Trump’s Message to America’s Workers at the G-7 Summit

It was the fall of 1974 and yours truly was beginning his sophomore year of high school. During a favorite television variety show of the day, the Carol Burnett Show, a red-headed singer named Helen Reddy sang a song that would reach #9 on the Billboard Top 100 Chart in September of that same year. The song’s title was You and Me Against the World, and a fresh look at the song’s lyrics ironically describes the precise message that President Donald Trump sent out to the American worker while participating in the G-7 Summit in Charlevoix, Quebec:

“You and me against the world-
Sometimes it seems like you and me against the world,
When all their backs have turned away
You can count on me to stay

Remember when the circus came to town
How you were frightened by the clown
Wasn’t it nice to be around someone that you knew
Someone who was big and strong and looking out for you

You and me against the world-
Sometimes it seems like you and me against the world
And for all the times we cried, I always felt that
God was on our side

And when one of us has gone,
And one of us is left to carry on,
Then remembering what we will have to do
Our memories alone will get us through
Think about the days of me and you
Of you and me against the world…”

-Kenneth Lee Ascher and Paul H. Williams
©1974, BMG Rights Management US LLC

Granted, Australian-born Helen Reddy, now 76 years old, would likely become irate were she to learn about this tie-in of President Trump to her hit song. Nevertheless, the similarity of its lyrics to the message Donald Trump was sending to America’s workers and the world about international trade is almost inescapable.

After all, it seems like all of our allies, all of our adversaries, all of the domestic political forces allayed against him- including Democrats, anti-Trump and NeverTrump Republicans, and practically all of the mainstream media have united once again in their fundamental opposition to his presidency. No matter the issue, this cabal of opposition can be relied upon to oppose the president because, at day’s end, they simply don’t like the man…no news here.

Yet, when it comes to world trade, the fact is undeniable that since the end of the second world war, seventy-three years ago, the entire world has enjoyed the vastly unfair, inequivalent and lopsided trade arrangements between the United States and the rest of America’s trading partners. Many countries place enormous tariffs on American products going into their countries, while the United States imposes comparatively little, if any in some cases, duties in return for their products coming into this country. This inequity hurts the American products’ competitiveness in the world market and is especially cruel on the American worker who manufactures these same products. This is precisely the reason that, while Japanese motorcycles- Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha- can be found on any street in the United States, one would be hard-pressed to find a Harley-Davidson anywhere on the Japanese islands. Their tariffs on our motorcycles are nearly 100%, while our tariffs on their motorcycles are practically nil.

This same gross imbalance applies to a host of products coming from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom- the other members of the G-7 group meeting in Charlevoix, whose leaders have taken great offense at our president’s message to them- that the days of unfair trade practices have come to an end.

It shouldn’t be any surprise that President Trump wants to end these practices. His entire campaign was predicated on ending these imbalances in an effort to provide relief to an American workforce who has suffered from the effects these imbalances, for decades.

Globalists and internationalists, within and outside the United States, would love to continue sticking it to the American worker- after all, it’s not the only case in which our veritable pockets are picked clean. Just look at the trillions we spend defending the world and, specifically these allies, against would-be aggressors throughout the globe…nothing like the proverbial dog biting the hand that feeds it.

Pardon our president for having the chutzpah to keep his promises, a novel concept to politicians not used to bearing such fidelity to their word.

Predictably, John McCain (R-AZ), who despises all things Trump, took the occasion to once again slam our duly-elected president, saying in a tweet:

“To our allies, bi-partisan majorities of Americans remain pro-free trade, pro-globalization and supportive of alliances based on 70 years of shared values. Americans stand with you, even if our president doesn’t.”

Brain tumor or not, John McCain has once again shown the world that, despite the years he spent as a P.O.W., he is no hero and no patriot, either. He is however, a demagogue who would rather betray his country and his president, than admit to any good President might achieve.

So as President Donald Trump embarks on an historic mission in Singapore, to try and leverage North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un to give up his nuclear weapons program, we can expect a complete lack of support from all of those who wish nothing but failure on an American president- one whose message to his own countrymen is simply…

“…you and me against the world.”

God help him.

 

-Drew Nickell, 10 June 2018

© 2018 by Drew Nickell, all rights reserved.
author of “Bending Your Ear- a Collection of Essays on the Issues of Our Times”
now available at Amazon

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