Senate Republican: Skeptics of Trump trade policy should be encouraged

[DonViejo]

BY MEGAN KELLER - 12/02/18 09:32 AM EST

Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) said Sunday that skeptics of President Trump's trade policies should be encouraged by recent developments.

"People like me who’ve really been concerned about the president’s stated trade policy can take some encouragement about what happened in the last couple days," Blunt told "Fox News Sunday."

"The signing of the U.S.-Canada-Mexico trade agreement, that's a big step that six months ago or even just a few weeks ago we were concerned we would not be making that kind of progress."

"And on the Chinese front...we need more specifics here," Blunt said, regarding the ceasefire reached with the U.S. in what has been an escalating trade war.
"This has hurt a lot of Missouri farm families and farm families all over the country, but the president's goal to get China in a better and fairer place on trade is the right goal."

more
https://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/419321-blunt-skeptics-of-trump-trade-policy-should-be-encouraged

[yardwork]

1. Some double-talk from Blunt there.

Blunt appears to be saying that skeptics of Trump's trade policies should be encouraged because Trump is backing off on the policies.

[Jarqui]

2. There's a fool on the tiller steering trade policy

who would try to perform cosmetic surgery with a jack hammer.

Tariffs without studying the problems to develop a strategy, without nuance in negotiation through diplomacy, without assessment of consequences, etc is akin to the jack hammer. Tariffs are like intimidation when managing people - they're a last resort - not the first thing you do.

Bill Clinton swash-buckled NAFTA and it probably cost his wife the presidency because they jumped in without attempting to properly transition the workforce and industry ahead of it to buffer the damages. The Rust Belt got blind-sided.

Trump is a fool and he shouldn't be doing anything like this because he is simply not able.