Now Trump is targeting the U.K. with tarriffs how should Sir Keir handle a response?

According to the BBC this morning Musk has said in his view Europe and the US should move towards a zero tariff situation, and that was his advice to Trump.

For those who are interested the latest Gary Stevenson's podcast, in full, "We're failing to teach economics properly – full interview with Ha-Joon Chang", is now available wherever you get your podcasts.

America voted fior Trump about 5 minutes ago.

What enormous demonstrations/protests are taking place this weekend n the USA, against Trump and his actions.

There are huge demonstrations against Israel’s action in Palestine.

America is on the March!

The relatively unknown Ken Martin is the chair of the National Democrat Party Committee, which is responsible overall for rebuilding the party. Its a tough job as challenges are thrown at them daily by the unpredictable Trump and his "new World order" and I don't expect anything to happen quickly.

They are definitely active challenging Trump where possible and trying to make Congress halt the worst of Trump's policies and there are plenty of law cases and demonstrations but the Democrats lack a clear set of alternative policies or a clear leader. Which isn't surprising in the circumstances.

It partly depends on how popular Trump remains as his policies filter down and affect people personally.

I’m rarely surprised by what British governments do, I must admit.
I don’t think most voters understood that Trump would do all he has done so far. They bought into MAGA, rather than the implicit implication of short and medium term hardship for most Americans, which is the likely outcome of his policies, according to political commentators in the USA. Time will tell

And they could be expected to know Trump better than anyone who doesnt live in the US.

Do you think the people who voted for him really understood what he was planning, and what the impact on them personally would be?

I think that is true of whoever I have ever voted for.

It's an effective opposition that would also be helpful.

Galaxy

That is the case with many politicians/ political parties, that they don't always deliver what the people who voted for them expect.
In relations to Trumps skills or lack of them, what he does possess is the ability to be elected President twice and the ability to exploit the failures of his political opposition very effectively.

That is true Galaxy, but I think in Trump’s case this is very new territory. I don’t think a leader who oversees the dismantling of state institutions and rewrites the country’s relationship with the rest of the world within three months of taking up office is operating within the expected delivery plan for any government people in the USA voted for. It’s the floating voters who matter here, not those who would have voted for him regardless.

I wasn't exactly the majority of the American people. It was less than two thirds of them.

That is the case with many politicians/ political parties, that they don't always deliver what the people who voted for them expect.
In relations to Trumps skills or lack of them, what he does possess is the ability to be elected President twice and the ability to exploit the failures of his political opposition very effectively.

Macadia

Trump is doing what the majority of American people asked him to do. He is undoing what they did not ask for. People who voted for him are getting what they asked for. People who voted for Harris are not gettung what they asked for.

Would that it were so simple. Do you think the people who voted for him really understood what he was planning, and what the impact on them personally would be? Some of them are holding the faith for now, but if he doesn’t do something very soon to stop the direct impact on their pockets, in my view he isn’t going to be there to live out his dream.

And the millions who chose not to vote (silly) will be howling the loudest I expect.

The difference is, FGT that Starmer has a great deal of nous, and Trump has very little. You don't get a law degree (at least in the UK) without training in assessing facts in detail before reaching a conclusion, and in where to look to find those facts. You don't build up a successful and respected law practice, or rise in a few years from newby MP through head of a political party to Prime Minister of the UK, without learning a lot about managing people and making decisions which affect others as well as your bank balance.

Trump, on the other hand, has learnt almost nothing since he was a small boy. According to his teachers he didn't learn much then either. He has several bankruptcies under his belt, he believes whoever is brown-nosing most assiduously, he makes his decisions according to who is most resentful of on any given day and changes his mind more often than his socks then denies that he ever said things that are publicly available in black and white. He is the leader and protector of millions of Americans, but he is removing every federal organisation which does anything for their welfare when they are in difficulties - and his advice to them is that if they don't like it they can go live elsewhere, as though beng a US citizen is a job you chose, which you can just quit and het another tomorrow.

And that is not even mentioning his frequent presence on Epstein's passenger list and photos circulating of a charge sheet naming him and Epstein on a particularly sordid charge.

Trump is doing what the majority of American people asked him to do. He is undoing what they did not ask for. People who voted for him are getting what they asked for. People who voted for Harris are not gettung what they asked for.

Too embarrassing to admit by any economist😄

Personally, I dont think I have a problem with the tariffs or system used.

I certainly do have a problem if he is trying to destabilise the world financial markets.
His ego may be big enough to think he is controlling that situation too.
I cant see how he can possibly be.

I also do have a problem with the uncertainy he is creating in general, for everyone world wide, it feels like.
Though I guess he would say short term pain for long term gain. Except I presume he would mean long term gain for the US.

To be fair, he is the President of the US. Not elsewhere.
And he his election manifesto was about making America great again - I assume he meant in a financial way.

I dont know if he has factored into his plans, the damage he is doing to world relationships.
He probably thinks, one 10 min conversation with a Country leader, and all will be well again.

Perhaps I need to buy a book about him. To understand his personality better. There must be several written.
But feel reading it would be like wading through treacle.

"You’d think that Trump wouldn’t be doing this off his own bat. Surely he has economists advising him?"

Surely if Trump ever took advice he wouldn't be going around with hair like spun sugar and a face that looks like he applied turmeric through a balaclava.

Seriously though I cannot believe any economist would have come up with the the appalling, unfounded, disordered 'system' and chart he presented to the world.

If they did, then the were working against him, not for him.

I just meant that surely Trump and Starmer are advised by financial experts. They don’t have (either of them) the nous to do any of this by themselves on the back of a fag packet. There must be advisers in the background on economic matters.

One thing for sure we can’t do nothing.

I would very much like the U.K. to play to its strengths. We have such a good technology sector, which the. USA has always stripped in the past, but I think this should be resisted in the future. We have some good brains and innovators who should be first in line for investment.

Working with europe to build this sector and others would be a good way to ensure a well funded, successful and strong economy.

Trump has created uncertainty.
The one thing financial markets hate the most is uncertainty.

There is no comparison between what Trump is doing and the UK’s internal managements of its political affairs FGT2. The UK government is operating entirely within the parliamentary rules, and is taking a conciliatory approach to international relations. I feel sorry for the American public who can see exactly what is happening to their country but are powerless at present to stop it.

I agree with the commentators, I don’t think the world order will ever be the same again. The USA has lost its way, democracy is fragile.

Everyone is speculating. No one knows how this will end up. It’s like holding the tail of a tiger. You’d think that Trump wouldn’t be doing this off his own bat. Surely he has economists advising him? But then again look at Starmer with Rachel Reeves. The same thoughts come to mind there. In the meantime everyone is floundering and trying to get a handle on things. Nothing we can all do but wait to see how things pan out.

fancythat

I wonder what the comments on this thread will look like. In one year's time.

Different to how it looked this time last year for sure!