Until unparalleled US economic collapse occurred this year, Trump’s reelection campaign likely planned to focus on the twin pillars of economic growth and rising equity market valuations.
Since January, the latter disconnected from collapse of the former.
Since early 2020, the state of the nation’s economy became dire for ordinary Americans.
Unemployment reached unprecedented levels, real pain and suffering experienced by most US households.
What’s going on is likely to continue for some time, maybe for years if the White House and Congress fail to take bold jobs creation steps to put money in people’s pockets and stimulate economic growth.
So far, none of the above is in prospect. US policymakers and the Wall Street-controlled Fed are focused on benefitting corporate favorites and high-net-worth investors, throwing crumbs alone at main street while the hardest of hard times festers with no end of it in prospect.
Commenting on the above, David Stockman said “six years of economic growth (were) vaporized (in) the last 90 days,” adding:
“(R)eal damage is far deeper (with) millions of small businesses permanently destroyed, tens of millions of households wiped-out financially, and the vicious daisy chain of delinquencies, deferrals and defaults just beginning to rip through” hugely over-indebted US public and private sectors.
An unparalleled “economic catastrophe” is occurring that’s unlike anything seen before in US history.
In Q II, the US economy contracted more than during the Great Depression 1929 peak to the 1933 trough.
What seemed unimaginable not long ago actually happened with no end of hard times in prospect.
Given what’s going on, Trump’s reelection strategy changed at a time when dire economic conditions gave presumptive Dem nominee Biden a commanding lead in national polls, some giving him a double-digit advantage.
In an attempt to reinvigorate his flagging campaign, Trump and others surrounding him changed the subject.
Focusing heavily on China bashing, the nonexistent “yellow peril” was reinvented, scapegoating Beijing, demonizing its ruling authorities, escalating US war on the country by other means.
Loose cannon Pompeo has been waging a steady war of words on China, pushing the envelope toward rupturing relations or something worse — possible direct confrontation.
If happens, a US tradition since the mid-19th century could precede it — a staged false flag wrongfully blamed on Beijing, perhaps in the South China Sea, a potential flashpoint area.
Sunday on Fox News, Pompeo falsely accused China of committing “the greatest human rights violation(s) of this century” in Xingjiang (sic).
Like many times before, he and other Trump regime officials ignored US war on humanity that’s raging at home and abroad — “the (actual) greatest human rights violation(s) of this century.”
Pompeo vowed to step up US sanctions war on Chinese enterprises, video-sharing TikTok a key target.
White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy director Peter Navarro falsely claimed the following:
“(A)ll the data that goes into (TikTok’s) mobile apps that kids have so much fun with and seem so convenient, it goes right to servers in China, right to the Chinese military, the Chinese Communist Party, and the agencies which want to steal our intellectual property (sic),” adding:
“Those apps can be used to steal personal and financial information, for blackmail and extortion (sic).”
“They can used to steal business intellectual property and proprietary secrets (sic).”
Navarro cited no evidence backing his claims because none exists.
Pompeo repeated his disinformation, targeting TikTok and WeChat.
The latter is China’s mobile text and voice messaging communication service.
Since introduced in 2011, it became one of the world’s most popular video and voice social apps with over 300 million active users and over 700 million downloads.
According to Pompeo, TikTok and WeChat are accumulating data for Beijing that’s related to facial recognition, user residences, their phone numbers, and other personal information.
Like earlier hostile to China accusations, he cited no corroborating evidence. Without it, claims are groundless.
On Sunday, Pompeo said the Trump regime will act against TikTok, WeChat, and other Chinese enterprises he claimed without proof are feeding personal data about users to Beijing.
Trump intends to “fix” this, he told Fox News, actions coming in the days ahead to address “a broad array of national security risks (sic).”
They’re invented, not real. US China bashing continues to escalate dangerously.
Trump said he’ll ban TikTok, perhaps WeChat and other Chinese enterprises ahead.
Reportedly, he gave Tiktok’s parent company ByteDance 45 days to divest the company.
Talks are ongoing with Microsoft to buy the firm.
According to the Wall Street Journal on Sunday, Microsoft aims to buy TikTok’s operations in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
“The transaction could reshape the global tech landscape and further strain already tense US-China relations,” the broadsheet reported.
On Saturday, TikTok’s general manager of US operations Vanessa Pappas said the firm is working on giving users “the safest app,” adding:
“We’re not planning on going anywhere.” Talks with Microsoft to buy the firm continue.
According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP),
“ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming and investors (are) reluctant to sell to the US company.”
On Saturday, SCMP reported that
“TikTok could become totally independent from its Chinese owner ByteDance to continue operating overseas (by) spin(ning)-off” the firm from its parent company, citing an unnamed source.
Banning the firm from operating in the US would affect over 14 million adult users in the country, likely upsetting them ahead of November elections that could cost Trump votes.
It’s also a First Amendment issue — though it’s unclear how the majority right-wing Supreme Court would rule on the issue if a White House ban is ordered, if it’s challenged in court, and if High Court justices have final say.
What’s clear is that US war on China by other means continues to escalate.
Things are unlikely to ease regardless of which right wing of the one-party state controls US policy next year.
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Award-winning author Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected]. He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG)
His new book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.”
http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html
Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.
Featured image is from Pikist
