Chopper pressers are the best pressers.  As President Trump departed the White House to travel to Dayton, OH and El Paso, TX, he stopped to deliver remarks and answer questions from the press pool. [Video and Transcript below]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: So, we’re going to Dayton first, and then we’re going to El Paso. And we’ll be meeting with first responders, law enforcement, and some of the victims, and paying my respects and regards. I’ll be going with the First Lady. And it’s a terrific opportunity, really, to congratulate some of the police and law enforcement. The job they’ve done was incredible. Really incredible.

Q Mr. President, no doubt — I don’t think anybody will argue this is a difficult time in our country for all of us. So, from your heart, from your mind, what do you say to your critics that believe it’s your rhetoric that is emboldening white nationalists and inspiring this anger?

THE PRESIDENT: So, my critics are political people. They’re trying to make points. In many cases, they’re running for President and they’re very low in the polls. A couple of them, in particular, are very low in the polls. If you look at Dayton, that was a person that supported, I guess you would say, Bernie Sanders, I understood; Antifa, I understood; Elizabeth Warren, I understood. It had nothing to do with President Trump.

So these are people that are looking for political gain. I don’t think they’re getting it. And, as much as possible, I’ve tried to stay out of that.

Q Mr. President, Senator Ted Cruz today said that people on both sides of the political aisle need to tone down the rhetoric. Do you agree with that?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I do agree, but I think we have toned it down. We’ve been hitting — we’ve been getting hit left and right from everybody. Many of the people, I don’t know. A couple of people from Texas — political people from Texas that aren’t doing very well. I guess somebody said — the mayor — I had one very nice conversation with the mayor of Dayton; could not have been nicer. And then she goes and says I tried to call her. Well, I spoke to her, and I didn’t receive any call.

So they’re trying to make political points. I don’t think it works because, you know, I would like to stay out of the political fray.

As I was saying, and as just came out, the Dayton situation — he was a fan of Antifa. He was a fan of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Nothing to do with Trump. But nobody ever mentions that.

Q (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT: Say it?

Q (Inaudible) supported Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Should they be blamed for (inaudible)?

THE PRESIDENT: No, I don’t blame Elizabeth Warren, and I don’t blame Bernie Sanders in the case of Ohio. And I don’t blame anybody. I blame — these are sick people. These are people that are really mentally ill, mentally disturbed. It’s a mental problem.

And we’re going to be meeting — we’re going to be meeting with members of Congress. I’ve already got meetings scheduled. And I have had plenty of talks over the last two days. And I think something is going to be come up with. We’re going to come with something that’s going to be, really, very good — beyond anything that’s been done so far.

Q Do you support bringing the Senate back to consider legislation on —

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we’re going to see where we are. We’re dealing with leadership right now. And, you know, you have two sides that are very different on this issue, and, let’s say, all good people. But two sides that are very different. If we get close, I will bring them back. But it has to be — you know, we have to see where we are with leadership.

Normally, this has been, really, a decision — Congress gets together and they try and do something. But if you look over the last 30 years, not a lot has been done.

Q The background check bill already that has passed the House, what good (inaudible)?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I’m looking to do background checks. I think background checks are important. I don’t want to put guns into the hands of mentally unstable people or people with rage or hate, sick people. I don’t want to — I’m all in favor of it.

Q What about assault rifles? A lot of people would like to see them banned. What is your position?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I can tell you that there is no political appetite for that at this moment. If you look at the — you could speak, you could do your own polling. And there’s no political appetite, probably, from the standpoint of legislature.

But I will certainly bring that up. I’ll bring that up as one of the points. There’s a great appetite — and I mean a very strong appetite — for background checks. And I think we can bring up background checks like we’ve never had before. I think both Republican and Democrat are getting close to a bill on — they’re doing something on background checks.

Q (Inaudible.) South Korea and Japan exports are (inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. South Korea and I have made a deal. They’ve agreed to pay a lot more money toward the United States. As you know, we’ve got 32,000 soldiers on South Korean soil, and we’ve been helping them for about 82 years. And we get nothing. We get virtually nothing. And South Korea and I have made a deal where they’re paying a lot more money, and they’re going to pay a lot more money. And the relationship is a very good one.

But I felt, all along, I felt for years it was a very unfair one. So they’ve agreed to pay a lot more, and they will agree to pay a lot more than that. And we’re with them. We’re with them.

Q Mr. President, you banned bump stocks. Would you consider a ban on these huge, large-capacity magazines?

THE PRESIDENT: So, you have to have a political appetite within Congress. And, so far, I have not seen that. I mean, I can only do what I can do. I think there’s a great appetite to do something with regard to making sure that mentally unstable, seriously ill people aren’t carrying guns. And I’ve never seen the appetite as strong as it is now. I have not seen it with regard to certain types of weapons.

Q Mr. President, how concerned are you about the rise in white supremacy? And what are you going to do about it?

THE PRESIDENT: I am concerned about the rise of any group of hate. I don’t like it. Any group of hate, I am — whether it’s white supremacy, whether it’s any other kind of supremacy, whether it’s Antifa, whether it’s any group of hate, I am very concerned about it. And I’ll do something about it.

Q Do you believe that your rhetoric has any impact on (inaudible)?

THE PRESIDENT: No, I don’t think my rhetoric has at all. I think my rhetoric is a very — it brings people together. Our country is doing incredibly well. China is not doing well, if you look at the trade situation.

China just admitted yesterday that they’ve been a currency manipulator. First time they’ve ever been called out. Companies are moving out of China by the thousands, and our country is doing very well. We’re going to see how it all works out. Somebody had to do this with China because they were taking hundreds of billions of dollars a year out of the United States. And somebody had to make a stand. So, I think our country is doing really well.

Q What’s your reaction to the market reaction to the trade war? And what’s next with China?

THE PRESIDENT: I think the market — I think the market reaction is anticipated. I would have anticipated. I would have maybe anticipated even more. But ultimately, it’s going to go much higher than it ever would have gone because China was like an anchor on us. China was killing us with unfair trade deals. The people that allowed that to happen are a disgrace. China, what they were doing to us, for years and years, taking hundreds of billions of dollars out, stealing intellectual property, targeting our farmers. All of that is ending, and they understand that.

Q Mr. President, you still believe there’s no political appetite for an assault weapons ban, but as the leader of this country, do you personally believe people should be able to buy assault weapons?

THE PRESIDENT: That’s right. I’ll be — I’ll be convincing some people to do things that they don’t want to do, and that means people in Congress. But you’ve got a lot of people on one side, and you have a lot of people in the other. But I can — I have a lot of influence with a lot of people, and I want to convince them to do the right thing.

And I will tell you, we’ve made a lot of headway in the last three days. A lot of headway.

Q Mr. President, do you still believe that illegal immigration into this country is an invasion? You and the shooter in El Paso used that same language. Do you regret that?

THE PRESIDENT: I think that illegal immigration — you’re talking about illegal immigration, right? Yeah? I think illegal immigration is a terrible thing for this country. I think you have to come in legally. Ideally, you have to come in through merit. We need people coming in because we have many companies coming into our country. They’re pouring in. And I think illegal immigration is a very bad thing for our country. I think open borders are a very bad thing for our country.

And we’re stopping; we’re building a wall right now. We won the lawsuit in the Supreme Court two weeks ago. The wall is well under construction. It’s being built at a rapid pace. We need that. We need strong immigration laws. But we want to allow millions of people to come in because we need them. We have companies coming in from Japan, all over Europe, all over Asia. They’re opening up companies here. They need people to work. We have a very low unemployment rate.

So, I believe we have to have legal immigration, not illegal immigration.

Q Are you watching the stock market’s reaction to China, sir?

THE PRESIDENT: I am. I think the market reaction is to be expected. I might’ve expected even more.

At some point, as I just said, we have to take on China. They’ve been taking — look, they’ve been taking us to the cleaners for 25 years. This should’ve been done long before me as a President. You know the story better than anybody. You know it better than I do, frankly. Hundreds of billions of dollars a year taken out of our country. Stealing intellectual property.

And you know what? We, right now, we’re sitting on top. We have money pouring in. We have powerful companies, strong companies. China is losing so many — they’re losing — thousands and thousands of companies are leaving China now because of the tariffs. And we’re in a very good position as to whether or not a deal will be made. I will tell you this: China would like to make a deal very badly.

Q Mr. President, Joe Biden. Joe Biden says you have more in common with George Wallace than George Washington.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, you know, Joe is a pretty incompetent guy. I’ve watched his interviews. I’ve watched what he said and how he said it. And I wouldn’t have rated him very high in the first place, but Joe Biden has truly lost this fastball, that I can tell you.

Thank you.

[Transcript End]

Wow. Go Wilburine!  U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has slapped a whopping $4.4 billion countervailing duty on Chinese cabinet manufacturers.  The rate of manufacturing subsidy identified within the ‘wood cabinet‘ study shows a massive 229% subsidy rate via discounted land, free lumber, electricity, raw materials, direct grants from government and discounted loans from Chinese banks to enhance export incentives.

The current study and duty only applies to wood cabinets and vanities, but if you ever wondered how come Chinese furniture is so cheap, well, it’s not a stretch to consider those same subsidy rates likely apply to their household furniture and wood products.

(Bloomberg) Add $4.4 billion in imported cabinets to the long list of Chinese goods slapped with U.S. levies in the escalating trade dispute between Washington and Beijing.

The Commerce Department said Tuesday it will ask the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to collect cash deposits from importers of the wooden cabinets and vanities from China based on subsidy rates of as much as 229%. Commerce issued a preliminary determination in response to a petition filed earlier this year by the American Kitchen Cabinet Alliance, alleging at least $2 billion in harm from the Chinese shipments.

The petition alleged dumping margins of more than 200%. Tim Brightbill, a trade lawyer from Wiley Rein LLP in Washington representing the industry, said in March that Chinese exporters get double-digit subsidy margins based on the number of programs supporting their domestic industry, including discounted land, electricity, raw materials, grants, discounted loans and export incentives.

“Today’s determination gives the American kitchen cabinet industry the hope it needs in our fight against China’s unfair trade practices,” Stephen Wellborn, director of product and research development at U.S. manufacturer Wellborn Cabinet and a member of the American alliance, said in an emailed statement.  (more)

That $4.4 billion is a pretty hefty duty within a relatively small manufacturing sector.   Can you imagine if anyone has filed a trade/manufacturing complaint against the much larger ‘wood furniture’ and household goods?  Jumpin’ ju-ju bones.

In related news a lot more exporters operating manufacturing in China are starting to see the writing on their noses, realizing that Trump tariffs are only going to get worse, and are making plans to get the heck out of China, ASAP.

(CMP) Traditional export manufacturers in China’s Pearl and Yangtze River Delta regions already struggling under the weight of existing tariffs levied by the Trump administration expect the new tariffs on US$300 billion of Chinese imports to cause their businesses to shrink, force them to lay off workers, and for some, speed up relocation plans. (more)

Think of China like a big lake filled with U.S. dollars and economic value; the result of our purchases of their products.   Through his ASEAN discussions with Vietnam, S Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Japan, et al, President Trump has stealthily built a thin levy, an ASEAN dam of sorts, that will direct the China lake of economic value into Southeast Asia.

At any given moment Trump can blow that dam by triggering bigger tariffs. The exodus will benefit those who partnered with Trump.  Vietnam’s economy has jumped over eight percent so far this year…. almost exclusively as a result of companies leaving China.

China has no substantive tools in their economic armory to defend against President Trump in a one-on-one battle.   And Trump keeps landing body blows, the latest was the seizure of all Venezuelan assets.  The number one investor in Venezuela is China (by a mile).  China owns 49% of PDVSA Venezuela’s state owned oil company as an example.

The labeling of China as a currency manipulator opens the door to even more sanctions, and Beijing has no measurable way to respond.  Beijing can threaten other trade partners, but more than China everyone wants access to the U.S. market; so no-one wants to become a target for Trump by standing near Xi Jinping or engaging in transnational shipping.

CTH writes a great deal about President Trump’s economic policies, and how those policies are reversing the decades-long erosion of the middle-class.  Factually, substantively and empirically the workers of America are gaining ground. Bigger and better than before, and far beyond what anyone else could have delivered.

This is not a theoretical exercise.  The execution of a broad-based economic and global trade reset is underway. Today’s economic results, the growing strength of our U.S. economy, is a testament to the success of MAGAnomic policy being delivered. These results, when fully realized, will secure our economic future and last for generations.

All of that said, there is something we don’t emphasize enough: The team of Secretary Mnuchin, Secretary Ross, USTR Lighthizer, Trade and Manufacturing advisor Navarro and NEC Director Larry Kudlow, face a scale of opposition almost unfathomable in modern political terms.  There are trillions at stake; hundreds of the most powerful financial interests in the world are against them; and yet this team is succeeding.

It takes incredible stewardship and fortitude to face down the Goliath’s of global interests. From Wall Street to the International Monetary Fund; to the World Bank and World Trade Organization; to the interests of Europe and China; and across all of the geopolitical boundaries enmeshed with all the multinationals therein.   Quite remarkable.

Just sit for a minute and think about the scale of opposition…. it really is an incredible accomplishment, beyond almost anything anyone would have hoped or imagined.

The people’s president, Donald Trump and this private sector economic team; arguably the best and most qualified group ever assembled in modern history; deserve our appreciation, unyielding and full-throated support.

We deserve it, they earned it:

Thank You!

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National Economic Council Chairman Larry Kudlow, appears on CNBC to discuss the U.S-China trade conflict that led to yesterday’s stock market drop. Additionally, Kudlow notes the strong key performance indicators that highlight the strength of the U.S. Main Street economy.

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Larry Kudlow also held a press conference.

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White House trade and manufacturing policy advisor Peter Navarro, appears with Lou Dobbs to discuss the current status of the U.S.-China trade conflict.

Within the interview Navarro discusses the impact of China devaluing their currency as a strategy to avoid U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports.  WATCH:

Beijing has once again used their proxy province of North Korea to launch small two short-range ballistic missiles as leverage in the U.S. and China trade confrontation.

WASHINGTON – For the fourth time in less than two weeks, North Korea has fired projectiles into the Sea of Japan, a U.S. official said.

The two projectiles, fired on Tuesday morning local time, were assessed to be similar to the short-range ballistic missiles tested by North Korea last week, the official said. (read more)

Moments later President Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin fired a counter-missile directly into the heart of Beijing’s trade currency manipulation:

(Treasury) The Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 requires the Secretary of the Treasury to analyze the exchange rate policies of other countries.

Under Section 3004 of the Act, the Secretary must “consider whether countries manipulate the rate of exchange between their currency and the United States dollar for purposes of preventing effective balance of payments adjustments or gaining unfair competitive advantage in international trade.” Secretary Mnuchin, under the auspices of President Trump, has today determined that China is a Currency Manipulator.

As a result of this determination, Secretary Mnuchin will engage with the International Monetary Fund to eliminate the unfair competitive advantage created by China’s latest actions. (more)

And so the dance with the dragon continues…

Chairman Xi devalues Chinese currency… Trump hits Chairman Xi with tariffs…. Beijing launches DPRK rockets…. Trump hits Chairman Xi with IMF/WTO designations….

Unfortunately for Chairman Xi Jinping, President Trump has bigger economic missiles than Beijing.  Kyle Bass outlines the scale of what economic weapons President Trump has in his arsenal that are far more devastating than little Kim’s rockets.  WATCH:

China needs to buy dollars to backstop their own currency (¥uan). When China trades with the U.S. they hold the return dollars as a peg against their weak currency.  Remove the flow of dollars (lessen exports) and they start to run out of strong pegged currency.

What is happening today is not as much direct devaluation by China; rather they are intentionally allowing their currency to drop in value, in an effort to lower export prices and off-set any tariffs from the U.S.   Simultaneously, Beijing is spending internally, burning cash, to keep their economy from weakening.  Their Yuan burn rate is greater than the influx of higher valued dollars needed to hold their position.

They cannot keep this position indefinitely.

First, here’s a solid interview with former CEO Gerald Storch on how the currency devaluation leads to lower prices for U.S. consumers.  Again, emphasizing the point that U.S. consumers are not paying for the tariffs against China.  Watch:

President Trump responds to the current activity by China:

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Beijing says they will keep lowering the value of their currency to keep the flow of cheap Chinese manufactured goods flowing to the United States, regardless of tariffs.  Simultaneously they need the returning higher valued dollars to prop-up their own diminishing currency.

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Hang on folks…. this is going to continue:

Earlier today President Donald Trump delivered remarks from the White House about the shooting incidents in El Paso, TX, and Dayton, OH.  [Video and Transcript]

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[Transcript]  – THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. My fellow Americans, this morning, our nation is overcome with shock, horror, and sorrow. This weekend, more than 80 people were killed or wounded in two evil attacks.

On Saturday morning, in El Paso, Texas, a wicked man went to a Walmart store, where families were shopping with their loved ones. He shot and murdered 20 people, and injured 26 others, including precious little children.

Then, in the early hours of Sunday morning in Dayton, Ohio, another twisted monster opened fire on a crowded downtown street. He murdered 9 people, including his own sister, and injured 27 others.

The First Lady and I join all Americans in praying and grieving for the victims, their families, and the survivors. We will stand by their side forever. We will never forget.

These barbaric slaughters are an assault upon our communities, an attack upon our nation, and a crime against all of humanity. We are outraged and sickened by this monstrous evil, the cruelty, the hatred, the malice, the bloodshed, and the terror. Our hearts are shattered for every family whose parents, children, husbands, and wives were ripped from their arms and their lives. America weeps for the fallen.

We are a loving nation, and our children are entitled to grow up in a just, peaceful, and loving society. Together, we lock arms to shoulder the grief, we ask God in Heaven to ease the anguish of those who suffer, and we vow to act with urgent resolve.

I want to thank the many law enforcement personnel who responded to these atrocities with the extraordinary grace and courage of American heroes.

I have spoken with Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, as well as Mayor Dee Margo of El Paso, Texas, and Mayor Nan Whaley of Dayton, Ohio, to express our profound sadness and unfailing support.

Today, we also send the condolences of our nation to President Obrador of Mexico, and all the people of Mexico, for the loss of their citizens in the El Paso shooting. Terrible, terrible thing.

I have also been in close contact with Attorney General Barr and FBI Director Wray. Federal authorities are on the ground, and I have directed them to provide any and all assistance required — whatever is needed.

The shooter in El Paso posted a manifesto online consumed by racist hate. In one voice, our nation must condemn racism, bigotry, and white supremacy. These sinister ideologies must be defeated. Hate has no place in America. Hatred warps the mind, ravages the heart, and devours the soul. We have asked the FBI to identify all further resources they need to investigate and disrupt hate crimes and domestic terrorism — whatever they need.

We must recognize that the Internet has provided a dangerous avenue to radicalize disturbed minds and perform demented acts. We must shine light on the dark recesses of the Internet, and stop mass murders before they start. The Internet, likewise, is used for human trafficking, illegal drug distribution, and so many other heinous crimes. The perils of the Internet and social media cannot be ignored, and they will not be ignored.

In the two decades since Columbine, our nation has watched with rising horror and dread as one mass shooting has followed another — over and over again, decade after decade.

We cannot allow ourselves to feel powerless. We can and will stop this evil contagion. In that task, we must honor the sacred memory of those we have lost by acting as one people. Open wounds cannot heal if we are divided. We must seek real, bipartisan solutions. We have to do that in a bipartisan manner. That will truly make America safer and better for all.

First, we must do a better job of identifying and acting on early warning signs. I am directing the Department of Justice to work in partisan — partnership with local, state, and federal agencies, as well as social media companies, to develop tools that can detect mass shooters before they strike.

As an example, the monster in the Parkland high school in Florida had many red flags against him, and yet nobody took decisive action. Nobody did anything. Why not?

Second, we must stop the glorification of violence in our society. This includes the gruesome and grisly video games that are now commonplace. It is too easy today for troubled youth to surround themselves with a culture that celebrates violence. We must stop or substantially reduce this, and it has to begin immediately. Cultural change is hard, but each of us can choose to build a culture that celebrates the inherent worth and dignity of every human life. That’s what we have to do.

Third, we must reform our mental health laws to better identify mentally disturbed individuals who may commit acts of violence and make sure those people not only get treatment, but, when necessary, involuntary confinement. Mental illness and hatred pulls the trigger, not the gun.

Fourth, we must make sure that those judged to pose a grave risk to public safety do not have access to firearms, and that, if they do, those firearms can be taken through rapid due process. That is why I have called for red flag laws, also known as extreme risk protection orders.

Today, I am also directing the Department of Justice to propose legislation ensuring that those who commit hate crimes and mass murders face the death penalty, and that this capital punishment be delivered quickly, decisively, and without years of needless delay.

These are just a few of the areas of cooperation that we can pursue. I am open and ready to listen and discuss all ideas that will actually work and make a very big difference.

Republicans and Democrats have proven that we can join together in a bipartisan fashion to address this plague. Last year, we enacted the STOP School Violence and Fix NICS Acts into law, providing grants to improve school safety and strengthening critical background checks for firearm purchases. At my direction, the Department of Justice banned bump stocks. Last year, we prosecuted a record number of firearms offenses. But there is so much more that we have to do.

Now is the time to set destructive partisanship aside — so destructive — and find the courage to answer hatred with unity, devotion, and love. Our future is in our control. America will rise to the challenge. We will always have and we always will win. The choice is ours and ours alone. It is not up to mentally ill monsters; it is up to us.

If we are able to pass great legislation after all of these years, we will ensure that those who were attacked will not have died in vain.

May God bless the memory of those who perished [DEL: in Toledo :DEL] . May God protect them. May God protect all of those from Texas to Ohio. May God bless the victims and their families. May God bless America.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

END 10:18 A.M. EDT

Originally outlined over two years ago. Reposted by request, because we are watching it play out in real time: Believe me, at the heart of the professional/political opposition the issue is the money; there are trillions at stake.

President Trump’s MAGAnomic trade and foreign policy agenda is jaw-dropping in scale, scope and consequence. There are multiple simultaneous aspects to each policy objective; they have been outlined for a long time, even before the election victory in November ’16.

If you get too far into the weeds the larger picture can be lost. CTH objective is to continue pointing focus toward the larger horizon, and then at specific inflection points to dive into the topic and explain how each moment is connected to the larger strategy.

Today we repost an earlier dive into how MAGAnomic policy interacts with multinational Wall Street, the stock market, the U.S. financial system and perhaps your personal financial value. Again, reference and source material is included at the end of the outline.

If you understand the basic elements behind the new dimension in American economics, you already understand how three decades of DC legislative and regulatory policy was structured to benefit Wall Street and not Main Street. The intentional shift in monetary policy is what created the distance between two entirely divergent economic engines.

REMEMBER […] there had to be a point where the value of the second economy (Wall Street) surpassed the value of the first economy (Main Street).

Investments, and the bets therein, expanded outside of the USA. hence, globalist investing…. investing in foreign manufacturing; multinational corporations moved manufacturing outside the U.S. and into Asia (China).

However, a second more consequential aspect happened simultaneously. The politicians became more valuable to the Wall Street team than the Main Street team; and Wall Street had deeper pockets because their economy was now larger.

As a consequence Wall Street started funding political candidates and asking for legislation and trade policies that benefited their, now international, interests.

When Main Street was purchasing the legislative influence the outcomes were -generally speaking- beneficial to Main Street, and by direct attachment those outcomes also benefited the average American inside the real economy.

When Wall Street began purchasing the legislative influence, the outcomes therein became beneficial to Wall Street. Those benefits are detached from improving the livelihoods of main street Americans because the benefits are “global”.

Global financial interests, multinational investment interests -and corporations therein- became the primary filter through which the DC legislative outcomes were considered.

There is a natural disconnect. (more)

As an outcome of national monetary policy allowing the blending of commercial banking with institutional investments (Glass-Stegal repeal), something happened on Wall Street that few understand. If we take the time to understand what happened we can understand why the Stock Market grew and what risks exist today as U.S. policy is reversed to benefit Main Street.

President Trump and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin have already begun assembling and delivering a new banking system.

Instead of attempting to put Glass-Stegal regulations back into massive banking systems, the Trump administration began supporting a parallel, smaller financial system, of less-regulated small commercial banks, credit unions and traditional lenders who can operate to the benefit of Main Street without the burdensome regulation of the mega-banks and multinationals. This really is one of the more brilliant solutions to work around a uniquely American economic problem.

♦ When U.S. banks were allowed to merge their investment divisions with their commercial banking operations (the removal of Glass Stegal) something changed on Wall Street.

Companies who are evaluated based on their financial results, profits and losses, remained in their traditional role as traded stocks on the U.S. Stock Market and were evaluated accordingly. However, over time investment instruments -which are secondary to actual company results- created a sub-set within Wall Street that detached from actual bottom line company results.

The resulting secondary financial market system was essentially ‘investment markets’. Both ordinary company stocks and the investment market stocks operate on the same stock exchanges. But the underlying valuation is tied to entirely different metrics.

Financial products were developed (as investment instruments) that are essentially wagers or bets on the outcomes of actual companies traded on Wall Street. Those bets/wagers form the hedge markets and are [essentially] people trading on expectations of performance. The “derivatives market” is the ‘betting system’.

♦Ford Motor Company (only chosen as a commonly known entity) has a stock valuation based on their actual company performance in the market of manufacturing and consumer purchasing of their product. However, there can be thousands of financial instruments wagering on the actual outcome of their performance, both domestically and internationally.

There are two initial bets on these outcomes that form the basis for Hedge-fund activity. Bet ‘A’ that Ford hits a profit number, or bet ‘B’ that they don’t. There are financial instruments created to place each wager. [The wagers form the derivatives.] But it doesn’t stop there.

Additionally, more financial products are created that bet on the outcomes of the A/B bets. A secondary financial product might find two sides betting on both A outcome and B outcome.

Party C bets the “A” bet is accurate, and party D bets against the A bet. Party E bets the “B” bet is accurate, and party F bets against the B. If it stopped there we would only have six total participants. But it doesn’t stop there, it goes on and on and on…

The outcome of the bets forms the basis for the tenuous investment markets. The important part to understand is that the investment funds are not necessarily attached to the original company stock, they are now attached to the outcome of bet(s). Hence an inherent disconnect is created.

Subsequently, if the actual stock doesn’t meet it’s expected P-n-L outcome (if the company actually doesn’t do well), and if the financial investment was betting against the outcome, the value of the investment actually goes up. The company performance and the investment bets on the outcome of that performance are two entirely different aspects of the stock market. [Hence two metrics.]

♦Understanding the disconnect between an actual company on the stock market, and the bets for and against that company stock, helps to understand what can happen when monetary policy and trade policy is geared toward helping the underlying company (Main Street MAGAnomics), and not toward the bets therein (Wall St – Investment).

The U.S. stock markets’ overall value can increase with Main Street policy, and yet the investment class can simultaneously decrease in value even though the company(ies) in the stock market is/are doing better. This detachment is critical to understand because the ‘real economy’ is based on the company, the ‘paper economy’ is based on the financial investment instruments betting on the company.

Trillions can be lost in investment instruments, and yet the overall stock market -as valued by company operations/profits- can increase.

Conversely, there are now classes of companies on the U.S. stock exchange that never make a dime in profit, yet the value of the company increases. This dynamic is possible because the financial investment bets are not connected to the bottom line profit. (Examples include Tesla Motors, Uber and Amazon, and a host of internet stocks.) It is this investment group of companies that stands to lose the most if/when the underlying system of betting on them stops or slows.

Specifically due to most recent U.S. monetary policy, modern multinational banks, including all of the investment products therein, are more closely attached to this investment system on Wall Street. It stands to reason they are at greater risk of financial losses overall with a shift in policy.

That financial and economic risk is the basic reason behind Trump and Mnuchin putting a protective, secondary and parallel, banking system in place for Main Street.

Big multinational banks can suffer big losses from their overseas investments; and yet the Main Street economy can continue growing, and have access to capital, uninterrupted.

U.S. companies who have actual connection to a growing internal U.S. economy can succeed; based on the advantages of the new economic environment and MAGA trade policy, specifically in the areas of manufacturing, domestic supply chain and the ancillary benefactors.

Meanwhile U.S. investment assets (multinational investment portfolios) that are disconnected from the actual results of those benefiting U.S. companies, and as a consequence also disconnected from the U.S. economic expansion, can simultaneously drop in value even though the U.S. economy is thriving.  Those assets are heavily dependent on prior overseas investments in China.

♦China and the EU have devalued their currency, and continue to devalue their currency, in an effort to block the impacts from President Trump and the ‘America First’ trade policy.  In essence they are trying to maintain their part of a global economic system of manufacturing and export.

However, because those currencies are pegged against the dollar, the resulting effect is a rising dollar value. In essence, the globalist IMF is now blaming President Trump for having a strong economy that forces international competition to devalue their currency.

That’s the stupid hypocrisy of global banking outlooks. They make a decision to devalue their currency, which causes the dollar value to rise, and then turn around and blame the U.S. dollar for being overvalued.

The root cause of the devaluation is unaddressed in the Wall Street/Globalist argument. The EU and China are trying to retain their global manufacturing position and offset the impact of President Trump’s tariffs by lowering the end value of their exports.

President Trump is now engaged in a massive and multidimensional effort to re-balance the entire global trade and wealth dynamic. By putting tariffs on foreign imports he has counterbalanced the never-ending Marshall Plan trade program and demanded renegotiation(s).

Trump’s trade goal is reciprocity; free and fair trade.  However, the EU and Asia, specifically China, don’t want to give up a decades-long multi-generational advantage. This is part of the fight.

Because so many shifts -policy nudges- have taken place in the past several decades few academics and even fewer MSM observers are able to understand or explain how Trump planned to get off the service-driven economic path and chart a better course.

President Trump began a process for less dependence on foreign companies for cheap goods, (the cornerstone of a service economy), and began a return to a more balanced U.S. larger economic model where the manufacturing and a production base can be re-established and competitive based on American entrepreneurship and innovation.

No other economy in the world innovates like the U.S.A, Trump sees this as a key advantage across all industry – including manufacturing.  The benefit of cheap overseas labor, which is considered a global market disadvantage for the U.S, is offset by utilizing innovation and energy independence.  Additionally, the wage rates in the Asian manufacturing economies have risen as their national wealth has increased.

The third highest variable cost of goods beyond raw materials first, labor second, is energy.  By unleashing the energy sector -fully developed- the manufacturing price of any given product will allow for global trade competition even with higher U.S. wage prices.

In 2019 the Total Cost of Production (TCP) is now entirely different than it was in 2016.

The U.S. has a key strategic advantage with raw manufacturing materials such as: iron ore, coal, steel, precious metals and vast mineral assets which are needed in most new modern era manufacturing.  Trump’s policies stopped selling those valuable national assets to countries we compete against – they belong to the American people, they should be used for the benefit of American citizens. Period.

As the U.S. economy expands; and as blue-collar manufacturing returns; the demand for labor increases, and as a consequence so too does the U.S. wage rate (currently +3.4%) which was stagnant (or non-existent) for the past three decades.  Total compensation for U.S. workers is now growing at a +5.5 percent rate.

As the wage rate increases, and as the economy expands, the governmental dependency model is reshaped and simultaneously receipts to the U.S. treasury improve. More money into the U.S Treasury and less dependence on welfare programs have a combined exponential impact. You gain a dollar, and have no need to spend a dollar.

As the GDP of the U.S. expands, we stop thinking about how to best divide a limited economic pie, and begin thinking about how many more economic pies we can create.

So yeah, there’s going to be pain – for them: massive economic pain as the process of reestablishing a fair trading system is rebuilt; and also for U.S. interests that are dependent on returns from prior investments in China.

The dynamic of reciprocal and balanced trade is the essential policy that benefits Main Street USA.  Unfortunately, in the initial phase where putting ‘America First’ is the priority, the policy is against the interests of the multinationals on Wall Street connected to Chinese manufacturing.

As a result, President Trump has to fight adverse economic opponents on multiple fronts…. and their purchased mercenary army we know as DC politicians….

♦The Modern Third Dimension in American Economics – HERE

♦How Multinationals have Exported U.S. Wealth – HERE

♦The “Fed” Can’t Figure out the New Economics – HERE

♦The FED Begins to Question the Economic Assumptions – HERE

♦Treasury Secretary Mnuchin begins creating a Parallel Banking System – HERE

♦Proof “America-First” has disconnected Main Street from Wall Street – HERE