The Business Times
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THE BOTTOM LINE

Trump’s smoke and mirrors

Donald Trump’s principal purpose in issuing any pronouncement is to gain attention. Unfortunately, much of the US media seem uninterested in helping the public separate signal from noise

Summarise
    • A press briefing at the White House. The US desperately needs media outlets that take the trouble to discern which Trump pronouncements are backed by dedicated policymaking teams and bureaucracies, with the intent to follow through, and which are not.
    • A press briefing at the White House. The US desperately needs media outlets that take the trouble to discern which Trump pronouncements are backed by dedicated policymaking teams and bureaucracies, with the intent to follow through, and which are not. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

    J Bradford DeLong

    Published Tue, Feb 11, 2025 · 05:00 AM

    “IT’S almost like they knew Trump was bluffing.” That is how Bloomberg columnist John Authers described Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s handling of the US president after he unjustifiably threatened their countries with 25 per cent tariffs.

    The tariffs were postponed just before they were supposed to take effect. The reason, according to Kelly Ann Shaw, a former adviser to Donald Trump, was that America’s neighbours “came to the table... with commitments that sufficiently addressed the president’s concerns”.

    But, what did Sheinbaum and Trudeau offer? As far as I can tell, they committed to things that they had already committed to, albeit with some additional symbolic gestures – like a new Canadian “fentanyl czar” – thrown in.

    Donald TrumpTrump administrationUS tariffsThe Bottom Line

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