Congress Emboldened Trump
They Created the Crisis Trump Must Address
How do you explain it to your friends, relatives and neighbors as to just how did we get to this point? People are futility protesting, mostly with defamation and anger. So let me tell you what I told my relatives.
By the end of the 20th century, Congress became so divided after the Cold War, instead of debating appropriations, they passed Continuing Resolutions with no reforms or changes. This practice continues to this day.
In the same time frame, China joined the World Trade Organization which forced China to reform their economy. Their economy was under 2 trillion dollars. Today, it is well over 16 trillion dollars. Russia, meanwhile, has stagnated from the breakup of the Soviet Union and has about a 2 trillion dollar economy. If Europe responded accordingly, like years ago, Russia would be in a cage, instead of invading Ukraine.
The Bush/Obama years were a mix of Cold War and progressive ideas, which did not sit well with average people. The strategies the Democrat Party once held were gone as naive progressives stridently pushed divisive issues. Trump took full advantage of the situation.
This is why Democrats hate absolutely anything Trump does. He has their strategic playbook, but now he is a Republican using it, and old time Republicans are scared by his tactics. He learned from Roy Cohn. He knows Roger Stone. He met and corresponded with Nixon. He will engage in hyperbolic language without apology. No lobbyist has a leash around his neck
He is also a pragmatist, not an idealist. 95 percent of the time when people object to him, they reveal how idealistic they are. The end result, Trump wins more converts when they learn the context of what he is trying to do.
Trump is targeting China, but with the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, passed by Congress, a 36 trillion debt, and a deficit of 2 trillion dollars, Trump has apparently decided to use tariffs to milk out more money to cover government expenses. Thus explains what is a very idiotic calculation in imposing tariffs (https://ustr.gov/issue-areas/reciprocal-tariff-calculations). If Congress wants to remove Trump's power in imposing tariffs by repealing this Act from 1977, they are going to have to demonstrate they can control the Federal budget.