You may have noticed that we pay homage to both sides on the right over several issues. Education freedom accounts for all, zoning, and an Article V convention are currently hot topics dividing the center-right. Assisted suicide and tariffs are also up there. The pro-liberty factions, from conservatives to Libertarians, are free to lob verbal broadsides at each other on our pages because debate is good, and we’re not supposed to agree on everything or even the details on those things where we do.
We share both sides, and both sides have words for the other, and then we get a beer (even if just rhetorically). At least I hope we do. Remember, don’t be like The Left.
In related news, New Hampshire’s assisted suicide bill got tabled this week, which is one small step for common sense that could revert to a giant leap in the wrong direction if someone pulls it off at an opportune moment and gets it passed. My position is well known. It’s a slippery slope from which we should and can stay away. Besides, Vermont does the murder/suicide tourism thing, so if you want to die and an at-home self-poisoning overdose or a hose from the tailpipe aren’t your style, it’s just a jump to the left.
I was raised catholic, so I’m not pro-suicide, but the libertarian bits of me feel confident it is the business of other people’s family and friends, and this is just another aspect of “care” New Hampshire should stay the hell out of, and so far so good.
Tariffs are the other thing, as evidenced by the Jan Brady Marsha Marsha Marsha ‘Tariffs headline. Much has been said about them, and Trump’s use. My position has been that while I’d prefer we not have to use them, every other country has been bugging us forever, and we’ve just taken it. If tariffs can apply the leverage needed to get a better deal for America, then proceed with extreme prejudice. But I’m not an economist (which is probably a good thing), so I have no true depth in aspects of this tool and its relationship to trade and economics. Bob Lightizer does.
The AI Assistant says that “Robert Lighthizer is an American attorney who served as the 18th United States Trade Representative from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. He is known for his role in renegotiating trade agreements, including NAFTA, and for his protectionist trade policies aimed at supporting U.S. manufacturing.“
Bob was on Tucker to talk about all things trade, so when I walked in the other day, I gave it a listen. Long story short, the world does bend us over a barrel, and if we don’t do something to get our manufacturing and protect our intellectual assets, we’re f***ed. China, which has more trade barriers than anyone, has and continues to steal our discoveries, monopolizing cheap production, and then selling it back to us. Other nations also have their share of behaviors, and the trade imbalances redistribute up to a trillion in wealth annually that we could use back home.
Trump could do a lot of things, but tariffs are the easiest and fastest way to get “trading partners” to the table to discuss what needs to happen to achieve trade balance. I recommend listening to the whole thing—there are easily a half dozen sound bites worth sharing, but I settled on this one.
Bob explains the problem and what Trump is trying to accomplish with Tariffs in a way I’d not yet heard.
