As the Financial Times notes:
Donald Trump said he would double tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from 25 per cent to 50 per cent in a fresh escalation of his global trade war.
The US president unveiled the increased levies as he touted a $15bn partnership between Nippon Steel and US Steel at a rally in Pennsylvania, promising to erect a tariff “fence” around domestic metals production.
“We're going to bring it from 25 per cent to 50 per cent, the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry,” he told the crowd in West Mifflin.
And so ends Starmer's pretence that Trump had done a deal with him.
The so-called UK deal with Trrumo was just a useless scrap of paper, forgotten by Trump moments after it was written, not least because there was nothing in it that was binding.
When will Starmer realise that Trump is his problem, and trying to agree anything with him is utterly pointless?
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This is the USA’s problem. Their consumers bear the costs of the tariffs and their business faces the uncertainty. But there is a certain joy in seeing free traders emerge from unexpected quarters.
I would imagine that no one becomes UK PM or US without being controllable.
Trump has had long standing strange business links with Russia, I wonder what’s Starmer’s kompromat?
Whatever, they both understand the power that comes from this ‘special’ abusive relationship.
Dountless as I write, Mandelsohn is whispering sweet words of nowt, in Starmers ears to sooth him – claiming that it will all be OK. You can be sure that the next move will be to link steel or some such to the NHS/privatisation. I wonder what odds Ladbrokes are offering?
And Starmer has a fully loaded cognitive dissonance subroutine that does not permit him to see reality wrt the USA which supports soooo many jobs in the UK, innit.
You may be right
Whenever anyone mentions Peter Mandelsohn whispering in ears, I can’t help but think of Grima, better known as Wormtongue, from Tolkein’s “Lord of the Rings.”
Signs of a misspent youth?
I always thought Trump would offer something ‘special’ – to keep UK from joining forces with the EU. That’s what it was. That’s all it was. Starmer obviously was always up for it as would be any UK govt – its the ‘special relationship’ that defines us and underscores our ‘big shot’ nuclear power.
Of course it was pretty meaningless – just a scrap of paper, but Richard, Starmer will never realise it – nor would any other main stream UK leader.
UK is a vassal state to the US.