The "Expert" Who Persuaded Trump On Tarrifs

"MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow walked her viewers on Friday through the origin story of how President Donald Trump’s trade adviser, Peter Navarro, joined the MAGA team during his first presidential run – and brought a phantom source with him to Washington, D.C.

"'You’d think it would take like a grand plan and some big brains to figure out how to destroy the economy of the richest nation on Earth, but that's not how it's working out,' the primetime host told viewers during her show’s opening monologue. 'Turns out, it doesn't take a big idea or a lot of big brains working together.'

"Maddow noted that Trump tasked son-in-law Jared Kushner with finding him an economic adviser, a search that led Kushner to Amazon, where he landed on one of Navarro’s books. That’s when Maddow noted that Trump tasked son-in-law Jared Kushner with finding him an economic adviser, a search that led Kushner to Amazon, where he landed on one of Navarro’s books. That’s when things took a turn for Maddow, who said Friday that Navarro wasn’t the only figure who helped craft Trump’s tariff policy.

“In all of his books, Peter Navarro has cited an economics expert to justify his views, and the economics expert he cites is somebody named Ron Vara, who, Maddow added, sent out a memo around Washington at the start of Trump’s first administration touting the benefits of a tariff policy.

“'The problem is, Ron Vara doesn't exist, he never has,' Maddow said. 'The economics expert that Peter Navarro has long cited to explain why he's so gung-ho on tariffs, this person, Ron Vara, is a made-up person. He is a fictional person. Peter Navarro invented Ron Vara as his expert source, so he could quote this expert source over and over and over again in his crackpot books.'”

(link)

Robert Reich and Heather Cox Richardson Chime In On The Trump/MAGA Abomination

 "Whether it’s universities, law firms, or entire countries, here are 10 basic rules for hitting back"

Friends,

On Tuesday, the Trump regime targeted Harvard University, threatening to withdraw about $9 billion in contracts and multiyear grants unless Harvard capitulates to unspecified demands.

Last week, Trump targeted major Washington law firms, threatening to cut off their access to government buildings and government contracts unless they capitulated to various demands.

Yesterday, the regime placed 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico and “reciprocal” tariffs on imports from all other nations. Some governments say they’ll retaliate. Others — Israel and Vietnam, for example — are responding by rolling back their own tariffs. Trump says he’ll continue to raise tariffs until other countries capitulate to various unspecified demands.

What do all these have in common? Trump’s unquenchable thirst for power, dominance, and intimidation.

Here are 10 rules for dealing with this.

1. Stop treating Trump’s excuses as his real concerns. He says, for example, that he’s motivated by antisemitism at various universities. He isn’t. He and his goons have attacked other universities for entirely different reasons — allowing transgender women to play in women’s sports, or maintaining programs that encourage diversity, equity, and inclusion. They’ll use whatever pretext they can find to issue demands and get universities to capitulate.

2. For the same reason, stop assuming that Trump is concerned about other nations’ “unfair” trade practices or illegal immigration. These, too, are pretexts. He is using tariffs, immigration, and every tool at his command to intimidate other nations, including our Canadian and Mexican allies and traditional allies in Europe, in order to get them to capitulate to various demands.

3. Trump’s major interest is capitulation itself. Surrender is the whole point. He and those under him who are managing these extortionate initiatives want headlines that say “they” have surrendered to him — whether “they” is a country, a major university, a large law firm, a big nonprofit, even a Democratic state like California. Surrender is the point. Domination is his goal. (It always has been.)

4. Each surrender feeds the public impression that Trump wants fed — that he is all-powerful, invincible, and able to get every person, institution, and country to cower to him. He knows intuitively that each capitulation feeds his power — because power is itself an impression; invincibility, the consequence of everyone’s capitulation.

5. Each capitulation encourages him and his goons to engage in even more bullying of more institutions and countries. Trump’s need for dominance is insatiable. Every time he succeeds in gaining capitulation, he and his goons look for other opportunities to enlarge the impression that he has boundless power.

6. Most of these institutions and countries will cave to Trump because their leaders are mainly concerned about their own institution’s or country’s survival. They are not concerned about the effects of their capitulations on other institutions or on the world as a whole. The costs of significant losses of funding, clients, or access are borne by them; the benefits of resistance are felt by all.

7. It’s vitally important, therefore, that institutions and countries join together to fight this systemic intimidation.

8. University faculties must join together under the umbrella of the American Association of University Professors to speak out against Trump’s assault on free speech and debate at universities, sue the Trump administration for violating their rights under the First Amendment, and develop a media strategy to alert the public to the dangers.

9. Canada, Mexico, Japan, and the European Union must join together to create a special trade zone that excludes the United States. They should threaten to limit American banks’ access to their public procurement markets, limit the huge sums their citizens invest in American companies annually, and increase tax and regulatory pressure on American digital platforms.

10. The media must not fan the flames of Trump’s madness. They should celebrate institutions that are standing up to Trump (such as the Jenner & Block law firm, Canada, and Mexico) and condemn those that are surrendering to him (such as Columbia University, the Paul Weiss law firm, and Israel and Vietnam on tariffs). They should help educate Americans about the costs of capitulating to Trump and its baleful consequences. This is all about power, and Trump’s thirst for power is all about converting the United States into a dictatorship.

Robert Reich

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Heather Cox Richardson also chimes in. 

DEFCON 3

4/2/2025: On this date, Donald J Trump enacted the worst tariffs since the 1930s, which were a significant factor in the Great Depression. Combine that with all that DOGE is doing, there is no doubt in this blogger's mind that we are in the worst existential crisis since the Civil War:

Truth Is On Its Death Bed In The USA

It was bad enough for USAID to be attacked (link). VOA being shut down is a sign that the USA has bowed out of its leadership role in the world of truth, empathy and cooperation:

Voice of America journalists speak after Trump administration shuts down network

Trump, MAGA, and J Edgar Hoover

"J. Edgar Hoover is one of the most polarizing figures in U.S. history. And the seeds he planted as the decades long founding director of the FBI continue to shape much of today’s conservative political landscape. Kash Patel, who now leads the FBI, has openly vowed to find ways to punish Trump’s political enemies. While that’s appalling, it’s not the first time an FBI director has used abused institutional power. There’s a lot of historical precedent that we can compare and contrast with the current moment. Beverly Gage is a historian at Yale University and the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century.” She joins WITHpod to discuss Hoover’s influence, the politicization of the FBI, the abuse of its power, the FBI in Trump 2.0 and more."

Click on the link below for a podcast relating J Edgar Hoover to today's US politics from the Far Right:

Weaponization of the FBI from Hoover to Trump

How The USA Became A Dictatorship

"A sobering message from a history teacher about America turning from democracy to authoritarianism:
I teach both American and international government. 

"For years, I’ve been going over 'case study' states, from mostly democratic (UK), to democratizing-but-corrupt (Mexico, Nigeria), to illiberal-authoritarian (Russia), to theocratic (Iran), to traditional authoritarian (China).

"When it comes to the difference between democracy and authoritarianism, one thing Americans need to understand is that there’s never one single moment when you become an authoritarian state; no leader will stand up and announce, 'I am now a dictator'.”

Click on the link below for examples that point to how the USA got into its present political state:

 https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18GiL37LpF/

They Are Telling Us Who They Are

 

A Zoomed-Out Picture

 

A Snapshot Of The Issues Of The Day

"First: Now that USAID is gutted, we hear from frontline humanitarian David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee.

"Then: The Netflix hit sparking an important conversation: Adolescence—it’s about young minds, male rage, and the dangers of social media. Star of the show Stephen Graham joins me.

"Plus: Fear in the occupied West Bank as Israeli settlers, often violently expand their illegal outposts. CNN is there.

"Then: High stakes for Europe and the limits of Trump’s Ukraine-Russia diplomacy. Former Pentagon official Celeste Wallander joins me.

"And: From the archive—on World Water Day, a warning from Sarajevo: painful echoes of water as a weapon of war, from Bosnia back then to Gaza and Ukraine today."Click on the link below for a podcast summary of some of the news of the times that we are in:

USAID Cuts Imperiling Lives (and more)

It's Simple, Stupid

https://overcast.fm/+AAMzRnlXMU0

 

The Underlying Problem With MAGA: Childish/Magical Thinking

One major trait of Trumpers/MAGA is childish/magical thinking. Everything is black and white. There is no room for understanding that reality can be much more than good or bad/right or wrong in many serious topics/circumstances. Unsupported certainty can be the enemy of nuance, humility, and understanding

There is a reason why fear works so well on them: they are easily blocked from considering that they may be incorrect in their opinions. The majority probably were raised within a religion and that religion poisoned their brains from challenging the dogma to which they were exposed.

Below is an emblematic of this problem: 

• "I am afraid of the 'other' that I was taught to hate. Those immigrants will harm me and take my job. I must support deporting them as fast as we can, to Hell with due process/the Rule of Law."

Democrats Need To Change Its Leadership And Tactics NOW

"While a recent NBC News poll revealed Trump's approval rating is the highest it's ever been, the data behind the poll tells a much different story. Steve Schmidt breaks down the numbers in the poll and explains why Trump's approval rating isn't as positive as it might seem."

- - - - - - - - -

Steve actually focused on two things in this video:

• Most pollsters are not adequately educated in the science of polls (i.e. the first image below is the typical media poll that is too superficial and narrow.)
• The MAJOR point is what the second image below shows: the Democratic Party is in a deep hole with the public and must change what it is doing fast by changing its leadership and plan.

Click on the link below for the video:

The Real Story Behind Trump's Recent Poll Numbers

The USA Is Now A Kingdom

"In Common Sense, when he made the argument against monarchy that would drive the colonists to create their own new form of government, Thomas Paine warned his neighbors that without the rule of law, the country belongs to a king. He urged them to turn away from a world that gave one man such absolute power. '[S]o far as we approve of monarchy,' he wrote, 'in America the law is King. For as in absolute governments the King is law, so in free countries the law ought to be King; and there ought to be no other.'"

Click here and here for evidence supporting the title of this blog post.

The Worst Of The Internet Has Arrived Within Its Mainstream

"Trolls have basically taken possession of the U.S. government. How have trolls been able to go from being mostly cordoned off in dark parts of the internet to gaining so much influence in American culture and politics? Our guest this week has spent years researching and reporting on-the-ground to learn more about how the battle online between the right and the left has moved into the real world. Elle Reeve is a correspondent at CNN and the author of “Black Pill: How I Witnessed the Darkest Corners of the Internet Come to Life, Poison Society, and Capture American Politics.” She joins WITHpod to discuss the politics of “black pilled” and “red pilled” young men, the ways in which online extremism so often translates into political violence and more."

Click on the link below for a podcast delving into the above:

The Darkest Corners of the Internet

BOTH US POLITICAL Parties Will Not Stand Up

Everyone who has a functional brain and can objectively look at reality KNOWS that the present Republican Party is a piece of sh!t. 

Today, the DEMOCRATIC PARTY allowed the evil to have a clean pass into dictatorship. Folks, there are only two final blocks to it, and one is the justice system. Once the present blocks from such get to the Supreme Court, do you really think justice will be preserved with THIS Supreme Court? 

The bottom line? "We the people" have the final say in the voting process. Up to now, most of us have not even voted. Shame on us. Can we agree that we can do a better job?

Oh, In 1856, the anti-slavery party didn't cave (link).

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The History And Truth About What Is Happening Between Canada & The USA

Mugsy Margarit

neordSpots06gMumc ltP81th14gt88Mlm1ai u a l1133a0t7a:r0h7100  · 

**Updated March 12th** I will continue to update this but due to safety concerns I will be turning off public comments.

One thing I've learned over the past few weeks, and it's been a bit of a sobering lesson, is that a lot of Americans I know don't actually know what's going on between the US and Canada right now, and just how seriously Canadians are taking this. So, against my better judgement, here's a timeline to explain why we're here, and why we're angry.

Nov 30th, 2018 - The United States, Canada and Mexico finalize a trade agreement. Trump personally negotiates the terms and signs the document, celebrating it as 'the greatest trade agreement in history". (This is important.)

Nov 29th, 2024 - In a face to face meeting, Trump threatens the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, that he will be imposing 25% tariffs and that if Canada wants to avoid that, it should join the US as a state.

Nov 30th, 2024 - Trump publicly calls our Prime Minister 'Governor Trudeau' and instructs his staff to only address him as Governor going forward. He again suggests Canada should join the USA.

Dec 3rd, 2024 - Trump remarks that he would split Canada into two states once annexed.

Dec 10th, 2024 - Trump posts that the majority of Canadians support annexation, despite public polling that only 13% of Canadians would consider the idea.

Dec 18th, 2024 - Trump again falsely states that the majority of Canadians support annexation and that one of his lapdogs, Wayne Gretzky, should have a leadership role in that new scenario.

Jan 7th, 2025 - At a press conference, Trump says that he would use economic force to destroy the Canadian economy to annex it.

Jan 14, 2025 - Trump again claims that most Canadians want to be American, despite new polls showing only 10% of us are open to the idea.

Jan 20th, 2025 - During his inaugural address, Trump says that the U.S. will 'expand its territory' during his second term.

Jan 23rd, 2025 - At the World Economic Forum, Trump says that Canada can avoid tariffs and economic collapse if it joins the US. He says this in front of representatives from most countries in the world.

Jan 24th, 2025 - Trump states publicly that Canada 'will' become a state

Jan 31st, 2025 - Trump announces a 25% tariff on all Canadian imports to begin the next day.

Feb 2nd, 2025 - Trump refers to Canada as its 'Cherished 51st state' and that it should join the US to avoid tariffs.

Feb 3rd, 2025 - A one month delay is agreed upon. Trump, in a conversation with Trudeau states that he doesn't think existing border treaties with Canada are valid, and need to be revised.

Feb 7th, 2025 - In a closed door meeting with his cabinet, Prime Minister Trudeau is recorded, without his knowledge, telling everyone that he believes very strongly that Trump is serious and that he stated his reason for annexation as Canadian resources.

Feb 9th, 2025 - In a Super Bowl pre-game interview, Trump says that he's serious about his threats, calling it a 'viable consideration for expanding US territory'

Feb 10th, 2025 - Trump announces an additional 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada to come into effect March 12th.

Feb 24th, 2025 - Trump publicly remarks that whoever signed the USMCA agreement is an idiot. He was the one that signed it.

March 4th, 5th, and 6th 2025 - Tariffs come into effect. Canada retaliates with it's own tariffs. Tariffs are again postponed until April 1st after a huge market backlash.

March 4th, 2025 - In an address to a joint session of congress, Trump states that the US will own Greenland 'one way or the other'.

March 5th, 2025 - US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick told Canadian finance minister Dominic LeBlanc that Trump "had come to realize that the relationship between the United States and Canada was governed by a slew of agreements and treaties that were easy to abandon."

March 7th, 2025 - Unconfirmed Memorandum and maps leaked on twitter reveal Trump is allegedly planning to annex the entirety of the great lakes and Southern Ontario, home to 13,491,332 Canadians. This amounts to 35.25% of Canada's total population and includes its largest city, Toronto. This region accounts for 38% of the Canadian economy, and its loss would make Canada's independence functionally impossible.

March 8th, 2025 - Canada's foreign minister warns European allies that their government considers Canada to be under existential threat.

March 9th, 2025 - Mark Carney, the new Canadian Prime Minister, in his acceptance speech, states that Trump is seeking to destroy Canada, and its way of life.

March 11, 2025 - President Trump threatens to “permanently shut down the automobile manufacturing business in Canada” if Canada does not drop a 250% to 390% tariff on U.S. dairy products, which he doesn’t state only kicks in after a certain quantity of tariff-free U.S. dairy enters Canada, a quantity that was originally negotiated and agreed to by Trump during the USMCA in 2018.

In Trump's own words, "The only thing that makes sense is for Canada to become our cherished Fifty First State. This would make all Tariffs, and everything else, totally disappear. Canadians’ taxes will be very substantially reduced, they will be more secure, militarily and otherwise, than ever before, there would no longer be a Northern Border problem, and the greatest and most powerful nation in the World will be bigger, better and stronger than ever — And Canada will be a big part of that. The artificial line of separation drawn many years ago will finally disappear, and we will have the safest and most beautiful Nation anywhere in the World — And your brilliant anthem, “O Canada,” will continue to play, but now representing a GREAT and POWERFUL STATE within the greatest Nation that the World has ever seen!"

March 11th, 2025 PT. II - Peter Navarro, a Senior Advisor for Trump is interviewed by MSNBC. When asked about the tariffs he responds with "Just tamp it down, please, over there, ok? They're throwing down the hockey gloves. Stop that rhetoric...we're not going to tolerate anything but them stopping killing Americans", insinuating that this situation was caused by Canadians killing Americans.

March 11th, 2025 PT III - Trump again publicly muses that Canada, Greenland, and the US should be one country, and questions the validity of the Canadian and American border.

March 11th, 2025 PT IV - Canada sells $3.5 Billion dollars of its US Bonds

March 12th, 2025 - Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc announces tariffs on $29.8B worth of U.S. goods. This includes tariffs on Steel, Aluminum, computers, tools, sporting equipment and cast iron products.

To my American friends, I know most of you are amazing and generous people. You didn't ask for this, and I understand that. I hold no ill will towards you, whatsoever. But I must stress, with as much seriousness as I can, the amount of damage this has done.

We have viewed you as our closest friend and ally for a century. We thought of you as brothers and sisters. We answered the call, again and again, for any support you needed from us. Most of Canadians visit the USA so much that we've seen more of the US than we have the rest of Canada.

American products have been taken off our shelves. Canadians are cancelling travel plans to the US. Photo after photo has been shared on social media of empty flights from Canada to the USA.

This isn't a joke to us. We're not overreacting. We don't think he's just saying this shit to cause chaos or negotiate a deal. We wholeheartedly believe that our closest ally and friend is about to bring violence across our border, economically destroy us, and eliminate our way of life.

The main driver for Canada's creation in 1867 was SPECIFICALLY to not be part of America, and to end America's very public threats and plans to annex our territory.

We're angry. We're really, really fucking angry. Open your eyes to what's happening because we're tired of trying to make you understand why and asking you why it seems like none of you care. **

I still hope that there is time to repair this. I still believe that this is the result of one man's plan to burn it all down. But time is running out, and fast.

**Note**

The hundreds of positive comments and messages I've received from Americans today have restored my faith in you, and humanity. You do care, and I was wrong in assuming you didn't.

I really have enjoyed writing this and the positive impact it's had on others. I never imagined this would reach so many people. If you would like to help support my work and severe caffeine addiction, please consider donating at https://ko-fi.com/gonzogenealogist

. Thank you for all your help!