nth and people are fine with it.
Bit like the UK where politics has become immediately reactionary and nothing is allowed time to change.
I fear before trump's term ends there will be violent protests.
I'm so disappointed in humanity at the moment it's depressing, deleted Facebook, don't use twitter etc. but even this place is getting is bad.
Back to trump, saw something yesterday where he was talking about aid, one state is getting it straight away "cause they voted for me" but california aid is being held "until some voter terms are agreed to".
BBC reporting that Trump has put an immediate block on all foreign aid to ensure that it meets his criteria of "worth it".
This was BBC report was interesting, I can just imagine the great and good at Davos listening to Trump in a very "WTAF?" way, but they need to be figuring out how we can collectively counter the threat he poses both economically and , just as important, politically. The article suggests there's been a fall out among the tech bros, but I can't see anything to confirm that elsewhere?
BBC News - Davos elite nod along as Trump delivers ultimatum
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq5g3y6dxzgo
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg49jz7v8no
- So we have had those who committed violence on his behalf pardoned.
- He is using rhetoric and proclamations to create enemies within government and the media
- He is now showing that law enforcement will not protect those he disagrees with.
He's removed Fauci's security detail? That puts him in huge danger!
Apparently not, I understand that Fauci will be paying for his own security. It will obviously make him worse off financially though!
Edit : What I find fascinating is how much stuff in the US is down to the personal whims of the sitting president. It is only in this latest handover that it has started to fully sink in with me just how much personal power one person can have in the US.
I find it frankly bizarre and clearly not very democratic.
^ JFC!! WTF is the matter with the man!?
"We're leaving the WHO because they handled COVID badly" so says man who suggested people inject disinfectant as a treatment for COVID.
Apparently not, I understand that Fauci will be paying for his own security. It will obviously make him worse off financially though!
That doesn't really matter, it is what these events signal for those who oppose him, and those who support him (with violence).
it has started to fully sink in with me just how much personal power one person can have in the US.
I find it frankly bizarre and clearly not very democratic.
The presidency was set up as an elected king with an independent legislature and judiciary to provide checks and balances. The UK has evolved massively since then, it used to be much less democratic, with a monarchy that held real power. On paper, the U.S. system is much more democratic, Westminster systems are currently better in my opinion only because there is respect for democratic conventions (which are quite recent innovations.)
That doesn’t really matter, it is what these events signal for those who oppose him, and those who support him (with violence).
Well the point Trump makes when stripping Bolton, Fauci, etc, of their security detail is financial. His argument is that they made a lot of money from the US government and they should now start paying for their own security, which he claims they can afford, instead of expecting the government to pay for it for the rest of their lives.
Obviously his actions are totally vindictive but I can understand how his argument might resonate with many Americans.
I don't think Trump is encouraging or expecting violence to be committed to those whose security detail he has withdrawn because firstly he expects, quite rightly, that they will continue to have security, and secondly because if anything happens to them it will likely damage him politically.
If for example Iran carries out their alleged desire to assassinate Bolton it will be of zero benefit to Trump if they succeed, and it will give his opponents a stick to beat him with.
Edit : Btw for clarity I don't believe that Iran has any intention of assassinating Bolton or any other US politician. But can you imagine if they were able to successfully...... what damage such a breach of security that would do to any US president ?!?!
I can understand how his argument might resonate with many Americans.
Did Trump refuse his state paid secret service security detail for the last 4 years and will he refuse to do so when his presidency ends? Genuine question that I don't know the answer to, but if he didn't then it's simply hypocrisy
^^^ makes him look human.
Apparently not, I understand that Fauci will be paying for his own security. It will obviously make him worse off financially though!
That doesn’t really matter, it is what these events signal for those who oppose him, and those who support him (with violence).
One of his tactics to intimidate others is to punish them by forcing them to spend huge amounts of their own money to defend themselves in court whilst he uses the State to prosecute them, or, as in these cases, to provide their own protection against the mob he has whipped into a violent frenzy.
There's some great interviews with Canadian politicians on YouTube in response to Trumps suggestion that they become part of the US to support tariffs.
I particularly liked the guy (possibly former Canadian PM) who hoped that Trump Tower had a lot of candles ready, given where New York apparently gets it's electricity from.
That would be funny if it ever proved to be true .
Well, what a surprise! Trump's outcome for Gaza (and the West Bank) corresponds exactly with his pal Netanyahu's.
So it turns out that Donald Trump is quite a fan of Keir Starmer.
Trump praises Starmer for doing 'very good job'
That shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone - why wouldn't Donald Trump like Keir Starmer? I am sure they both have quite a lot in common - Trump will want the UK to do as he says and Starmer will want to do as the US tells him, that is the basis of the Special Relationship which Starmer strongly supports after all.
Well that wouldn't have come as a surprise if it wasn't for the fact that only three months Trump was claiming that Starmer's party is "far-left".
So it can only mean that either Trump has gone all far-left himself or, more likely, that he has realised how much in common he has with Starmer.
Donald Trump claim that ‘Far-Left Labour’ is interfering in US election flatly rejected by Cabinet minister
Trump praises Starmer for doing ‘very good job’
Trump just says whatever is convenient to him in the moment. Next week he'll be ranting about Starmer being a radical left-wing socialist if it suits him. His words mean nothing.
Or it might be that Trump is a dick who says whatever comes into his head without checking any facts or even his previous spouting.
Good of him to give you the opportunity to point out Starmers flaws again on yet another thread though.
Or it might be that Trump is a dick who says whatever comes into his head without checking any facts or even his previous spouting.
Oh he's a dick alright but he knows exactly what he is saying when he attacks or praises people. I wouldn't cut him that much slack.
And you don't think that all that grovelling to Trump by David Lammy paying off is newsworthy? Well plenty of news providers seem to disagree, and considering what a dick you apparently think that Trump is I am surprised that you are apparently indifferent.
And you don’t think that all that grovelling to Trump by David Lammy paying off is newsworthy?
Governments of all colours have had to "grovel" on order to try and keep the international world functioning. This is not a Starmer/Lammy thing, not even a UK thing. However much I don't always like them having to do it.
Though if Trump "delivers" half the international **** ups he's threatening, then I can see the wider international order deciding they've had enough and doing their thing without him.
Well considering how much despised on STW Donald Trump is I would be very surprised if punters on here were quite so generous towards a Tory Foreign Secretary grovelling and talking shite about Trump.
But perhaps you are right.
What if the groveling doesn’t work?
What if Trump takes troops into Greenland? Will other world leaders still be searching for ways to compliment him?
https://www.ft.com/content/ace02a6f-3307-43f8-aac3-16b6646b60f6
Many … had hoped his comments about seeking control of Greenland … were a negotiating ploy to gain more influence over the Nato territory … But the call with Frederiksen has crushed such hopes … “The intent was very clear. They want it. The Danes are now in crisis mode”… “The Danes are utterly freaked out by this.”
Not sure this can be won by the leaders of any country… state your position, be polite, be diplomatic, pay him lipservice, hope to get through the next few years with minimum Trump inflicted damage. Don’t attack him, because he sure as hell will hit out in response. But this approach might not, and should not, survive his first outright attack on another country. Pretending he doesn’t mean what he says only works until he acts. Once he does… then what?
https://www.politico.eu/article/united-kingdom-david-lammy-donald-trump-love-bombing/
“The Donald Trump I met was a man who had incredible grace, generosity, very keen to be a good host, very funny, very friendly, very warm about the U.K., our royal family, Scotland,” Lammy said of the incoming Republican.
Who knew that Donald Trump has incredibly grace, is generous, very funny, very friendly, and very warm?
You can be foreign secretary without using shite like that to describe a despot. It's really not necessary and frankly embarrassing.
Every time I hear Lammy embarrassing himself I think of poor old Bernie Grant spinning in his grave.
Governments of all colours have had to “grovel” on order to try and keep the international world functioning.
Ah yes, bowing the knee to facism, that's the latest "grown up politics" capitulation.
It isn't real world practicality, it isn't grown up, it is cowardice, it is pathetic and it is going to lead to us all living our lives on our knees.
Well, what a surprise! Trump’s outcome for Gaza (and the West Bank) corresponds exactly with his pal Netanyahu’s.
Or vice versa.
For clarity I didn't mean to describe Trump as a despot earlier, he might be a lot of things but it wouldn't be fair to describe him as a despot. I meant to say demagogue which imo describes him perfectly, certainly better than David Lammy's most recent description.
It isn’t real world practicality, it isn’t grown up, it is cowardice, it is pathetic and it is going to lead to us all living our lives on our knees.
Of course, there's a line that can't be crossed, and as I stated, I hope that leaders are prepared to stand up to him when they have to.
Janey Godley was right all along
I hope that leaders are prepared to stand up to him when they have to.
Apparently the Prime Minister of Denmark has told him right where to get off in a discussion about Greenland and Trump is already threatening specific targeted economic sanctions against Denmark.
I would think that’s going to be approach to anyone who doesn’t rush to bend the knee. We’re not talking about dealing with a rational actor here, we’re talking about a petulant toddler with a penchant for bullying
CBA
Trump is already threatening him with specific targeted economic sanctions
Her, got to get that right!
He's also suggested enforced repatriation of the entire population of Gaza this afternoon. Astounding, (in a bad way).
Janey Godley was right all along
We knew that all along, but it's good to remind ourselves once in a while
Apparently the Prime Minister of Denmark has told him right where to get off in a discussion about Greenland and Trump is already threatening specific targeted economic sanctions against Denmark.
Trump v1.0 was full of bluster and bullshit, but I'm increasingly concerned that this time he is going to actually do something batshit crazy and splinter NATO.
Imagine putting your name forward to be US president in just under four years time, when senile orange geriatric is supposed to not even be considered after a total of eight years.
Can see USA becoming very insular under Trump v2.0 and the next president having a huge amount of burnt bridges on the international front needing to be built again from the ground up.
Colombia declining to accept repatriations on military flights (and I think Mexico were planning on similar) resulting in sanction / tariff diplomacy from the poorly taxidermied orangutan.
Feels like we (as in the international community) are edging ever closer to definitive "pick a side" territory..
Can see USA becoming very insular under Trump v2.0 and the next president having a huge amount of burnt bridges on the international front needing to be built again from the ground up.
Only if the average Trump voter isn't feeling better off, otherwise his successor will be voted in to carry on.
Brazil are also kicking back after repatriated people arrived in handcuffs.
Feels like we (as in the international community) are edging ever closer to definitive “pick a side” territory..
I agree. Also think the quicker we start to pick our side (please God let Starmer puck the right one) the better. It might calm him down and rein him in before he invades Canada.
I was amused by seeing trump complaining that europe sells loads of cars to the us but buys few of theirs. Simple reason. US cars are not as good as European ones: are unlikely to meets our safety standards and are unsuitable for European roads.
Tarrifs on the way?
Think I'm going to risk visiting a few military personnel forums, maybe a couple of US specific ones.
I'm sure China is going to get very friendly with some pissed off nations very soon.
Trump v1.0 was full of bluster and bullshit
I think at least 1 house was controlled by Democrats to temper his power then. Now Republicans have both. Fingers crossed for the mid terms.
unlikely to meets our safety standards
also used as a way to restrict imports without calling them tariffs. Japan used to do this ruthlessly- standards could change and manufacturers that had vehicles on the water then had to pay Japanese companies to rectify them once they landed before they could sold in Japan
Colombia's position is that they will "receive our fellow citizens on civilian planes, without treating them like criminals" and said migrants must be returned "with dignity and respect". So I'm mostly expecting the US to just do exactly that, since it's such a trivial thing to arrange and the whole military flights thing is just a stunt, and then Colombia will accept the next flight and Trump will declare victory. We've already seen this with Mexico, he hyped up a nonexistant problem, then pretended it'd been solved and that he'd achieved something. What really matters to them isn't winning, it's giving the impression of winning
FB-ATB
Full MemberI think at least 1 house was controlled by Democrats to temper his power then. Now Republicans have both. Fingers crossed for the mid terms.
The other thing was that last time the gop was so divided. Not that they were out in protest or anything but they weren't moving in unity, they'd support things but often not facilitate them etc. Fundamentally he could get votes etc but he lacked an org that actually got things done, he and his team fundamentally had no idea how to work the levels of government. And in the absence of that, Trump's zero attention span meant stuff just didn't happen because it took too much work.
This time round he has much more of that, in fact a ton of the agenda isn't even his, so he only has to agree to things that other people want and those people will then make it happen. Very different.
On Lammy and his response meeting Trump. Again you have see this while remembering Trump is a psychopath. One of the characteristics of psychopathy is that the can be very charming when they want something from someone so its perfectly plausible that what Lammy said was true.
Northwind
Full MemberColombia’s position is that they will “receive our fellow citizens on civilian planes, without treating them like criminals” and said migrants must be returned “with dignity and respect”. So I’m mostly expecting the US to just do exactly that, since it’s such a trivial thing to arrange and the whole military flights thing is just a stunt, and then Colombia will accept the next flight and Trump will declare victory. We’ve already seen this with Mexico, he hyped up a nonexistant problem, then pretended it’d been solved and that he’d achieved something. What really matters to them isn’t winning, it’s giving the impression of winning
Well 5 hours later and it seems I was almost right, it's being reported that Colombia are offering to provide planes in order to end the military flights. This is being presented as "folding" and will let Trump have a victory, while also getting exactly what the Colombian president demanded. Not done and dusted yet though, basically depends how wedded Trump is to his performative cruelty PR stunt of using military planes for no reason.
The maths on this are just hilarious though, according to DOD figures the C17 they sent to Guatemala with 80 people on board cost $250000. The last repatriation flight sent to Guatemala under Biden used a civilian airliner chartered for just under $10000. Watching people who live in mobile homes getting aroused because Trump's blown $3000 per person on a publicity stunt is just amazing. And yet the same people are just as excited at the idea of Colombia picking up the few thousand dollars tab to normalise things again.
Trump v1.0 was full of bluster and bullshit, but I’m increasingly concerned that this time he is going to actually do something batshit crazy and splinter NATO.
Trump v1.0 was president when there was still some semblance of "sensible" old school GOP within the ranks. Look at all the people in his first administration that left and what they now say about him, e.g. Bolton, Tillerson, Barr...
Since then the MAGA purge has happened and there's nobody left to tell him no. In fact the ones he's put in position are very much in lock step with [s]his vision[/s] Putin's vision for pillaging America.
I was amused by seeing trump complaining that europe sells loads of cars to the us but buys few of theirs. Simple reason. US cars are not as good as European ones: are unlikely to meets our safety standards and are unsuitable for European roads.
Tarrifs on the way?
It's not so much a trade imbalance as the US just not really exporting many cars to anywhere. The US makes a lot of cars, but only exports about 5% of what it makes
Never mind Europe as a whole, The little old right hand drive UK - where we seem to think we don't really make cars anymore - exports more cars around the world than the US. 80% of UK made cars are exported. But only a small portion of those go to the US.
Mexico and Canada are the US's largest (and most obvious) export markets but even then the numbers exported are surprisingly small
Last time the industrialists and the markets paid him lip service but not their full support, this time they realise how they can use him fully for their advantage and reshape the world. I don't think he has changed, it is what is queuing up behind him that is the bigger problem, and they are not just targeting the US.
I don't think the world can sit this one out and expect sanity to prevail in 4 years time.
I wonder if the Greenland thing is anything to do with this. Massive profits and costs in the USA
Energy. It has huge fossil fuel potential, while also having the resources needed for renewable energy production and use.
The US makes a lot of cars, but only exports about 5% of what it makes
I suspect that what will be more important will be the sources of components. U.S. manufacturers might assemble a lot of cars, but there will be components from Mexico, Canada, Asia, etc. in them. Components might be shipped across borders multiple times as they are built up into sub-assemblies, assembled into complete cars, and then finally sold.
basically depends how wedded Trump is to his performative cruelty PR stunt of using military planes for no reason
its not PR it’s all part of how the Trump TV show operates,it gets good viewing figures and that’s all that counts can’t beat anything as photogenic as a military plane being loaded with people in chains being returned, it’s not like he’s picking up the bill.
One of his decrees is something along the lines of "no government agency can perform any action that restrict the free speech of an American citizen" I think we all know what that really means.
Can see USA becoming very insular under Trump v2.0 and the next president having a huge amount of burnt bridges on the international front needing to be built again from the ground up.
Or... Can see USA becoming very insular under Trump v2.0, the world's on fire but things are looking good (at least on the surface) for the US itself - control over Greenland, Panama Canal, all the immigrants kicked out, domestic manufacturing is up and the rest of the world is grovelling to avoid tariffs & sanctions. The next president might hate this personally (or not) but has a country full of people hyped up on MAGA rhetoric and recent 'success' and has no real choice but to continue along this path. 10 years down the line the apocalypse comes and we're all living in a world straight out of some dystopian novel.
The horrifying thing is, the way the world is going, this doesn't actually seem so far-fetched.
Been catching up on TRIP US episodes on the Jan 6th attacks
Apparently a US general had to effectively go rogue and use a back channel to a counterpart in China to assure them they wouldn't let Trump launch a nuclear attack at them, such was their concern about how unhinged he was behaving
I fear those checks and balances are long gone now
Going for the prosecutors/investigators of the those great Patriots who were trying to stop the steal of the election now 🙁
And paused all federal grant payments.
This is absolutely wild. He's shooting America in the foot, the face and the back.
Theres lots of little shenanigans going on. Amongst all the big brush annoucements that may or may not actually happen - executive orders are really just a public statement of intent - it make him look like a king but unless he actually does the work to follow these things up then nothing (in some cases absolutely nothing) actual happens. Theres a lot of the 'flooding the field with shit' and it's going to be interesting to see just how long they can keep pumping the handle. There must be a theoretical limit on the number of sharpies if he throws each one to crowd after he signs something
But theres some devil in details. All the noise about DEI masks that the Equal Opportunity act is gone. The Civil Rights Act hasn't been discussed, threatened or altered, but all the mechanisms resources that ensure the ciivil rights act actually functions have been removed.
Theres also plenty of lack of attention to detail. In the spat over returning migrants to Colombia (the country) an emergency 25% tariff has been issued against Columbia - the female personification of the United States
I'm doom-spiraling about this now. With them clearly implementing Project 2025, which is basically a fascist playbook designed to create a Christian Nationalist dictatorship in the US, the question is how can it be prevented? One the one hand surely there's enough decent sensible people in the US to push back, on the other hand he got elected in the first place, he's busy dismantling government machinery he can't directly control, he has social media on his side and well Nazi Germany happened as a lesson from history.
As I've said before, as long as the US economy stays strong he/they will likely get away with everything they want, including finding a means to extend his presidency or interfering with fair elections (the Republicans are already masters of gerrymandering). And with other countries bending to his will and a growing supply of slave labour from immigrant interment camps (it won't be long before there's an executive order for that if the price of food starts rising when they remove illegal immigrants from farms), why wouldn't it remain strong?
I think we are at the start of a tipping point, if such a thing is remotely metaphorically possible.
Yes, he's sending out hundreds of orders that may or may not come to fruition, there will be legal challenges and simple logistical inertia before many can begin to be implemented. But throw enough shit at a wall and some of it will stick. To implement a lot of it some serious human rights will need to be thrown out the window, and with the Project 2025/Nazification of the agenda and the press there will be enough MAGA nutters who won't care and plenty of rational Americans who will.
"Sane" governments need to get their ducks in a row to decide at what point they will decide Trumps government has gone "rogue" and start to isolate the US. We can't keep sucking up to avoid tariffs or avoid human rights abuses. He has a couple of years at least before the American economy risks declining enough to impact his supporters, realistically he's probably got his full term. As far as I'm aware, there is no redneck type Democrat militia movement to offer a physical threat to his policies, it will all be challenged by the courts, which is a two year(?) process before the Supreme Court will finally have to decide between their political and legal obligations, which I think is when things will come to head with public protests and the Trump state response to them.
That has ended up being a bit of a brain-shart rather than a useful addition to the discussion
It isn't just about resisting project25 in the US, the musks, bezos and other industrialists want the same in europe as well. This isn't one nations problem, it is all of our problems, what we are seeing in the US is coming here soon.
I was amused by seeing trump complaining that europe sells loads of cars to the us but buys few of theirs. Simple reason. US cars are not as good as European ones: are unlikely to meets our safety standards and are unsuitable for European roads.
There was a lot of work done around the TTIP negotiations to figure out what should be rules and what should be more like guidelines. There's a lot of stuff that doesn't really make sense on a modern car but is still a requirement.
e.g. indicators. Those tiny little 50p sized repeaters on the wings date back to the 70's when indicators were a separate lens on the front and rear of a very boxy shaped car and couldn't be seen from the sides. These days cars are far more rounded and the indicators warp around the corners. So is it really necessary to have them rather than accept that cars that meet the US rules that just say the indicators have to be visible from the side are just as good?
Going the other way, auto diming LED headlights weren't legal in the US so exported EU cars had to have different headlights.
Plenty of stuff wouldn't get through either way but there was a lot of stuff that was really just fairly pointless red tape.
As I’ve said before, as long as the US economy stays strong he/they will likely get away with everything they want,
Theres a chance that could actually be his undoing. The American economy that he as inherited is strong - the dialogue he has been promoting is that it isn't. The actions he wants to take to 'fix' an economy that isn't actually broken are a medicine for a misdiagnosis. Any medicine can be poison if you use it in the wrong circumstances.
To sell this diagnosis the GOP has had to point to things they think voters can feel like eggs costing more than they used to. We're talking about something that boomed in price to an eye watering 25c each. Less obvious is that Americans have been so worried about making ends meet that they've bought more boats than ever before. I think boats are pretty far down most peoples list of necessary expenditures if they are having to make tough choices. So whatever people have been saying about the economy their actions - how much and on what people are spending money on - reveals a different truth.
But if the measure for success or failure is the price of box of eggs. Then a 25% punitive tariff of Colombia is going to be felt in much the same way on a cup of coffee. Terrorising migrant labour to the extent that 75% of some food producers labour have stayed home for fear of arrest is going to see all sorts of groceries rocket in price as produce rots in the fields.
The actions he wants to take to ‘fix’ an economy that isn’t actually broken are a medicine for a misdiagnosis
True but the people pulling his strings (I don't for a moment believe he's anything but a useful idiot with weird charisma for smarter people with an agenda) are already walking back on mass tariffs etc. All they need is countries and companies to individually decide they have to acquiesce to at least some of his demands (to address any trade imbalance, to on-shore manufacturing etc.) and I can't see the US economy doing anything but growing. If it were just Trump planning and executing this strategy I'd be confident he'd screw it up enough to get impeached
Less obvious is that Americans have been so worried about making ends meet that they’ve bought more boats than ever before
My sister in law lives in the states and is by no means a trump supporter of any shade (quite the opposite) and, as a clinical psychologist, has a reasonable job, she said that the increase in prices for food and basics has been very noticeable over the last few years. This isn't a pop by her at Biden's economic policies just that price rises have been noticeable and if you're not on a decent wage people are being squeezed - regardless of boat sale levels.
I think that (having spoken to family a lot and done plenty of food shopping there) food prices are more volatile in the US than they are here, perhaps there are many reasons for that. They get a lot of their produce for example from within the country, which represents one producer area so a bad harvest in California or a badly timed hurricane in Florida can have a large impact. Also fuel is more volatile because a greater portion of the price is the actual fuel price and less is tax - and most of the food comes by road. They also have more smaller local supermarket chains which can't benefit from the scale that our 'big four' can. These are just my assumptions.
she said that the increase in prices for food and basics has been very noticeable over the last few years. This isn’t a pop by her at Biden’s economic policies just that price rises have been noticeable and if you’re not on a decent wage people are being squeezed – regardless of boat sale levels.
THe thing is - everyone seems to be speaking for other people when they talk about price rises and being squeezed becuase they think their own circumstances are exceptional.
There has been inflation - everywhere - becuase of wars, sanctions and interrupted supply lines. In the US there has been marked inflation that everyone notices and acknowledge impact everyone, people see a grocery item or a gas pump price and know that those things cost more than they did weeks/months/years ago. And there has been marked wage rises. People don't feel that their pay increase is the same thing. The see eggs go up in price and thing 'eggs cost more' and they see their wage packet increase and think 'I'm worth more'. Seeing a price increase 'feels' like a shared burden, getting a pay increase feels like a personal congratulation.
Wage increases have in general outpaced inflation in the US but whether you're personally benefited from a wage increase you can't see everyone else's wage increases. So the price increases are a much easier narrative to articulate and you can get both sides of the political divide to amplify it. Selfishly driven republicans can complain that they shouldn't have to pay more for something and social concerned democrats can voice a concern that people might not be able to afford price increases. And they can both genuinely feel those things to be true even though the economy is flourishing, because at the economy's highest highs and lowest lows there will always people people who are struggling to get by. But the way money is flowing in the US economy reveals that many people are acting in contradiction to the sentiments they are expressing.
So it turns out that Columbia did not capitulate in its spat with Donald Trump, it seems to have been "fake news" put out by the Whitehouse.
Instead of Colombians being transported in United States military cargo planes in shackles and treated like criminals, which I believe was the issue, the US government has now agreed to allow the Colombian government to transport them with dignity in passenger airliners
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgly1we7gx4o
TBH dropping in someone else’s country in a military plane with a load of that countries people in shackles like something out of the slaving ages probably isn’t the greatest way to make friends 🙂
And paused all federal grant payments.
un****ingbelievable. All states have now lost access to Medicaid which provides healthcare to around 80 million Americans, nearly half of which are children.
The (general federal) freeze is intended to prevent "use of Federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies," according to Matthew Vaeth, director of Office of Management and Budget.
but things are looking good (at least on the surface) for the US itself
I don’t have a crystal ball but it doesn’t look like things are likely to go well, economically, for the US, at least if previous times when countries have tried the high tariff approach is anything to go by. I’ve made the assumption that he’s going to tank the economy, Liz Truss style