***. Adam Smith: Progress depends on society being “well governed.” The optimal locus of the “government” is individual ethics. An ethical person is just; plays by the rules; makes others feel secure. But in a society of less than angels, society requires an efficient, effective institutional government to police the behavior of those few who would not otherwise play by the rules. [ Ryan Patrick Hanley, editor: “Adam Smith” ]
This post presents excerpts from “When Future Historians Write About the Fall of American Economic Power, Will Trump Be the Turning Point?” [ Thom Hartmann; The Progressive Populist; March, 2026 ]:
8] “..twice in the past 12 months the value of the dollar has taken a huge hit, in both cases because the world freaked out at Trump’s insanity and started to sell dollars.”
9] “..he went to Davos and blithered through a semi-coherent speech that left international leaders wondering about his sanity, his judgment, and his reliability…the judgment and reliability of the United States itself. Trump’s own economic illiteracy and impulse-driven policies…have damaged the value of our currency and may have put the status of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency at risk.”
***. “Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”
[ Dr. Martin Luther king, Jr. ]
2]. “For more than a hundred years, the United States has been the cornerstone of international economic stability. The independence of our central bank [the “Fed”] has been a part of it, as has the strength of the dollar…And now Trump and the GOP are threatening it all. Trump has added $2 trillion to our national debt in the past 12 months, and he’s on course to do it again [or worse] this year.”
11] “The big impact..could come if international investors and other countries conclude it’s unlikely that the US will be able to repay our debts. Ever since the Bush Crash of 2008 revealed how deregulation had corrupted our banking system, foreign investors holdings of US debt have steadily declined.”
*** “The American people are a very generous people ans will forgive almost any weakness, with the possible exception of stupidity.” [ Will Rogers ]
1] “America’s economic system has never been fair or perfect, but for more than a century it rested on basic guardrails that kept instability in check and allowed us to fight for progress and win. Those guardrails are now being stripped away by policies that favor wealth and power over accountability and long-term stability.”
*** “Dictatorships foster oppression, dictatorships foster servitude, dictatorships foster cruelty; more abominable is the fact that they foster idiocy.” [ Jorge L. Borges ]
3] “When Ronald Reagan came into office in 1981, our national debt was less than one trillion dollars, because every president from FDR to Truman to Eisenhower to Kennedy to Johnson to Nixon to Ford to Carter had worked to pay down the roughly 140% of GDP debt we ran up fighting World War II.”
4] “Across those same presidencies, America had also built a broad and strong safety net for its citizens, primarily through the New Deal and Great Society programs. And Republicans hated it all, particularly because it’d been paid for with a 74% to 91% income tax on billionaires and a 50% income tax on corporate profits.”
5] “..over the course of the Reagan, Bush, and Trump tax cuts and two illegal wars, four Republican presidents managed to add more than $37 trillion to our national debt.”
***. “I need to pay higher taxes. I’ve paid, in absolute, more taxes over ten billion [dollars], than anyone else, but, you know, the government should require the people in my position to pay significantly higher taxes.” [ Bill Gates ]
6] “The grimmest consequence of this is that we’re spending. $1.2 trillion every year on interest payments on our national debt. That’s money that could otherwise have gone to create a national healthcare system, provide free college education, or help people buy their first homes. but, instead, is going to payments to wealthy investors here and abroad who hold US Treasuries.”
7] “Up until recently, we were able to pull this off because the US Dollar has been the world’s reserve currency for the better part of a century….here’s a huge worldwide demand for our currency….that, in turn, is essentially a subsidy for Americans of all stripes: lower mortgage rates, lower car loan rates, easier credit, and US-based companies can more easily finance growth and new product development.”
***. “No society can..be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of..members are poor and miserable..It is but equity..that they who feed, clothe, and lodge the whole body of the people, should have..and share of the produce of their own labor as to themselves tolerably well fed, clothed, and lodged.” [ Adam Smith ]
10. “As the dollar drops in value, that’s ultimately reflected in everything imported becoming more expensive [which drives inflation],..”
12]. “Trump’s willy-nilly tariffs, often used to extort other nations into giving his family a new hotel or golf course, his constant lies on the international stage about everything from renewable energy to our “right” to invade a foreign country and capture its leader, to his killing fishermen off the coast of Venezuela and his current threats against Iran, all argue against trusting us.”
13]. “Trump’s already destroyed our soft power by gutting USAID, ruined our relationships with our allies by embracing Vladimir Putin and trash-talking NATO and the EU, and now is shaking confidence in our remaining democratic allies by imposing police-state tactics on Blue cities.”
***. “Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all…The nation which indulges toward another an habitual hatred or habitual fondness is in some degree a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affections, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest.”
[ George Washington ]
14] “The BRICS. [Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa] countries are on the move, with Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the UAE having recently joined in an agreement to use their alternative currencies instead of dollars.”
15]. “India and the UAE are now trading in rupees and the dirham, and China is using yuan to buy natural gas from the UAE. China has almost entirely abandoned trhe dollar for their trade with Russia, the UAE, and Iran. Like South Africa, Brazil has increasingly been using the real and the yuan to settle bilateral trade with China, bypassing the US dollar.”
*** “Our policy is directed not against any country or doctrine, but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos. Its purpose should be the revival of a working economy in the world so as to permit the emergence of political and social conditions in which free institutions can exist.” [George Marshall; U.S. Secretary of State, on the Marshall Plan]
{NOTE: On this critique of Trump’s economic policies – AGAIN, to be fair – ask YOURSELF does his policy satisfy the Founders” TEST: does it ‘..promote the general Welfare..”????? Will America be better off from Trump’s rhetoric and actions????? Do Trump policies contain the wisdom of the “Marshall plan”??? The wisdom of several presidents before him in reducing the national debt????? Are YOU and YOUR children and YOUR grandchildren going to be better off because of Trump policies????? Expert, world-wide, fact-based economic analysis says YOU, America, will NOT be more prosperous and fair because of Trump’s STUPIDITY and INCOMPETENCE.]
Tag: china
The Trump DICTATORSHIP – Stupidity,, Cruelty, Corruption, Craziness, LXXXXV – The new “Trump-class”. Battleships !!!!!!!!!!!
*** “Ignorance, when it is voluntary, is criminal.” [ Samuel Johnson ]
Trump’s 2025 “Christmas gift” to America is……..a new ‘golden fleet’. of naval warships featuring mammoth 35,000 ton. “Trump-class” battleships !!! This is a stereotypical Trump project because it displays. his STUPIDITY, his HISTORICAL IGNORANCE, his ARROGANCE.
In rendering this judgment, please consider the following pieces of evidence:
1] America turned the tide of World War II in the Pacific at the battle of Midway. American planes sunk four Japanese carriers. The Japanese never recovered.
2] The mighty German battleship, the Bismarck, was disabled by a British Swordfish torpedo, then sunk by naval gunfire.
3] In December, 1941, the Japanese sank the British battleship “Prince of Wales” and battlecruiser “Repulse” by airplane attacks.
4]. Ukraine has forced the Russian Black Sea fleet to retreat to a more remote Russian port further away from the war zone. – by using drones !!!
5]. The biggest warships in the current Chinese navy are “Type 055 Renhai-class” destroyers, often called cruisers – which are listed at 13,000 tons.
Read the above again. Now. – think about Trump’s 35,000 ton TARGETS.
Read the following analysis from retired Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery: He said. “the ships are behemoths ill-suited to confront China”…. said the Navy instead needed a dispersed fleet of minimally manned or unmanned ships with large weapons magazines to combat the Chinese threats at sea. “These ‘battleships’ will achieve none of these tactical goals,” said Montgomery.” [ “Trump announced new ‘golden fleet’ of warships named after himself”. [ Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Eric Schmitt, John Ismay; New York Times; 12/24/25 ]
Trump’s. “vision”. – is, as usual. – STUPIDITY. and. ARROGANCE – plus his well-known ego mania of naming a building or institution after HIMSELF. Now it’s American warships
The. VICTIMS:
1] American taxpayers. [except billionaires]. who are forced to pay for these worthless ships
2] American sailors who’ll be assigned to these floating BIG. TARGETS.
3]. American citizens who actually think Trump has ‘improved” American defense. – when it actuality. – he’ll have weakened it. – money wasted, money NOT going into modern weapons
This is one more instance of THE COST TO AMERICA of having a 13-year old as “our” president.
***. “Self-deception once yielded to, all other deceptions follow naturally more and more.” [ Thomas Carlyle ]
***. “I play to people’s fantasies. People may not always think big themselves, but they can still get very excited by those who do.” [ Donald John Trump: “The Art of The Deal” ]
The Trump-Musk DICTATORSHIP – American Amnesia – Voices From 2018, II
1]. “We have an executive branch that seems determined to conduct trade policy based on a level of ignorance not seen at this level for 150 years and one that is virtually unknown among other major industrialized nations.”
**** [NOTE what this says: “..a level of ignorance not seen..for 150 years..” THE ENTIRE TRUMP TRADE POLICY IS BUILT ON GARBAGE, LUNACY, NONSENSE, IGNORANCE]
“I refer to the nonsense that says having the Untied States import a greater value of goods from another country that it exports to that country is not only harmful to our economy, but also represents some conscious, malign action on the part of the “surplus” country. Every economist knows that such bilateral balance of trade between a specific pair of countries is meaningless and should be ignored. If you doubt that, email your old econ prof or one at a college you support with your tax dollars or charitable contributions and ask them.”
“The sad thing about our situation is that nearly all of Trump’s economic advisors understand that his position is nonsense…So do most GOP members of Congress. So does nearly everyone in finance or in corporate management. But no one is willing to speak up. The media have failed abjectly.”
[ Edward Lotterman: “Let’s end the fallacy of trade ‘deficits'”; St. Paul Pioneer Press; 11/25/18 ]
*** “Never let yourself be persuaded that any one Great Man, or any one leader, is necessary to the salvation of America. When America consists of one leader and 155 million followers, it will no longer be America.”
[ Dwight D. Eisenhower ]
2]. “Two of Donald Trump’s favorite economic metrics are failing”. [Heather Long; Washington Post; 12/9/18]: “President Donald Trump has made it clear that he wants the stock market to rise and the trade deficit to fall and that his policies will make it happen. But so far this year, Trump is getting the opposite result: The trade deficit is soaring while the stock market is careening down.”
“The U.S. trade deficit is at its highest level in a decade…Trump’s trade war appears to be making the trade deficit worse.”…
“The Dow and Standard & Poor’s 500, two of the most closely watched metrics of U.S. stock market performance are now negative for the year.
“The stock market couldn’t be any more disapproving of the president and his economics team…This administration has to tone down its war with the world…with all gains wiped out for 2018, he has turned to blaming others for the market spiral.” [ And, as we all ‘know,’ Trump as the ‘savior’ of America, is NEVER WRONG!!! ]
NOTE: how gullible and misinformed are YOU??? What makes YOU think the 2025 ‘trade war’ is going to end any different??? Economists for 200 years, corporate leaders apologizing in foreign country business trips, the stock market, and – YOUR pocket book – ALL tell YOU one thing: Donald Trump is an IGNORANT IDIOT on economics [and, much else] – unfortunately for YOU, he is “running’ YOUR country.
*** “Every man is a damn fool for at least 5 minutes every day. Wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit.” [ Elbert Hubbard ]
*** “Power does not corrupt men; fools, however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power.” [George Bernard Shaw]
*** “The risk is not in what he does not know, but in what he thinks he knows.” [ Jean Jacques Rousseau ]
The Trump-Musk Dictatorship Stupidity, Corruption, Cruelty, Craziness, VIII – THE BIG TARIFF LIE
1] “Tariffs instead of an income tax?” [Nobel prize winning economist Paul Krugman; New York times; 6/24/24]: “Recently Donald Trump floated a truly terrible, indeed unworkable economic proposal…an ‘all tariff policy’ in which taxes on imports replace income taxes. Why is that a bad idea?
“First , the math doesn’t work..in reality, there’s probably no tariff rate high enough to replace the income tax.
“..we’d in effect sharply raise taxes on working-class Americans while giving the rich a big tax cut – because the income tax is fairly progressive..”
“How did the Republican National committee respond…’The notion that tariffs are a tax on U.S. consumers is a lie pushed by outsourcers and the Chinese Communist Party.” [stop laughing, they were serious!]
“..economists have been saying tariffs are a tax on domestic consumers for the past two centuries..”
[Note: read the entire column. Krugman’s Nobel Prize was for international trade theory]
2]. “The Real Reason Trump Pushes Tariffs” [Kimberly Clausing; New York Times; 2/23/25]: “A better way to think about tariffs is as a key tool to achieve the core of Mr. Trump’s economic agenda: He wants to shift the tax burden away from the well-off and toward the poor and middle class – while consolidating his power.” One study had Trump tariffs costing a “typical American household in the middle of the income distribution more than $2,600 a year.”
[Note: read the entire article – Trump’s objective is NOT to bring back American jobs]
3] “The ugly truth of ‘beautiful’ tariffs” [Heather Long; Washington Post Weekly; 1/19/25]: “..this week, he laid bare why he will raise tariffs this year: He needs money to pay for bigger tax cuts….The math doesn’t add up.”…..
“The Peterson Institute for International Economics found that the bottom 80% would be worse off, and only the richest Americans would benefit.”….
“In the worse case scenario, the average tariff rate could spike to the highest level since the Great Depression.” [Note: research effects of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930!]
“Regardless of whether they are friend or foe, Trump is likely to lose the trade war with China.” [Note; research how China previously, and now – is moving factories to foreign countries to escape Trump’s tariffs on them!!! Read the entire article]
4] “Trump’s tariff plan would sow chaos” [Jeff Stein, David Lynch; Washington Post; 10/17/24]: “…an attack on the international trade order that would likely raise prices, hurt the stock market and spark economic feuds with much of the world.”…
“The consequences would be far-reaching..higher prices for grocery staples..U.S. manufacturers would almost certainly see sharp declines in orders…gas prices would increase by as much as 75 cents a gallon..the annual cost could be as high as $7,600 for a typical household.” [Note: read the entire article]
5]. “New tariffs would lead to price hikes” [David Lynch; Washington Post; 10/31/24]: “U.S. companies say they’ll pass added costs to customers if Trump is re-elected and makes good on his promises.”…
“A consistent theoretical and empirical finding in economics is that domestic consumers and domestic firms bear the burden of a tariff, not the foreign country,” according to analysis by the nonpartisan Budge Lab at Yale University.”
[Note: read the entire article – IT DESTROYS TRUMP’s TARIFF PLANS]
***** And then, this: Trump claims Mexico and Canada aren’t doing enough to stop the flow of immigrants into the U.S. or to stop the flow of fentanyl. REPEATED comments by U.S. border patrol personnel say one thing: the vast majority of illegal drugs into the U.S. is smuggled in by. AMERICANS!!!!! Canada, Mexico and others have ALREADY taken steps – before Trump’s threats – to cooperate with the U.S. in reducing immigration into the U.S. For more perspective: research American birth rates since 1980. Some advanced nations are ALREADY in danger of disappearing because their birth rates are too low.
*****Bottom line: What will be the cost in lost good will by some of America’s best friends – when the REAL enemy of democracy is China??? “Beautiful tariffs” is just another BIG. TRUMP. LIE. We are cursed with a president living in n alternative universe of his own “alternate facts.”
With Justice For All 