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This is what the country’s actual tariffs are on the US vs what the White House claimed. In case anyone was wondering. |
April 3, 2025
Just the facts
Meanwhile. . .
Republicans against Trump - Rand
Paul on Trump’s tariffs: When McKinley put tariffs on in 1890, they
lost 50% of their seats… When Smoot-Hawley put their tariffs In the
early 1930s, we lost the House and Senate for 60 years. So not only bad
economically, they are bad politically.
Scientists speak out again fossil fuels
EcoWatch - In a new review published in the journal Oxford Open Climate Change, scientists have issued an urgent warning that the fossil fuel industry and its products are driving intertwined crises threatening humans, wildlife and our shared future on this planet.
The collaborative review by scientists from the Center for Biological Diversity and several universities synthesizes scientific evidence that shows fossil fuels and the industry are behind many harms to public health, biodiversity and environmental justice, while contributing to the agrochemical pollution, plastics and climate crises, a press release from the Center for Biological Diversity said.
“The science can’t be any clearer that fossil fuels are killing us,” said lead author of the report Shaye Wolf, the Center for Biological Diversity’s climate science director, in the press release. “Oil, gas and coal will continue to condemn us to more deaths, wildlife extinctions and extreme weather disasters unless we make dirty fossil fuels a thing of the past. Clean, renewable energy is here, it’s affordable, and it will save millions of lives and trillions of dollars once we make it the centerpiece of our economy.”
Scientists speak out against Trump
EcoWatch - More than 1,900 scientists who are members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) have signed a letter warning the American public of the “danger” of Trump administration attacks on science.
The administration’s attack on scientific institutions in the United States has included cancellations of federal grants to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions; the firing of NASA, NOAA and other government employees; investigations and threats to private universities; resignations; and censorship, reported The Guardian.
“We see real danger in this moment. We hold diverse political beliefs, but we are united as researchers in wanting to protect independent scientific inquiry. We are sending this SOS to sound a clear warning: the nation’s scientific enterprise is being decimated,” the scientists stated in the letter.
Trump to strip funding for schools that have diversity programs
Chalkbeat -The U.S. Department of Education is giving state education agencies 10 days to certify that their schools do not engage in any practices that the administration believes illegally promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. Those that do not sign will not receive federal funding, officials said.
“Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right,” Craig Trainor, acting assistant secretary for civil rights, said in a statement. “When state education commissioners accept federal funds, they agree to abide by federal antidiscrimination requirements." More
Trump tariffs
Answering your questions about President Trump’s vast new tariffs
The false things Trump said about tariffs during his announcement
Four Republicans help Democrats pass measure to end Canadian tariffs
CNN - President
Trump’s new auto tariffs went into effect at 12:01 a.m., which means a
25% tariff on all cars shipped to the US. The Trump administration also
plans to roll out a 25% tariff on imports of auto parts no later than
May 3. Mexico, Canada, South Korea, Japan and Germany will be the
countries most affected by these tariffs. However, since domestic
vehicles contain imported parts, it will also cost more to build cars in
the US. What does that mean for car buyers?
Fewer cars to choose from and higher prices. Used vehicle prices will
also climb. While some US automakers may offer temporary discounts to
woo consumers to buy American, industry analysts say the tariffs on
imported car parts could increase the price of cars made in the US by
anywhere from $4,000 to $12,000.
How the World’s Reacting to Trump’s Latest Tariffs
The full list of Trump's new tariffs
Jessica Riedl, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, MSNBC - Donald Trump’s describing his new tariff announcement as “Liberation Day” is perhaps an apt description of his “liberating” families from their wallets.
After all, Trump inherited a growing (if imperfect) economy that just 10 weeks later is facing collapsing consumer confidence, paralyzed business investment, rising prices, deepening job losses and a cratering stock market. Business cycles will inevitably bring occasional downturns, but this economic decline has the rare attribute of being entirely self-inflicted by the current president.
The president inexplicably claims that tariffs will somehow cut off imports while also raising trillions of dollars from taxing these imports that no longer exist.
The president’s minimum global tariff rate of 10% and country-specific rates as high as 50% are nearly impossible to justify. They are not designed to retaliate against unfair trading practices. The European Union, whose 1.3% average tariff rate is slightly below America’s pre-2025 rate of 1.5%, would be hit with a 20% tariff. Japan’s 1.6% average tariff rates would be answered with America’s 24% tariff. Canada and Mexico, which have followed U.S.-led trade deals, are nonetheless expected to be soon transitioned to these full rates, too. Tariffs on China would reach 54% when combined with earlier policies.
Nor are the White House tariff rates based on relationships with the U.S. The tariff rates on the European Union (20%), Japan (24%) and Israel (17%) are more punitive than the tariff on Iran (10%). Russia — from whom America still purchases some imports — is also protected from above-minimum tariffs. There is no coherent strategy behind these country-by-country tariff rates.
TikTok
NPR - TikTok’s owners have until Saturday to sell the popular video app. Earlier this year, a law went into effect banning the app unless it sheds its China-based owner, ByteDance. After his inauguration, Trump said he wouldn’t enforce the ban and would hold a public auction to sell TikTok over the coming months. Under the leasing plan, a new U.S. entity would be created led by software giant Oracle.
Oracle is a top contender because it already operates almost all
of TikTok’s cloud and it has experience with high-level national
security data, NPR’s Bobby Allyn says. Leasing TikTok’s algorithm from its current owner is an unusual tactic, but it would circumvent the need for
the Chinese government to sign off on selling the algorithm. Lawmakers
remain concerned that China will use TikTok to influence Americans and
steal their data. Trump hopes this deal will put those fears to rest,
according to Allyn. Meanwhile, Chinese authorities were hoping TikTok
would help provide leverage to get a better deal on tariffs.
Myanmar earthquake death toll
CNN - The death toll from the powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake that hit Myanmar last week has climbed to over 3,000 people. Thousands more have been injured or are missing. Around 500 buildings have completely collapsed and 800 more were partially destroyed. Hospitals are overwhelmed with patients and medical staff are providing critical care inside makeshift tents. As recovery teams continue to search the rubble for survivors — and to remove those who have perished — people living in the city of Mandalay are struggling to live without electricity or clean water. On Wednesday, the UN said that there’s concern such a situation will give rise to diseases. Due to the magnitude of the disaster, the country’s ruling military government announced a temporary ceasefire with armed opposition groups. The truce will reportedly last until April 22. To help those affected by the earthquake, click here.
A colorized 1906 photo
Here's the black and white photo taken in Washington DC in 1906:
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And here's a colorize version
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Stupid Trump stuff
‘Nowhere on Earth is safe’: Trump imposes tariffs on uninhabited islands near Antarctica
o block Trump’s tariffs on Canada after he announces global tariffs al Republicans join Democrats to block Trump’s tariffs on Canada after he announces global tariffs
Trump layoffs
CNN - More than 275,000 layoffs were announced last month, reaching a level not seen since the pandemic, according to a new report published Thursday. The biggest culprit was one particular employer: The federal government
Trump pardons a corporation fined $100 million
Matt Sledge, Intercept - Amid a flurry of pardons President Donald Trump issued to white-collar criminals last week, one name that has largely escaped notice did not belong to a person at all.
In what may have been a first, Trump pardoned a corporation. The company to earn that distinction was a cryptocurrency exchange sentenced to a $100 million fine for violating an anti-money laundering law.
The move surprised scholars of presidential pardons, which have traditionally been considered the domain of human beings. Several experts contacted by The Intercept said Trump appears to have acted within his powers, but they were unaware of any prior instances of corporations granted full pardons.
Trump messing with history
David W. Blight, President of the Organization of American Historians in NY Times - On Thursday President Trump issued an executive order, Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.
In Mr. Trump’s customary bluster, the order bursts with accusations against unnamed people who are presumably my fellow historians and museum curators for our “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our nation’s history.”
The order’s repeated invocation of the Smithsonian Institution echoes now-familiar right-wing goals outlined in Project 2025 and elsewhere: ending the purportedly woke agendas on race and gender, creating “parents’ rights” and school choices and promoting history supposedly aligned with founders’ values.
According to the president, “objective facts” have been replaced with a “distorted narrative driven by ideology.” And then comes that penetrating epithet, the order’s organizing logic: the desire to end the “revisionist movement” carried out by unnamed historians.
I recall that a great historian, Prof. James Horton, used to have a poignant answer to this label: “Would you want your doctors not to be revisionists?” Any field of study must innovate to maintain relevance. The assumption that there is a standard, agreed-upon truth about the country’s past is a fantasy. But when declared by a sitting American president, it becomes a provocation and an insult.
The order is nothing less than a declaration of political war on the historians’ profession, our training and integrity, as well as on the freedom — in the form of curious minds — of anyone who seeks to understand our country by visiting museums or historic sites. More
Signalgate
Occupy Democrats - SignalGate scandal goes nuclear as it's revealed that incompetent MAGA National Security Advisor Mike Waltz used at least 20 different vulnerable Signal chats to discuss sensitive issues — ranging from Ukraine, to China, to the Middle East.
This crisis just got so much worse for Donald Trump...
According to at least four people who were personally added to Waltz's harebrained Signal chats, the topics discussed included Ukraine, China, Gaze, the Middle East more broadly, Africa, and Europe.
All four said that the conversations included sensitive national security details.
It's been pointed out repeatedly by digital security experts at this point, but Signal is an incredibly dangerous means of communication for a National Security Advisor because it's highly susceptible to foreign intelligence agencies.
April 2, 2025
Trump announces 10 percent tariffs on all imports, additional taxes for some 60 countries
Washington Post - President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will impose a new 10 percent tariff on all imported goods along with an additional punitive import tax tailored for each of about 60 countries that his advisers say maintain the most unfair barriers against U.S. products.
Already, economists are warning that Trump’s tax increase on imported goods will mean sticker shock on some of Americans’ most important purchases, including groceries, cars and homes.
Presidential update
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Len Nelson -Today, on his 69th day in office, convicted felon Donald Trump played golf at the course he owns in West Palm Beach, Florida. Since his inauguration on January 20th, it’s his 14th day of golf at that particular property and the 18th time he has played at one of his golf courses
It means he has played golf on more than a fourth of the days since he was sworn in.
Based on a 2019 Government Accountability Office report which detailed the cost to taxpayers for moving his motorcade equipment and security personnel around as well as the immense cost of flying Air Force 1 for each of Trump’s first term golf trips, the total cost to date for Trump’s second-term golf outings is now up to $26,127,531.
I’ll remind you that billionaire authoritarian oligarch Elon Musk, whom Trump appointed to ferret out “waste and fraud” in government, hasn’t said a word about it. He’s apparently too busy firing essential federal workers and veterans and destroying government services which Americans depend on to notice that the president’s devotion to his hobby instead of his nation has cost taxpayers more than $26 million in little more than two months.
Yet Musk, whose companies rake in an estimated $8 million per day from government contracts, keeps complaining about how other Americans with government contracts and those who receive government benefits are the “parasitic class.”
The Price of Power continued
In a recent piece, The Price of Power, your editor raised this issue:
The price of the success of Trump and Musk has been a rotten status among decent humans. I don’t have to keep calling my lawyer, pushing some untruth on a journalist, driving up car prices, or pretending I’m someone I’m not. And unlike Trump, I’ve only needed one wife over the past 58 years.
Why lie, manipulate, and intimidate others in order merely to have power? And still be stuck with tens of millions who hate you?
Reader Bob Berg responds:
Why lie, cheat, etc. when millions won't love you? Here are the three options I'm pondering.
1. The psychologists and psychiatrists have been getting it wrong. Yes he is a hyper-narcissist but
he also seems like a sociopath of epic proportions. When I was new in
USAID and located inside the State Department, I recommended that they
have a highly talented psychiatrist to help diagnose foreign leaders
with very strange personalities and to guide senior diplomats on how to
handle them. Democrats and maybe journalists need those kinds of
insights.
2.
Maybe Trump doesn't care a whit what "common" people believe. (You will
remember how Leona Helmsley used that term sneeringly.) Maybe what he
craves is peer respect, hence billionaires, Putin and Xi. Sure.
Adoration, but how the common folks really are is besides the point to
him.
3. Maybe
he's not on our side. What he is doing makes perfect sense if he is a
toady of Russia...divide the country, weaken it, make it lose all its
friends (except Hungary and Israel), ruin the prospects of the country
by senseless economic policies, entrenching idiots at every level
possible, and relentless attacks on any mainline structures.
There is enough truth for each of these three, so maybe Trumpism arises from all three in somewhat equal measure?
Word
Dan Balz, Wahsington Post - Almost no part of government is immune from President Donald Trump’s thirst for power and control. Last week he signed executive orders aimed at the Smithsonian Institution, the District of Columbia and the administration of elections. No president has sought more change in more institutions more rapidly, through executive orders than Trump...
The [election] orderthan legislation. It is rooted in Trump’s long-standing, though false, claims that the election system is rife with fraud. Its legal foundations are questionable. But like other executive orders the president has signed, it could produce chaos and change before it is fully litigated...
He is dismantling the Department of Education, arguing that states and local governments should run the nation’s schools (which they already do). Now he is attempting to order state and local election administrators to adopt his rules for running future elections.
The Constitution grants most power over elections to the states. When Democrats were pushing a multifaceted voting rights bill known as H.R. 1 during the administration of President Joe Biden, conservative opponents decried the measure as a federal takeover. So far, there’s been no notable public outcry on the right over the federal takeover that Trump is seeking.
“This is clearly an attempt to federalize election administration to a historic degree, as was H.R. 1,” said Charles Stewart III, a political science professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “Certainly liberals and Democrats are going to press the federalism button really hard. And you will get probably some Republican secretaries not pressing it quite as hard, but privately, many of them are going to be pushing back.”
Another election analyst who spoke on the condition of anonymity to offer a candid opinion described what he saw as the goal of the order: “It is to reduce turnout by people he thinks won’t vote for him,” the analyst said.
Polling
Newsweek - Elon Musk's job approval dropped to 41 percent in a new poll, the lowest rating recorded since the Trump administration entered power. The top Trump advisor's work as head of the Department of Government Efficiency was disapproved of by 58 percent of respondents, according to a survey from Marquette Law School. Musk's personal favorability was even lower, with just 38 percent approving of his general behavior.
How Trump gets away with not spending Congress approved funds
Dace Potas, USA Today, February 2025 -- For those unfamiliar with the U.S. budget process, Congress has the power of the purse, meaning lawmakers get to decide how much is spent and on what. The president’s responsibility is to facilitate that spending and ensure funding reaches its intended destination. You may ask, “What if the president simply chooses not to spend money on purposes he dislikes?”
This practice, referred to as impoundment, may be unconstitutional and has been addressed by legislation. The Impoundment Control Act (ICA) requires the president to notify Congress of a proposed withholding of funds for 45 days, and Congress must affirm the impoundment if funds are to be withheld.
However, an important caveat is that the act does not obligate Congress to provide any feedback at all. If Congress simply ignores the impoundment request, the funds must be released after 45 days regardless. Presidential impoundment under the ICA, therefore, functions more as a recommendation to Congress.
Prior to becoming president for a second term, Trump hinted that his administration would have a hostile stance toward the ICA, and his actions thus far indicate that they are attempting to get a case addressing it to the Supreme Court.
Congress should be voting on these presidential impoundments in a timely manner, as the process is intended to function. However, lawmakers have no incentive to do so. For the GOP-controlled Congress, this system is working in its favor, and Republicans can allow Trump to stall funding for 45 days at a time.
However, funds being withheld for 45 days with no congressional action can cause problems for agencies that rely on appropriations. Some experts have suggested that Congress should amend the ICA to require lawmakers to vote one way or the other on presidential impoundments, but legislators typically aren't too keen on creating more work for themselves....
Per usual, the likely outcome is that the Supreme Court will be tasked with sorting out the mess between Congress and the executive. So Trump can insist that he has the power to withhold funds as long as Congress continues to do nothing.
Putin begins biggest Russian military call-up in years
BBC - President Vladimir Putin has called up 160,000 men aged 18-30, Russia's highest number of conscripts since 2011, as the country moves to expand the size of its military. The spring call-up for a year's military service came several months after Putin said Russia should increase the overall size of its military to almost 2.39 million and its number of active servicemen to 1.5 million.
That is a rise of 180,000 over the coming three years.
Vice Adm Vladimir Tsimlyansky said the new conscripts would not be sent to fight in Ukraine for what Russia calls its "special military operation". However, there have been reports of conscripts being killed in fighting in Russia's border regions and they were sent to fight in Ukraine in the early months of the full-scale war.
The current draft, which takes place between April and July, comes despite US attempts to forge a ceasefire in the war.
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