Report Card for Donald Trump

[Odin]

(12-21-2016, 01:08 PM)Ragnarök_62 Wrote:

(12-21-2016, 07:54 AM)Odin Wrote: I was just reading yesterday that the Smoot-Hartley tariff cut US exports by 40% right when the US economy was going into the ditch. We are due for another recession right now, if Trump wants to own-goal the US economy by starting a trade war with China he's going to be as reviled as Hoover.

I'm a bit of a "protectionist" myself, but for me "protectionism" means negotiating fairer trade agreements rather than the hamfisted nationalist idiocy Trump is promoting that is about as stupid as the Smoot-Hartley tariff.

Uh, there's a whole shit pot of countries that have a VAT, which the "border tax" pretty close matches.

http://www.uscib.org/valueadded-taxes-vat-ud-1676/

Of course, I'd be more than happy if we joined the rest of the world with a VAT so the US doesn't conduct trade with one hand tied behind it's back.   The "border tax" is sorta like Obamacare.  It's not perfect, but I'll accept anything that half way gets to the goal.

I have no problem with VATs, I have a problem with counterproductive stupidity.