Coverage of Trump's Tariffs

Plus, the latest from Congress + tell me something good

Remember when we were told by Trump voters and pundits that Trump wasn’t actually going to implement those crazy tariffs he spoke about on the campaign trail?

(Lays hands on table) Choosing a President because you don’t think he will do the batshit things he promised to do is a terrible voting strategy.

Alas, here we are. If you’re new here, my focus is on media coverage, so I wanted to look into some examples of good andddd not so good coverage.

Terrible Tariff Coverage

This is no time for entry level subheads in the form of a question. It’s an overreach no matter how you slice it according to a little thing called the constitution. Some could even call it a “bold stroke overreach”.

Here’s the intro:

Donald Trump has always been comfortable taking risks, from his early real estate deals to his late-in-life jump into electoral politics.

Susan, this is not meeting the moment. He may be comfortable taking risks but, and this seems pretty pertinent to the piece, are they successful? What can we learn from his past besides the fact that he appeared comfortable doing it? Why might he feel so comfortable?

The body of the piece includes some facts & figures, quotes from Trump and those in his administration, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, etc.

Then we get into a section titled: The second-term disease of some presidents: Overreach

I’m sorry, did former Presidents decide due process wasn’t a thing? Declare a national emergency to impose import tariffs on country’s inhabited by penguins? Execute a number of EO’s that are currently wrapped up in court because they are f**ing bananas?

This is an unprecedented time that requires unprecedented reporting. I understand the impulse to compare this moment to past administrations. There’s value in that, but not while acting like it’s business as usual.

The stiff taxes on U.S. imports are only the latest in a series of decisions he has made since his second inauguration that demonstrate his determination to command far-reaching changes on everything from the size and role of the federal government to the traditional guardrails of the justice system.

“His determination to command far-reaching changes” is a really weird way to say that he has no respect for democracy and shows a predilection for an authoritarian style of government.

I’ll end with this bit where she writes:

The president can cite reasons to justify his self-confidence. He has survived two impeachment trials and two assassination attempts, including one that came so close it grazed his ear, a rescue he has credited to God. Courtesy of his appointments to the Justice Department, the federal indictments he had once faced on charges of mishandling sensitive documents and subverting a free and fair election have been dismissed.

How. Can. You Write. This. With. A. Straight. Face. And. Not. Discuss. How. An. Entire. Political. Party. And. Broken. System. Contributed. To. His. “Self-Confidence.”

TARRIF(ic) Coverage?

Welcome to the resistance WSJ!

Jk.

Really, Trump just happened to cross a line that they don’t mess with, which is tanking the stock market. But overall the framing, at least the headlines, is fair. Don’t worry there’s still evil Democrat stuff so the paper hasn’t gone woke.

Generally most of the reporting I’ve come across has some good meat if you can pick through the bones. I don’t think there’s been nearly enough reporting on the GOP’s lack of response. They control both chambers of Congress. They would issue articles of impeachment or the 25th amendment. They don’t because they are afraid of the wrath of Trump and fundraising dollars they need going to a primary challenger farther to the right. As of the time of publishing there is a bipartisan effort to vote on a bill that would give Congress more control over the implementation of tariffs. You know, so we don’t allow the President to levy tariffs against islands completely populated by penguins or incredibly high tariffs on the one of the poorest countries in Africa.

Tell Me Something Good

This past Saturday there were somewhere between 1200-1400 protests across the United States and overseas organized by Hands Off! The protest in Washington, D.C. was the largest since the Women’s March. We’re not just talking about protests in NYC, Boston, or other major citizens, we’re talking places like Utah. The Villages in Florida. According to Hands Off! there were millions in attendance, but that figure hasn’t been independently verified.

Either way, people are waking up and fighting. I don’t see how this is anything but a losing battle for Republicans and Trump. There’s only so long that Fox News can ignore the tariffs in favor of Hunter Biden’s emails or trans swimmers or something. I would be surprised if we saw it go as far as removing Trump from office though.

A girl can dream.

-Meredith