Category Archives: Trump Administration

“Trump Tariffs Will Do Harm, Experts Say”

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March 9, 2018 — PBS NewsHour asked some of us six questions about the new tariffs.  My responses appear below.  The others’ are at: “Trump’s tariffs will do more harm than good, experts say,” March 8.

PBS: Would President Trump’s proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports help create more jobs in the United States, as he argues?

JF: The import tariffs are likely to create a few jobs specifically in the US firms that make steel and aluminum. The important point, however, is that such positive effects will be far outweighed by negative effects on other sectors. read more

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Larry Summers’ Explanation for $ Decline

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March 5, 2018 — Why has the dollar fallen since January 2017?   My answer is an economic turnaround in the rest of the world.  Also the level of the dollar remains rather high.  But Larry Summers has a different answer.

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Which Reagan Tax Reform is This One Like?

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Nov. 27, 2017 — The Republicans, it is said, absolutely must pass a massive tax bill by Christmas, in order to have some major accomplishment to show for 2017, the first year in which they control all branches of government.  Having apparently failed in their seven-year campaign to deprive some 20 million Americans of health insurance, they dare not fail in their Scrooge-like campaign to transfer billions of dollars to the ultra-rich.

To try to sell this turkey of a tax bill, Donald Trump recently sought to invoke the memory of Ronald Reagan and his tax reforms. read more

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