“It was a trial balloon, but it didn’t work,” said Mexican economist Luis de la Calle, a trade expert who had been a senior negotiator on the pact. “Next time, nobody will believe it. People start to figure things out.”
But Mr. Trump said in the interview that he still holds his strongest card. “We’ll terminate Nafta if we’re unable to make a deal, but hopefully we won’t have to do that.”
Trump is skillfully navigating Washington’s budget realities
It appears Trump has taken the Democrats to the 11th hour by making them think the fight over the budget would be all about the border wall. They may have taken the fake and not organized an effective assault on the budget. Dare I say Trump is skillfully navigating Washington’s budget realities?
.. The president is disappointing the Democrats who thought he’d be insistent, with no flexibility. Perhaps the Democrats are being played. Trump may have been bluffing all along to distract the left into thinking this budget battle would be all about the wall.
Trump and his aides take hard line on border wall, as threat of government shutdown looms
Mulvaney has said that the administration is willing to negotiate with Democrats — funding insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in exchange for support for wall funding.
.. “The White House gambit to hold hostage health care for millions of Americans, in order to force American taxpayers to foot the bill for a wall that the President said would be paid for by Mexico is a complete non-starter,”
.. Further complicating matters for the White House, some Republicans in Congress say they don’t view wall funding as a must-have item in a short term spending bill.
.. Meanwhile, the Trump administration plans to release a very general sketch of its tax reform plan this week, Mulvaney said.
“I think what are you going to see Wednesday is some specific governing principles, some guidance,” he said, explaining that the White House will not release specific legislative text. “Also some indications of what the rates are going to be.”
Asked whether the plan will be revenue-neutral, Mulvaney replied, “I don’t think we’ve decided that part yet.”
Why Trump Might Win With China
Beijing may be ready to deal as it eyes slowing growth, a weakening yuan and other challenges.
Despite such interventions, it will be hard for the government to resist yuan depreciation. The weakening reflects a long-term growth slowdown—the natural diminishing returns of economic development.
.. a combination of slower growth, debt defaults and inflation will continue to weaken the yuan and reduce capital inflows. Foreign reserves, which grew for decades, have declined since 2014. The Chinese elite are cognizant of these problems, hence their increasingly desperate attempts to smuggle wealth out of the country.
.. Mr. Trump has been dealt a stronger hand than he could have asked for on trade with China, which has more incentive to negotiate than ever. He should walk away with a better deal from Beijing than any of his predecessors were able to extract. Mr. Trump may even be able to make progress on geopolitical issues, such as limiting China’s military adventures in international waters and securing its help on North Korea.