"I’ve said before that Trump does not think of policy the way most of us do, operating instead like a low-level mob boss running a protection racket. Unfortunately, a bunch of rubes decided to give him another bite at the apple, and now the entire global economy has to pay up."
~ Marlon Weems
#Trump #tariffs #mob #MobBoss #sanctions #extortion #bullying #stupidity #incompetence
/6
#politics #alt #tariffs #protectionism #mobboss #extortion
Heather Cox Richardson Mob Boss Extortion 4/3/2025
![Heather Cox Richardson Mob Boss Extortion 4/3/2025
Dayen writes that Trump's tariffs are essentially sanctions on the rest of the world. His behavior is, Dayen says, “no different from a mob boss moving into town and sending his thugs to every business on Main Street, roughing up the proprietors and asking for protection money so they don't get pushed out of business.” Dayen notes that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent argued last year for using the extraordinary power of the U.S. economy to force other countries to do as the U.S. wants, creating a U.S. sphere of influence through economic pressure.
Extending the comparison to a mob boss, Dayen notes that “protection money"” could take many forms: “curbing migration, taking in more U.S. farm exports or weapons systems, reducing industrial capacity in China and forcing more consumption, buying long-dated U.S. debt on the cheap, siding with a war strategy against Iran, literally anything the White House wants.”
Trump's son Eric appeared to confirm that the tariffs are a shakedown : “I wouldn't want to be the last country that tries to negotiate a trade deal with [T]. The first to negotiate will win—the last will absolutely lose. | have seen this movie my entire life....” Foreign affairs journalist David Rothkopf was more graphic: “These aren't tariffs,” he wrote. “They are a horse’s head in the bed of (almost) every world government and business leader.”](https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/114/280/246/909/734/612/original/55a5e555b4a5b4f1.jpeg "Heather Cox Richardson Mob Boss Extortion 4/3/2025
Dayen writes that Trump's tariffs are essentially sanctions on the rest of the world. His behavior is, Dayen says, “no different from a mob boss moving into town and sending his thugs to every business on Main Street, roughing up the proprietors and asking for protection money so they don't get pushed out of business.” Dayen notes that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent argued last year for using the extraordinary power of the U.S. economy to force other countries to do as the U.S. wants, creating a U.S. sphere of influence through economic pressure.
Extending the comparison to a mob boss, Dayen notes that “protection money\"” could take many forms: “curbing migration, taking in more U.S. farm exports or weapons systems, reducing industrial capacity in China and forcing more consumption, buying long-dated U.S. debt on the cheap, siding with a war strategy against Iran, literally anything the White House wants.”
Trump's son Eric appeared to confirm that the tariffs are a shakedown : “I wouldn't want to be the last country that tries to negotiate a trade deal with [T]. The first to negotiate will win—the last will absolutely lose. | have seen this movie my entire life....” Foreign affairs journalist David Rothkopf was more graphic: “These aren't tariffs,” he wrote. “They are a horse’s head in the bed of (almost) every world government and business leader.”")
"The only legible purpose of the tariffs is for Trump to arrogate more power to himself: so that nations and corporate leaders and labor unions come begging him for relief, and so that he can shake them down."
~ Brian Beutler
#Trump #tariffs #mob #MobBoss #sanctions #extortion #bullying #stupidity #incompetence #Putin #PutinsPoodle
/5
And what did Trump do yesterday as the market crashed? Stelter quotes Jeff Zeleny on CNN: Trump did not "fly to a factory"; "he did not use the presidential bully pulpit to sort of sell this tariff plan." Instead, he flew to Florida for a LIV Golf event.
#Trump #tariffs #StockMarket #economy #crash #recession #inflation #MobBoss #stupidity #incompetence #destruction
/4
Brian Stelter points to an AP article in March drawing attention to these words of Trump last August:
"If Harris wins this election, the result will be a Kamala economic crash, a 1929-style depression. 1929. When I win the election, we will immediately begin a brand new Trump economic boom."
#Trump #tariffs #StockMarket #economy #crash #recession #inflation #MobBoss #stupidity #incompetence #destruction
/3
https://view.newsletters.cnn.com/messages/17437726770173f149ef9ebf8/raw
CNN's graphic depiction as of 9:05 A.M. EST of what's happening to the stock market after the man running the show crashed it, with his party cheering the crash on and 77 million Americans voting to accomplish this.
#Trump #tariffs #StockMarket #economy #crash #recession #inflation #MobBoss #stupidity #incompetence #destruction
/1
(cont.): "from the freelancing billionaire dilettante who is gutting American soft power to the vaccine-denying health secretary who is firing as much talent as he can. From the senior economics advisor who thinks comic books are good investments, to the senators who voted to confirm this cabinet of hacks, to the representatives who stumble over themselves justifying each new inane MAGA pronouncement.
But also, we have the government we deserve."
“Vladimir Putin bet his life that American voters would be weak and decadent enough to return Donald Trump to the presidency. He was right. …
We have a deeply stupid government—from our economically illiterate president to our craven and foolish secretary of state," (continued in /4)
~ Jonathan V. Last
#Trump #tariffs #mob #MobBoss #sanctions #extortion #bullying #stupidity #incompetence #Putin #PutinsPoodle
/3
"Trump’s son Eric appeared to confirm that the tariffs are a shakedown when he posted: 'I wouldn’t want to be the last country that tries to negotiate a trade deal with [Trump]. The first to negotiate will win—the last will absolutely lose. I have seen this movie my entire life.…'”
~ Heather Cox Richardson
#Trump #tariffs #mob #MobBoss #sanctions #extortion #bullying
/2
"It is not at all surprising that Trump sees the appeal in sanctions. It is no different from a mob boss moving into town and sending his thugs to every business on Main Street, roughing up the proprietors and asking for protection money so they don’t get pushed out of business. … It’s a mentality fit for someone repeatedly linked to organized crime."
~ David Dayen
#Trump #tariffs #mob #MobBoss #sanctions #extortion #bullying
/1
https://prospect.org/economy/2025-04-03-theyre-not-tariffs-theyre-sanctions/
#MobBoss #DimwitDonnie fails America again! What a $&it show! #Zelenskyy : make a deal with the EU for the rare earths (not RAW earths as dummy Donnie called them) weapons and a plan to join NATO ignoring US objection! #Politics
#MobBoss #DimwitDonnie fails America again! What a $&it show! #Zelenskyy : make a deal with the EU for the rare earths (not RAW earths as dummy Donnie called them) weapons and a plan to join NATO ignoring US objection! #Politics
And in the "This guy thinks he's #DonCorleone" file...
______________
Via #KamalaHQ @ 2:47pm EDT on Oct 26, 2024
#Trump says he wants to treat America’s allies like he’s a #MobBoss: “Our allies don’t pay us money for the protection. The mob makes you pay money”
_______________
#TrumpIsAMobster #DonCoglione
#StopFascism #StopNazism
#VoteBlue #HarrisWalz2024
#TFG revels in inciting the mob against his legal tormentors. The prosecutions’ papers & judges’ rulings in these cases reveal is the stunning impact of his incitement of his cult followers -bomb hoaxes, doxing, death threats *necessitated 24/7 security for judges & prosecutors & Xtry measures to conceal jurors’ IDs.
Judge Chutkan: his speech + consequences: pose a significant & imminent threat to the functioning of the criminal trial process
.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/06/25/trump-delay-gag/
is there a rethuglican party anymore?
Bloodbath at RNC: Trump team slashes staff at committee
more than 60 RNC staffers who work across the political, communications & data departments will be fired. Those being asked to resign include 5 members of the senior staff
#Trump #RNC #MobBoss https://www.politico.com/news/2024/03/11/bloodbath-at-rnc-trump-team-slashes-staff-at-committee-00146368
In case you had any illusions that #Trump was not a #mobBoss… read about this 11th hour #pardon, 12:51 a.m. on his last day in office
#USmafia #predatoryLending #DrugSmuggler #JonathanBraun
@RollingStone
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-pardon-loan-shark-jonathan-braun-1234897002/
