Donald Trump possesses, to use the phrase of Ernest Hemingway, “a built-in bull**** detector.” His identification of America’s woes, chronic problems, is spot on. Uncannily correct. But his diagnosis and solutions to these critical problems are invariably wrong, off the mark. Here are seven such cases.
Manufacturing. America’s economy is in crisis. It had thought it could ride the neo-Liberal ship, the new globalized economy, into success. That is, it thought that by entering into great trading blocs, NAFTA, for example, it could win with size, efficiency, economies of scale, historical reach, trading smarts. However, this backfired. Cheap overseas labour markets led to manufacturers abandoning America, outsourcing. Only the wealthy “outsourcers” prospered. The manufacturing economy at home, and with it, general incomes, declined. More work less pay. Less national income has led to astronomical levels of public debt. Could America win by browbeating China, Mexico, Japan?
The Chinese. No, you cannot beat China by browbeating it. China will pelt products out into the world at less than apparent cost prices. American workers need more wages and salaries to support them than Chinese workers. China has mastered all the facets of globalization. Ironically, it is America, throughout the entire second half of the 19th century, the 20th century, which were calling on the Emperor, the Chinese Communist party to break down its walls, open its markets. America has gotten the wolf it called for; and now it cannot handle it. Additionally, South East Asia, the BRIC countries, Latin America, some nations in the Middle East and Africa, are also trading globally with proficiency and aggressiveness. Not all the king’s men or all the king’s horses could put back Western economic hegemony together again.
The Wall. Yes, illegal immigration across the Mexican border is an economic threat. But it is the U.S. which opened the historical gates to buy cheap migrant labour in the past. It is the U.S. which engaged in a punitive war in 1848 to gobble up Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and California, one third of Mexico. The migrants are simply coming back home, colonizing in reverse! But no wall will stop terrorism. No wall will stop drugs. The demand is on the U.S. side. For both terror and drugs. The guns and arms manufacturers, the unhappy drug users, will fight tooth and nail for terror and drugs.
NATO. Yes, NATO is, in parts, outmoded. It needs to be re-configured. The NATO war manual, the NATO tank, built for champagne country in Europe, is no match for terrorism. No weapons of mass destruction, B52 bomber, F16 fighter jet, chemical or biological agent, drone or satellite surveillance can block the committed terrorist. The U.S. and Europe, NATO, spawned the germ of terror in South East Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, over the past century. The chickens are coming home to roost! Manifest Destiny, The New World Order and American Exceptionalism have opened up Pandora’s Box.
Rigged Economy and Establishment Politics. Once more, correct. The U.S. is a two-party dictatorship run by a senate; backed by a colluding financial and military complex. Money is anti-gravitational everywhere; but in the U.S. it is anti-gravitational with a tornado force. Most of it ends up in the pockets of the top one percent. However, Trump’s key picks, for example, Lt. General Michael Flynn (Mr. U.S. Exceptionalism) and Governor Michael Pence (Vice Presidential pick), are establishment figures. Even Bernie Sanders has now re-established himself.
Crooked Hilary and Lying Ted. Obama accession to the throne of the U.S. presidency was an attempt to absolve the sins of the Bush’s. Bush lied about the Afghan war, the false weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, the attack on the New York towers. What the Saudis did, they blamed the sworn enemies of the Saudis, Saddam and Osama. Hillary is hawk, Bush and the neo-Cons, the Washington Consensus, by another gender. And, boy, does Ted lie! He has been telling Americans, in all his major platform speeches, how his father suffered. Fleeing Cuba in the 1950’s, with one hundred dollars sewn to his underwear. Having been jailed. Who jailed Ted’s father? He leaves this question unanswered. For his unsuspecting audiences to assume it was Castro. Cruz’s father left Cuba before Castro took power in January 1959. Mr. Cruz’s father fled from Batista’s Cuba, abandoning revolutionary struggle!
The Dishonest Media. Trump has called out the “dishonest” media. However, Mr Trump dare not really say what he really thinks. He has gone silent on his early declaration to “neutrally” vie for Palestine-Israeli peace. And uses the bogus euphemism “nation building,” to describe U.S. genocide and imperialism; in declaring he would withdraw from it. Mainstream U.S. media will sell its mother for Rupert Murdoch and the other feudal owners of America. They lie, snigger with straight face and bonhomie. They are the papal messengers of global war and genocide on the planet. They coined the catchword ‘terror,’ in collusion with the BBC, in the early 1990’s to wage their infernal war in the Middle East.
Mr. Trump has a built-in bull**** detector. He has correctly identified grave threats to the American population, and he has told Americans what these are. Tragically, generations of their senates, leaders, have led them into mortal danger, will lead them into more. But his diagnoses and solutions fall far short. One, not three cheers, for Mr. Trump.
