I'm not sure about the prospects of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell keeping his head attached to the rest of his body after this brutal fact check of Trump.
President Donald Trump’s attempt to shame Federal Reserve Board of Governors chair Jerome Powell over the cost of a long-running renovation to the central bank’s Washington headquarters went horribly wrong on Thursday when Powell had a ready response for the president’s accusations during a tour of the construction site.
Trump said the cost of the years-long project was now “about $3.1 billion” rather than the $2.7 billion previously stated by Powell.
“So we're taking a look, and it looks like it's about 3.1 billion went up a little bit or a lot. So the 2.7 is now 3.1 it just came out,” he said reading from a piece of paper, as Powell looked on and shook his head in the negative before interjecting.
The chairman replied: “I haven’t heard that from anybody” and asked if the paper Trump was reading from came from the central bank.
At that point, Trump handed him the paper and continued talking while Powell pulled out his reading glasses to look.
He then told the president that the higher number he was claiming included a separate project that wasn’t part of the renovation at issue.
“You just added in a third building,” he said.
He told Trump that he was mistakenly counting long-completed renovations to a building named for William Martin Jr., who served as Fed chair from 1951–1970, as part of the renovation of the Fed’s main headquarters.
With all the troubles in the world, and all of the evil things that Trump and his henchmen have done, it almost beggars belief that the only thing the MAGATS obsess about is the release of the Epstein files. While there is nothing to suggest that Trump himself is implicated in the notorious pedophilia of the late Epstein, I suspect the thing Don worries most about is the probability possibility that he was fully aware of what the 'financier' was up to with underage girls, perhaps even expressing admiration for his depraved appetites.
Be that as it may, Trump is doing everything in his power to divert scrutiny. The first diversion is the release, two years ahead of schedule, of all the files on Martin Luther King, most of them compiled by the FBI under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover, a racist who saw the rise of Black people as a threat to American social stability. (If you want a very comprehensive portrait of the longtime head of the FBI, I highly recommend the meticulously researched G -Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century, by Beverly Gage.)
"Trump releasing the MLK assassination files is not about transparency or justice," said the Rev. Al Sharpton. "It's a desperate attempt to distract people from the firestorm engulfing Trump over the Epstein files and the public unravelling of his credibility among the MAGA base."
The King Center, founded by King's widow and now led by Bernice King, reacted separately from what Bernice said jointly with her brother. The King Center statement framed the release as a distraction — but from more than short-term political controversy.
"It is unfortunate and ill-timed, given the myriad of pressing issues and injustices affecting the United States and the global society," the King Center said, linking those challenges to MLK's efforts. "This righteous work should be our collective response to renewed attention on the assassination of a great purveyor of true peace."
King, despite his heroic battles on behalf of Black people, was no saint. He was quite the womanizer. I suspect it is that titillating aspect of the files, essentially the Hoover-orchestrated illegal invasion of King's privacy through bugging devices and wiretaps, that Don hopes will deflect from the Epstein controversy.
Then there is the lame attempt to get the release of grand jury testimony that led to Epstein's indictment. Even if it is released (highly unusual given the secret nature of grand jury testimony), it likely would have no reference to Trump.
As well, there is the sideshow of Trump's attorney-general, Pam Bondi, sending her deputy, Todd Blanche, (Trump's former personal attorney) to interview Ghislane Maxwell, currently serving a 20-year sentence for her part in procuring young girls for Epstein's vile pleasures.
"President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislane Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say," Blanche said in the statement posted by Bondi on X.
Does anyone with half a brain (admittedly, that excludes the MAGATS) believe that Maxwell, who is trying to appeal her sentence and perhaps hopes for a presidential pardon, will say anything bad about her potential saviour?
Finally, there is the preposterous and profoundly hypocritical behaviour of Mike Johnson, the Republican Speak of the House. You may recall that only recently he was calling for the full-disclosure of all files relating to Epstein. That sudden whiff of spine quickly transmogrified into his usual craven subservience to Trump.
House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday ground the House of Representatives to a screeching halt in order to block Democrats from bringing up amendments calling for the release of files related to sex trafficking financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The speaker’s decision to virtually shut down procedure in the House of Representatives — a week before Congress’ summer break — comes as President Donald Trump continues to receive criticism from all sides for his handling of the promised release of all government files related to Epstein.
I was going to end the post here, but I've decided to leave you with something even more outlandish (except, again, to the MAGATS): an A.I. generated fake video of Obama being arrested in the Oval Office.
Can things get any worse in Amerika? That is, of course, merely a rhetorical question.
Just a brief note: I was in recent contact with Scott Tribe, who operates the Progressive Bloggers aggregator. It appears that, owing to financial considerations, the website is down for the count. The only thing I can suggest is to do what I have done: bookmark your favourite bloggers and check regularly for new posts.
I'd like to thank Scott for all the years he has put into the site. I know that it has made a real impact on my blog in driving traffic to Politics and its Discontents, and I shall miss it a great deal.
I think all of us are aware of the multitude of scams being practised at any given time, be it the granny scam ("Hi Gramma, I was in an accident and am in jail. Please send money for my bail"), computer phishing scams, romance scams, etc. Most of the time, we assume they target the elderly or the lonely, and we are certain we would never fall for such deceptions.
However, as the following item makes clear, the scams have reached a new level of sophistication that even young people are falling victim to them. I present this only as a public service, the message being we can never let our guard down these days. The particular bank involved here, Scotia Bank, will accept no responsibility here, even though there should have been red flag protocols in place before this man lost $25,000.
It was not so long ago, during the election campaign, that I remember Mr. Carney's soaring rhetoric, his stout orders calling for "Elbows Up, Canada!" and all that it implied in our 'battle' with the United States. We were told a new reality was upon us, and our former 'trusted partner' could no longer be depended upon. Lo, a total reordering of the trade world was drawing nigh, and we had to seek and support our real friends in the larger world, as well as respond to America's bullying with punishing counter-tariffs.
Well, that was enough for the Liberals to secure a strong minority, and truth to tell, I voted with some enthusiasm for Carney, arms akimbo, his opponents offering nothing credible. That said, I know that many, both online and offline, do not agree with my recent criticisms of the prime minister over how he dealt with the DST. The feeling seems to be to wait and see, and not to rush to judgement. Surely there is a strategy at work here.
Well, now comes another sign that my Carney carping was not out of line.
Prime Minister Mark Carney says he sees little evidence that it’s possible to strike a deal with President Donald Trump that removes all U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods.
This is the first time the Prime Minister has acknowledged that a pact to end the Canada-U.S. trade war would likely leave some of Mr. Trump’s protectionist tariffs in place.
“There is not much evidence at this moment of agreements, arrangements, or negotiations with the Americans for any country, any jurisdiction, to have a tariff-free deal,” Mr. Carney said.
Probably a realistic assessment, but what is the purpose of publically surrendering a vital negotiating position before those negotiations are complete?
The only reason I can think of is to prepare the public to start forgetting that bellicose campaign rhetoric.
William Pellerin, a partner with McMillan LLP’s international trade group, said Mr. Carney may be lowering expectations for what Canadians and Canadian businesses can anticipate from a trade deal with Mr. Trump.
He said he and his clients must now prepare for the possibility that U.S. tariffs are here to stay for the long term and that any Canadian business which made a short-term decision to “eat the tariffs rather than passing them on” to U.S. buyers may have to rethink that.
Mr. Carney’s comments “could also be a trial balloon that he’s floating to Canadians and to the markets to see how people react,” Mr. Pellerin said.
My reaction is the same as it was when I voted for Carney. I expect Canada to put up a real fight, a fight he cultivated during the campaign. A fight that would include strong counter-tariffs. Our pride was at new levels, and it was predicated on a defiance of the American trade madness.
And I am not alone in disdain for Carney's pending capitulation. People remember his caving earlier on the Digital Service Tax:
... to those pushing for a more hawkish approach to Trump’s trade war, it was an unacceptable concession after Canada already repealed its digital services tax and ramped up its defence and border security spending in response to Trump’s concerns.
“We should call this what it is. It’s extortion by the United States,” said Unifor president Lana Payne, who said normalizing the idea of tariffs could result in Trump pushing things even further, and urged Canada to push back with every tool at its disposal.
“The challenge we have is that we’re dealing with someone who continues to change the goalposts,” Payne said. “Giving things away up front has not worked for us.
And while it pains me to say this, I find I have to agree with little P.P.'s acerbic assessment.
“The Prime Minister is now conceding that American tariffs on Canada will be part of an eventual deal,” Mr. Poilievre said in a post on X.
“Another unilateral concession from a man who said he would never back down to the U.S. President.”
Mr. Carney seems to have perfected the art of making good speeches. Sadly, backing up those speeches with real action is proving to be something else entirely.
Now that Naheed Nenshi has been sworn in as an Alberta MLA, it looks like he is bringing an intelligence to the job that many will respect and some will fear.
Depending on many known and unknown variables, including what day of the week it is, one never knows what unhinged version of Donald Trump will make his appearance on any given occasion. Consistent, however, is the fact that no version of the mad king can be trusted. We would be well-advised to keep that in mind when attempting to 'negotiate' with him, as these letters attest.
Our move
So dropping the digital services tax without gaining any concessions, rather than appeasing the bully, just encourages him to demand more – as just about everyone expected, except perhaps our Prime Minister.
Any “deal” with Donald Trump likely won’t be worth the price of the Sharpie he signs it with. So if we are going to get hurt, let’s at least keep our self-respect and pride. China kept their dignity and retaliated, and he backed down.
Canada should immediately reinstate the digital services tax. We are going to get hit economically no matter what we do.
We might as well maintain our pride, dignity and sovereignty.
David RossCanmore, Alta.
In attempting to negotiate with the United States, we are dealing with people who act capriciously and break formal agreements on a whim. It seems they don’t keep their word and don’t respect us.
I believe it’s time to treat the U.S. as unreliable. Stop thinking we can negotiate with them and trying to appease them. Move on to other trading partners.
Bill HollingsToronto
Donald Trump’s latest 35-per-cent tariff threat should put an end to any illusions: Canada can no longer treat the United States as a steady trade partner.
Tying economic penalties to false claims about fentanyl isn’t policy – it’s posturing. It leaves Canadian businesses and workers in a constant state of uncertainty.
We can’t keep waiting for the U.S. to return to normal. I don’t think it’s coming back.
Mark Carney is right to delay the trade deadline and consult the premiers. But we need more than reaction. We need a shift in strategy: diversified trade, domestic investment and clear-eyed recognition that stability isn’t something we can import.
This isn’t a dramatic breakup. It’s a long-overdue adjustment to reality.
Rodney BeattySarnia, Ont.
Re “The U.S. is not our friend any more. Has anyone told Mark Carney?” (Report on Business, July 9): Beginning with the election campaign, Mark Carney has been delivering the message loudly and clearly that this U.S. administration is now an enemy of Canada. That he has so far wisely chosen not to poke the bear does not mean he has “completely misread the nature of the threat facing Canada.”
While the idea of any negotiation is rejected here as a waste of time and effort, Mr. Carney has chosen to try. Not even trying to mitigate the threat would be to accept dominance of and damage to our economy.
Failing a satisfactory agreement, Canada can walk away saying that it tried. I think Canadians will appreciate the effort.
After that, we can take the gloves off and raise our elbows again.
Jon BairdUxbridge, Ont.
One ardently hopes that the prime minister and his team will get this message soon. We've wasted enough time already.
