usmbguest5318
Gold Member
- Jan 1, 2017
- 10,923
- 1,635
It's recently come to light that when Trump remarked to the Canadian Prime Minister that the U.S. had a trade deficit with Canada, Trump didn't know what he was talking about.
I wish I could say "you've got to be kidding me," but I cannot. I've heard the audio of him saying it (I can't find the audio online, but I can find the transcript) and I've seen the tweet in which he reiterates the claim.
My God! The man knew damn well he had no idea of what he was talking about! The man engaged with the Prime Minister of Canada in a conversation about U.S.-Canadian trade and didn't so much as know whether the U.S. had a trade surplus or deficit with Canada!
What kinds of things might Trump, had he "done his homework" prior to the meeting?
Now, I don't know how things work in your world, dear readers, but in mine, people charged with representing the firm would get fired almost immediately (!) were they to appear in a negotiation discussion/meeting and be as abjectly unprepared as Trump was when he met and discussed trade with Trudeau. The reason would be for simply not performing a material part of their job.
In what other situations has Trump been in which he was grossly unprepared? I fear the meeting he aims to have with KJU will be one. Trump's lack of depth on the issues that concern the U.S. makes it easy for leaders of other nations to not only take advantage of him, thus America, in negotiations and do so in such a resounding way that Trump doesn't even realize they have done [2], but also, insofar as their preparedness makes it patently clear to them just how ignorant on a given topic he is, his subject matter ignorance, intellectual torpor, and personal hubris diminishes the U.S.'s credibility and role in leading the world, something China, Russia and Germany have been quick to notice and commence to avail to their advantage. As far as I'm concerned, that alone is enough grounds to remove Trump from office.
Note:
“Trudeau came to see me. He’s a good guy, Justin. He said, ‘No, no, we have no trade deficit with you, we have none. Donald, please,’ ” Trump said, mimicking Trudeau, according to audio of the private event in Missouri obtained by The Washington Post. “Nice guy, good-looking guy, comes in — ‘Donald, we have no trade deficit.’ He’s very proud...
“... So, he’s proud. I said, ‘Wrong, Justin, you do.’ I didn’t even know. ... I had no idea. I just said, ‘You’re wrong.’ "
(Source)
“... So, he’s proud. I said, ‘Wrong, Justin, you do.’ I didn’t even know. ... I had no idea. I just said, ‘You’re wrong.’ "
(Source)
I wish I could say "you've got to be kidding me," but I cannot. I've heard the audio of him saying it (I can't find the audio online, but I can find the transcript) and I've seen the tweet in which he reiterates the claim.
My God! The man knew damn well he had no idea of what he was talking about! The man engaged with the Prime Minister of Canada in a conversation about U.S.-Canadian trade and didn't so much as know whether the U.S. had a trade surplus or deficit with Canada!
What kinds of things might Trump, had he "done his homework" prior to the meeting?
- He could have known the US Trade Representative's office says the U.S. has a surplus. (Source)
- He could have known he U.S.' two databases that track trade surpluses/deficits don't agree on the matter: International Trade Commission's database's data indicates the US has a trade deficit with CAN, whereas the National Bureau of Economic Research's database's data indicates the opposite. (Source)
- He could have known that the Canadian Statistics Agency issued a report that explains the discrepancy between their tabulation and that of the U.S. [1] Knowing that he could have at least read the damn thing, he'd have known the reason for the discrepancy.
Now, I don't know how things work in your world, dear readers, but in mine, people charged with representing the firm would get fired almost immediately (!) were they to appear in a negotiation discussion/meeting and be as abjectly unprepared as Trump was when he met and discussed trade with Trudeau. The reason would be for simply not performing a material part of their job.
In what other situations has Trump been in which he was grossly unprepared? I fear the meeting he aims to have with KJU will be one. Trump's lack of depth on the issues that concern the U.S. makes it easy for leaders of other nations to not only take advantage of him, thus America, in negotiations and do so in such a resounding way that Trump doesn't even realize they have done [2], but also, insofar as their preparedness makes it patently clear to them just how ignorant on a given topic he is, his subject matter ignorance, intellectual torpor, and personal hubris diminishes the U.S.'s credibility and role in leading the world, something China, Russia and Germany have been quick to notice and commence to avail to their advantage. As far as I'm concerned, that alone is enough grounds to remove Trump from office.
Note:
- Seems to me that before we go "fixing" NAFTA, it'd be in the U.S., CAN, and MEX's interest to agree upon one or several ways to calculate the balance of trade among themselves. Then we wouldn't have to bicker about whether there is or isn't a deficit or surplus between any two members of the treaty. After all, one of each nation is the other's largest or second largest customers. It's in each nation's interest to have a common basis of measuring the sales their firms make to one another.
- Need I remind anyone of the stupid-ass idea that Trump got from Putin about partnering on, of all things, cybersecurity?!? Trump was so completely bamboozled by that suggestion that he actually had the gall to publicly propose doing so and considered the idea/prospect of doing so as something of an accomplishment! And what pearl most recently became public? This one: Russia Hacks U.S. Nuclear Plants, Infrastructure 'Hundreds Of Thousands Of Times A Day,' Secretary Perry Warns | Stock News & Stock Market Analysis - IBD