Trump, threats, & the news cycle

The news cycle has been pretty slow as of late. Although there is a lot of stuff going on, it falls under the predictable/ongoing quadrant, than being surprising or unexpected. It’s not like “OMG..this is totally unexpected!” There’s gonna be more immigration, like it or not. The people who are in charge are powerless to stop it, assuming they even want to, which they don’t. I just find much of the debate over immigration to be pointless, especially considering the outcome (more immigrants, a wishy-washy immigration bill that is as porous as Swiss Cheese) is predetermined.

The people who are making tons of money don’t care. Who is going to come out ahead: someone who whines about politics, immigrants, etc. on deaf ears, or the person who is making $90,000 a month online. At least the second person has something to show for his efforts. But shouldn’t we care abut these issues? The stakes are high, aren’t they? Up to a point. If you make a living following politics, such as someone like Ben Shapiro, then you have a good incentive to care. But for the average person, not so much, especially when one already knows the outcome. Gnon does not care about your feelings, and neither does Congress, Trump , Hillary, or anyone.

I’m generally of the opinion that it will take something truly catastrophic (on the scale of 911 or WW2) for things to change meaningfully; for example, a repeat of 911 under Trump’s watch may force Congress to act against immigration, but considering how even 911 did not stem Islamic immigration, there is little reason to suspect a repeat of 911 will do so either.

Anyway, here is Trump threatening action against Harley-Davidson for purportedly planning to move jobs overseas:

Trump threatens Harley-Davidson: If it moves operations overseas, ‘they will be taxed like never before!’

Trump does not have the power to do this, and he knows it. It would require an act of Congress. If he tried to sign such an executive order, it would almost certainly be overturned. So why does he make such threats despite near-impossibly of ever delivering on them? That is his style, and it’s an effective strategy. He’s throwing meat to his base, which boosts enthusiasm. But also, the media also reports it, which helps create the illusion of action having been taken even if nothing has actually happened. I remember those Tweets about Amazon and the USPS in April. If you polled Trump’s supporters, maybe some would think that Trump kicked Amazon’s butt, but in reality nothing changed.