Subject: Re: I must need to drink more Kool-aid
You can't remove the United States from world trade.

I mean - theoretically you could, if you wanted to. It's not impossible. It would be a horrible, wrenching experience for both the U.S. and the rest of the world.

But taking your point, that's exactly why the logic behind the tariffs doesn't really work. Trump's position is summed up in his statement that "they need us more than we need them" - but that's not exactly true. We can't remove the U.S. from trading with "them" - the rest of the world - so in a very real sense we need them just as much as they need us. Which is why other countries are calling us up to find out if there's any realistic space for negotiation here, and then finding out that there isn't - so they're just hanging back to see how we handle the consequences.

BTW, Carney called up Trump the day after he won and said, 'let's talk'.

Of course. We're still the U.S. It's not hard for the President to get any world leader to give him a call and try to flatter or cajole their country into getting something beneficial. Other than China, apparently.

Where Trump is mistaken is believing that just because they're willing to talk to us (of course they are!) means that they're willing to cut a deal with us on his terms. And....they're not. Most of our major trading partners have made it clear they're in no hurry to cut a deal - or in China's case, even to begin talks. They'll all be willing to agree on frameworks and protocols and a schedule of meetings to set out the parameters of reaching a trade deal. And I'm sure that Trump will be delighted to claim that these are actually trade deals, rather than just agreeing to discuss things. But if we're asking for the moon, or asking for inconsistent things, or not even able to clearly articulate what we're asking for....well, we're just not going to get anything material. Because our hand is not as strong as the Administration claims it is.