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Well, Well …. Well!
Well … what do you know about this? How about this?
I wanted to use the outstanding headline from the National Review article appearing today by Dr. Victor Davis Hanson, but this is a Rico conversation about this article so I felt that that would be too much of a copy and paste. Therefore, I went with my reaction to this article as the title for this conversation. Here is the esteemed Dr. Hanson’s article title …
And the gripping subheading …
A new consensus is emerging, and it sounds a lot like what the president has said all along.
The unconventional President Trump strikes again. All of the naysayers have spouted endlessly about his lack of vision, ideology, or even his ignorance about matters of foreign policy and trade. But they have not yet acknowledged that maybe, just maybe, he does have some idea of what he is doing and that the results of such a foreign trade policy have been universally good and very beneficial to America. Despite real wins already with South Korea, Mexico, Canada, the EU, and even CHI-na itself, the conventional “wisdom” (sic) has been that our President is a dolt and a detriment.
It seems to this observer that the historical conventional wisdom and the previous trade policy approach proceeded with extreme caution and a frightened, timid, and nervous perspective, intent on merely keeping the status quo and not rocking the boat with China. And this same crowd opposed our President from the get-go on his vision. But, but, but … it seems that the times … they have been a-changing. Quietly. No blaring headlines for sure. However, VDH has observed it and helpfully points out this extraordinary and “revolutionary” change afoot in our nation’s foreign policy with China:
Read recent essays on China. Visit think-tank public symposia. Hear out military analysts. Talk with academics and media pundits. Listen to Silicon Valley grandees. Watch Senate speeches and politicians interview on television.
The resulting new groupspeak is surreal. If one excises the word “Trump,” what follows is a seemingly revolutionary recalibration of attitudes toward China that more or less echo Trump’s voice in the wilderness and often crude and shrill warnings dating back from the campaign trail of 2015.
We keep hearing about more progress in the current talks with China. And concessions by them. My kind of Revolution, baby!
One might even be so bold as to say we are “Winning.”
Published in Economics, Politics
Those oh so wise pundits are now demanding that Trump must demand that North Korea agree to give up their nukes immediately. So many demands, so little wisdom.
Columbo,
Well well well …
Regards,
Jim
Best video ever.
Who else but President Donald Trump could unite the democrats in cheers of USA, USA, USA!
https://video.foxnews.com/v/5811233552001/#sp=show-clips
Yup.
For the record, the original Talking Heads video was choreographed/directed by Toni Basil of “Hey Mickey” fame–note white background for dance steps in both videos. Yes, I once spent too much time on this stuff.
James, Awesome video! Amazing how so many lines from that old Talking Heads song are relevant kinda sorta today.
Yes, there is something so different about that song, something very simple but very creative.
I really don’t like the insertion of the Trump head in all these videos- something creepy about it. I’m not interested in seeing him as a star or a personality with all those expressions set to music, but they are funny, maybe because people hate him so much.
I find it interesting that two huge sectors of the US economy will benefit significantly from any progress on intellectual theft by Chi-na are filled with people who hate Trump: Hollywood, whose content is being pirated en masse (try that here and the FBI (!) will getcha – read the warnings ) and Silicon Valley with their software.
You know @franco, I do agree with this. I would never produce (if I could) one these, in line with your personal reaction.
But I do laugh my arse off at them! Because they are funny because people hate him so much.
I don’t worship, idolize or make him out to be a star without blemish. But I detest the hate for him.
This is the reaction to that. Symmetry. Physics. To each and every action …
Ah, I so hope you are right and that this country can finally acknowledge Trump’s successes in foreign policy.
Breath-taking hypocrisy when compared to their swooning of the capitulation of Leftist administrations.
That is exactly right. Perhaps it’s hard to articulate a position of refinement. Rhetoric prefers black and white positions. Trump is not anti-free market or anti-free trade. Trump is offering a more complicated view. The problem with the absolute free trade position is that there is a limit – a knee in the curve – where benefits from free trade start declining and the country starts incurring more detriments. Closing factories in one’s country has a negative impact on those employed. You can argue they will get other jobs, but blue collar people are not skilled for those other jobs. So absolute free trade is not beneficial. You don’t want absolute free trade, you want enough free trade that benefits the country while minimizing the detrimental effects. That’s very hard to articulate for mass consumption.