Steel and aluminum tariffs announced

[Azem.Ocram]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/01/politics/tariffs-white-house-republicans-congress-reaction/index.html

I’m sure some Republicans will listen to reason instead of towing Party lines. I don’t like Pence but Republicans should be happy to have a conservative with far less controversy than The D’ump.

 

[Perfection]

My god trump's lost it.

He never had it.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/01/politics/tariffs-white-house-republicans-congress-reaction/index.html

I’m sure some Republicans will listen to reason instead of towing Party lines. I don’t like Pence but Republicans should be happy to have a conservative with far less controversy than The D’ump.

Friendly advice; if you type "I'm sure some Republicans will listen to reason..." no matter what follows, seriously consider whether you really want that recorded for posterity.

 

[Azem.Ocram]

Friendly advice; if you type "I'm sure some Republicans will listen to reason..." no matter what follows, seriously consider whether you really want that recorded for posterity.

Thank you but Blue State Republicans facing reelection in 2020 are more likely to listen to reason and their constituents since The Trumps cannot fund the retirement of senators (and representatives) like special interest groups can. Though you’re right about Red State (TEA) Republicans, there is no hope for them. This could be a good thing for Democrats because incorrigible traditionalists/reactionaries/TEA Party Republicans can be (rightfully) shamed and in the long run destroy the GOP’s credibility (and strength).

 

[Farm Boy]

It's been real, Tim.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Thank you but Blue State Republicans facing reelection in 2020 are more likely to listen to reason and their constituents since The Trumps cannot fund the retirement of senators (and representatives) like special interest groups can. Though you’re right about Red State (TEA) Republicans, there is no hope for them. This could be a good thing for Democrats because incorrigible traditionalists/reactionaries/TEA Party Republicans can be (rightfully) shamed and in the long run destroy the GOP’s credibility (and strength).

You might want to take a closer look at the realities faced by blue state Republicans in terms of their constituents. Sure, it seems obvious that they would need some Democrat support to be elected in a majority Democrat state. But the flip side is that the Republicans in blue states are among the most virulently insane Republicans that there are. They want "hit the Democrats at all costs" more than they want anything else. So your "Republican that is ready to listen to reason" has NO chance of surviving a primary challenge in a blue state.

So the blue state Republican has a difficult tightrope to walk, and they walk it by being able to say "I'm a reasonable man" in November, while leaving no opportunity for a primary opponent to say "he voted with Democrats." They are the ultimate in toeing the party line.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

It's been real, Tim.

Meaning?

 

[Timsup2nothin]

It's been real, Tim.

I was referring to Republican elected officials, not you.

 

[dutchfire]

Higher steel prices aren't all bad. Hopefully this will lead to more recycling, development of more efficient alternatives and less wasteful consumption. America could do worse than driving smaller cars with less steel.

 

[Commodore]

The Boeing-backed attack on Bombardier was shot down.

This tariff makes no sense except as an infantile, naive attempt to shore up support for his FAILING administration. SAD.

NO COLLUSION

Perhaps this was some poorly thought out attempt by Trump to win back his voter base since he seems to have lost them over his gun control comments. A lot of his supporters have taken to calling him "Gun-Grabber-in-Chief" and even Fox News is blasting him over it. So I guess his whacked out protectionist trade policies are all he has left to try and keep his supporters on his side.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Perhaps this was some poorly thought out attempt by Trump to win back his voter base since he seems to have lost them over his gun control comments. A lot of his supporters have taken to calling him "Gun-Grabber-in-Chief" and even Fox News is blasting him over it. So I guess his whacked out protectionist trade policies are all he has left to try and keep his supporters on his side.

That's been handled. It was all a ploy to troll the Democrats and he has been right there with the NRA all along is the current story. Just like "Amnesty Don" was a fake out in his multi-dimensional chess game. The remarkable thing is that he has so little credibility that even his supporters can just randomly decide when he is lying and when he is telling the truth...they just choose to believe it whenever he leans their way.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

Carl Icahn (Trump confidant) dumped millions of shares in a company with high exposure to steel prices just a few days before the tarrif announcement.

 

[Azem.Ocram]

Carl Icahn (Trump confidant) dumped millions of shares in a company with high exposure to steel prices just a few days before the tarrif announcement.

I know for a fact that insider trading is illegal. Although, its punishment can be house arrest in your main mansion.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Carl Icahn (Trump confidant) dumped millions of shares in a company with high exposure to steel prices just a few days before the tarrif announcement.

No surprise there. D'ump is at the center of the biggest insider trading operation ever.

Unfortunately, by legal standards this isn't insider trading. "Access to confidential information about the company" would have to be stretched pretty far to include conversations with the POTUS.

 

[El_Machinae]

Carl Icahn (Trump confidant) dumped millions of shares in a company with high exposure to steel prices just a few days before the tarrif announcement.

This needs a source. I am honestly skeptical that he would make this type of error.

 

[GoodSarmatian]

This needs a source. I am honestly skeptical that he would make this type of error.

Why error ?
If this is actually insider trading, can't POTUS just pardon him ?

 

[hobbsyoyo]

This needs a source. I am honestly skeptical that he would make this type of error.

https://thinkprogress.org/trump-ichan-steel-imports-cf7deb8beaf0/

 

[Timsup2nothin]

This needs a source. I am honestly skeptical that he would make this type of error.

What error? Trump has been public with his desire to tariff steel for a long time. Icahn made a decision to not believe that sensible voices in the administration could keep him contained and acted accordingly. You would be very hard pressed to make a case out of this. Insider trading is always tough to prosecute, and this one would be way harder than most.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Wait for it...

Spoiler :

Well, i suppose the fact that Trump takes five sides on a two-side issue given five minutes of boredom sort of helps with the plausible deniability on these things.

No doubt. It also helps buffer the impacts. A stock market analyst today said that the market may have dropped several hundred points on Trump's wild tariff announcement, but if he was widely believed it would have dropped thousands. I think that is probably accurate. Right now we are seeing an 'uncertainty drop.' If the tariffs actually happen, and the retaliatory trade policies that have to be expected then happen, the market is really going to tank.

 

[Farm Boy]

Higher steel prices aren't all bad. Hopefully this will lead to more recycling, development of more efficient alternatives and less wasteful consumption. America could do worse than driving smaller cars with less steel.

We're at about ~2/3 of our steel production from scrap, I think. I wonder how much more capture there is to be realistically had. Cars and appliances are around or over 90% recycling rate if I remember right. Can't check the reliability easily in a way I know how, but I'd guess construction fuels the lions share of demand. Still ground to be earned in cars though, for sure. They do seem to be getting aluminum-ier and plastic-ier, but I think that's mostly weight and fuel economy pressure.