Simon Lester @snlester Twitter profile

Last Seen Profiles

@canyon_thunder

@Meeeeemi_

@gachamukku_info

@ZIMCODD1

@Jumuller45

@lornski_b

@TheRealKingRosa

@Pecintastw4050

@Vstylez

@Swiftlouis97

@Allegra_SexGirl

@Mashimaro77

@Competitions_ZA

@7J49ly5flJLRa

@McOverit

@shikisei_illust

@pieter_vkampen

@FBFF_UK

@MoneySoot

@daddykiw

@FeranmiAdeAlao

@kwokkahome

@wyseapple

@UstavnoSodisce

@asesinowyd

@taesanloff

@manu_claessens

@wanacqt

@DIRJEN_IMIGRASI

@CarlossKnowles

@DIRJEN_IMIGRASI

@solea

@Ladyratu423298

@RedRoadWarrior

@juicy_sammy

@spacer239987

Simon Lester

@snlester

7 years

Wait, are we not allowed out?

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

7 years

When a country is no longer able to say who can, and who cannot , come in & out, especially for reasons of safety &.security - big trouble!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker: "So now we will also impose import tariffs. This is basically a stupid process, the fact that we have to do this. But we have to do it. ... We can also do stupid. We also have to be this stupid."

Juncker responds to Trump's trade tariffs: 'We can also do stupid'

Europe has warned that punitive US trade tariffs on foreign steel could lead to retaliatory strikes against iconic American businesses.

www.euronews.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

Just for fun, the House Dems should pass legislation that appropriates $5 billion for a giant wheel.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

5 years

...Remember this. Throughout the ages some things NEVER get better and NEVER change. You have Walls and you have Wheels. It was ALWAYS that way and it will ALWAYS be that way! Please explain to the Democrats that there can NEVER be a replacement for a good old fashioned WALL!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

These sentences from Trump's remarks yesterday are absolutely baffling.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Wait, what? "'He shoots his mouth off but at least that shows he’s honest,' said Jason, a pipe-fitter, who said he especially liked Mr Trump’s commitment to reducing the national debt."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

And there it is: "George, an electrician, described Mr Biden’s as a Trojan Horse for Ms Harris: 'He’d resign on day one and then you’ve got your first woman president and she’s black, too.'”

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

I have no idea who is going to win tomorrow, but I made the colors go in vertical lines on my map.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

The good news about this Hawley op-ed on abolishing the WTO () is that he doesn't understand the WTO or the pre-WTO trading system at all, and his arguments fall apart very quickly based on the actual facts.

Opinion | The W.T.O. Should Be Abolished (Published 2020)

In concert with other free nations, America must restore its economic sovereignty.

www.nytimes.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Me: There are separate NAFTA dispute processes under Chapters 19 & 20, but it's a bit technical and you probably want me to move on. Canadians: No, tell us more about both chapters. How does each work? How exactly do they differ? Me: Who are you people?

Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

What I love about Canadians is that they care about substance. I never thought I would be talking so much about NAFTA Chapter 19 and 20 dispute processes on TV! Thanks to @VassyKapelos and @PnPCBC

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Simon Lester

@snlester

2 years

Feinstein: "Whether or not tariffs cause inflation, they significantly raise prices on US families and businesses. So even if tariffs are not inflation per se, they similarly impact on people's finances."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Kamala Harris during the debates: "I am not a protectionist Democrat. Look, we need to sell our stuff. And that means we need to sell it to people overseas. That means we need trade policies that allow that to happen."

My Quick Take on the Trade Talk In Last Night's Democratic Debate

The Democratic debates have (thankfully!) been narrowed from 20 to 10 candidates. Many of them had a chance to weigh in on trade policy at the debate last night. Here's what they said: STEPHANOPOUL...

ielp.worldtradelaw.net

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

"Tosh, a third-generation farmer who almost always votes Republican, said he's voting this fall for Blackburn's Democratic opponent, former Gov. Phil Bredesen, in part because Trump's trade wars are hurting his family business"

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Hunter should have come out with a laptop.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

This has been the dumbest four years of American history that I have experienced, and this document is the crowning achievement of the era.

Steve Herman

@W7VOA

3 years

Report released by 1776 Commission "presenting a definitive chronicle of the American founding," announces @WhiteHouse .

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Tariffs are a classic special interest giveaway, taking wealth from some people and giving it to a favored few. Whether proponents know this or not doesn't change how tariffs work.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

6 years

..Because of Tariffs we will be able to start paying down large amounts of the $21 Trillion in debt that has been accumulated, much by the Obama Administration, while at the same time reducing taxes for our people. At minimum, we will make much better Trade Deals for our country!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

8 months

These two things can both be true: 1. Trade promotes peace 2. Trade doesn't prevent all war

Paul Krugman

@paulkrugman

8 months

Not just strategic relations. People underestimate the role of geopolitical ideas in economic policy — the push for freer trade since World War II had a lot to do with the belief that trade promotes peace, which is increasingly hard to defend.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

We could call it the CA-M-US trade agreement. But what would be the point?

Chad P. Bown

@ChadBown

6 years

US-ME Trade Agreement. (Mostly ME?)

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

In China, Twitter is banned. In the US, Twitter is not banned, and has the freedom to run its service the way it wants. Kind of a big difference.

Nikki Haley

@NikkiHaley

3 years

Silencing people, not to mention the President of the US, is what happens in China not our country. #Unbelievable

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@snlester

5 years

"Speaker Nancy Pelosi is resisting pressure from the Trump administration to quickly approve an updated North American trade deal and is telling lawmakers and union officials that a planned study of the agreement could drag on well into the fall"

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Everyone is fired. OK, you're all hired again. Hey look we created 150 million jobs!

Mike Pence

@Mike_Pence

4 years

We’ve created more jobs in the last 3 months than Joe Biden and Barack Obama created in their 8 years in office.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

@clark_packard That was in there too! "He’s made—who is it, China or Japan?—pay our farmers billions of dollars."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

1. Drop the Section 232 tariffs and other trade aggression against allies 2. Negotiate trade liberalization with those allies 3. Coordinate with those allies on China issues 4. File complaints against China at the WTO 5. Engage in actual good faith negotiations with China

Eamon Javers

@EamonJavers

5 years

Trump on criticism from Republicans on his China trade war: "So what does Pat Toomey want me do do, does he want me to say 'let me put my hands up, China?' … For Pat Toomey and some others that want to give up … there’s nothing you can do but tariffs."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

"Listening to Hawley talk populist is like listening to a white progressive Upper West Sider in the 1970s try to talk jive. The words are there, but he’s trying so hard it sounds ridiculous."

David Brooks

@nytdavidbrooks

3 years

“This is national conservatism pursued to its logical conclusion: using state power to break up and humble the big corporations and to push back against coastal cultural values. The culture war merges with the economic-class war—and a new right emerges.”

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Simon Lester

@snlester

11 months

"for forty years neoliberalism was the principal economic doctrine of the American government" So farm subsidies, budget deficits, and super long copyrights are neoliberal. Got it. 🙄

The Rise and Fall of Neoliberalism

The free market used to be touted as the cure for all our problems; now it’s taken to be the cause of them.

www.newyorker.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

Today is my last day with @CatoTrade . Sad to be leaving my great colleagues. We wrote lots of papers, hosted many events, and had fun doing it! But I'm excited for my new venture with @HZhu2013 . Details on that coming soon!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 months

OPEN IMMIGRATION POLICIES AND A LARGE INTERNAL FREE TRADE ZONE BUILT AMERICA

Stephen Miller

@StephenM

4 months

TARIFFS BUILT AMERICA

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Simon Lester

@snlester

8 months

When I don't like the prices I see on Amazon, I look at at the various other places I can buy the product.

American Economic Liberties Project

@econliberties

8 months

"Amazon has rolled out this pay-to-play advertising scheme that is actually showing consumers less relevant results and steering them to more expensive products." @linakhanFTC walks through how Amazon uses its monopoly power to hike prices while its quality degrades.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

So government regulatory approval of transactions can be used to extract money from corporations to be used for social causes? Interesting precedent this sets. The Democrats are going to be intrigued to hear about it.

Jennifer Jacobs

@JenniferJJacobs

4 years

TRUMP wants the $5 billion from the Tiktok Global deal to pay for "patriotic education" via his envisioned "1776 Commission."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Not to get all technical about it, but if a woman beat Trump in 2016 (in terms of number of votes), one could probably do it again in 2020.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

The new KORUS is just the old KORUS with minor tweaks:

A Preliminary Assessment of the Amended KORUS FTA

The KORUS renegotiation looks like a minor tweak to U.S. trade relationships, rather than the wholesale revolution that is sometimes indicated by Trump’s tweets.

www.cato.org

Jenny Leonard

@jendeben

6 years

. @realDonaldTrump on the renegotiated U.S.-South Korea free trade agreement the two leaders will sign shortly: "I'm very excited about our new trade agreement. This is a brand new agreement, This is not an old one re-written."

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@snlester

9 months

Trump letter to WSJ: "Under Joe Biden, our trade deficits, also known as losses, have hit record highs." But Biden has mostly kept Trump's tariffs in place, so this kind of seems like an argument that tariffs don't lead to lower trade deficits.

Opinion | Donald Trump: My Tariff Policies Were a Success

‘Foreigners now own $16.75 trillion more of our economy than we own of theirs. Our country is being plundered.’

www.wsj.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Apparently Biden is the rare socialist who wants to cut government social spending.

Josh Wingrove

@josh_wingrove

4 years

In Wisconsin, Trump is now playing a video of Bernie Sanders accusing Joe Biden of wanting to cut social security spending as a senator. "And he will cut your social security," Trump pledges. (Biden is promising to actually *expand* social security.)

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

If US withdraws from the WTO, we will aggravate allies and lose influence over the trading system. China will benefit, as its own role will be strengthened. Better approach would be for administration to stop waging trade wars against allies, and deal with China problems jointly.

Josh Hawley

@HawleyMO

4 years

It’s time to force a debate about reforming international trade system and bringing jobs & production back to USA. Only way to confront #China and strengthen America. That is why I will ask for vote on US withdrawal from WTO

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

Congratulations to my friend and colleague Dr. @inumanak on her successful dissertation defense today! It looked like a tough process and made me glad I took the easy route of going to law school.

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@snlester

2 years

Does the Biden administration also support Buy Canadian, Buy Chinese, Buy Chilean etc.? Does the administration think every country should have its own domestic solar industry and exclude foreign competitors?

Jeff Zients

@WHCOS

2 years

We disagree. Buy American is NOT a conflicting goal with moving to a clean energy economy — it is essential part of making that change job-creating here in the USA.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

Wow. This is a bigger deal than anything Trump is saying in that speech right now.

Bryce Baschuk

@bbaschuk

5 years

SCOOP: Us threatens to block adoption of the @wto biennial budget, risking complete paralysis of the system. These are uncharted waters, folks.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

What I love about Canadians is that they care about substance. I never thought I would be talking so much about NAFTA Chapter 19 and 20 dispute processes on TV! Thanks to @VassyKapelos and @PnPCBC

Simon Lester discusses NAFTA negotiations on CBC’s Power and Politics

September 5, 2018

www.cato.org

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

Um, no, the Japanese officials didn't say that.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

5 years

Great fun and meeting with Prime Minister @AbeShinzo . Numerous Japanese officials told me that the Democrats would rather see the United States fail than see me or the Republican Party succeed - Death Wish!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

“It’s not good enough,” Trump said ... “Their consumer habits are to buy their cars, not to buy our cars.” Proposed new WTO obligation on its way: Consumers in all countries must Buy American.

Shawn Donnan

@sdonnan

6 years

That EU offer of zero tariffs on cars? Not good enough, Trump tells Bloomberg in exclusive interview... @business @economics

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

NAFTA brought almost all Canadian, Mexican, and US tariffs to zero. Just sayin'.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

6 years

The United States must, at long last, be treated fairly on Trade. If we charge a country ZERO to sell their goods, and they charge us 25, 50 or even 100 percent to sell ours, it is UNFAIR and can no longer be tolerated. That is not Free or Fair Trade, it is Stupid Trade!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

How about we allow the people of Hong Kong to come stand over here in the United States?

Secretary Pompeo

@SecPompeo

4 years

Today, I reported to Congress that Hong Kong is no longer autonomous from China, given facts on the ground. The United States stands with the people of Hong Kong.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

This Peter Navarro op-ed makes clear that there are old school, die-hard protectionists with a lot of influence in the Trump administration. He is very forthright about helping specific industries, and is oblivious to the costs imposed on everyone else.

Edward Alden

@edwardalden

6 years

A must-read from Peter Navarro. What happened today on steel and aluminum reflects an ideological belief that a protected manufacturing economy will serve ordinary Americans better than an open economy. That is a sea change for the U.S. via @usatoday

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

Roses are red, Violets are blue. I feel better about US trade policy since USTR hired Mark Wu. #TradeValentines

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

In related news, Switzerland will ban whale hunting licenses.

Emmanuel Macron

@EmmanuelMacron

6 years

Very proud that France has become the first country in the world today to ban any new oil exploration licences with immediate effect and all oil extraction by 2040. #KeepItInTheGround #MakeOurPlanetGreatAgain

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@snlester

4 years

@EmmaMAshford I would be OK with publishing it if they put a disclaimer up front saying, "We are publishing this article in order to make people aware of an extreme fascist viewpoint that apparently exists."

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@snlester

6 years

"In recent weeks, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has reported zero weekly export sales of pork to China," Lovely says. "So our exports to the country have pretty much collapsed."

Mary Lovely 🇺🇦

@melovely_max

6 years

Pork exports to China have collapsed. The beginning of bad things to come from Trump’s ill conceived trade war.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

I have two thoughts on this "anarchist jurisdictions" memo: 1. The people responsible for this memo are nuts. 2. If there were any actual anarchist jurisdictions out there, I'd probably be on Zillow checking out the real estate.

Jeff Stein

@JStein_WaPo

4 years

President Trump signed a memo today to restrict federal $ from going to "anarchist jurisdictions" - the memo cites Seattle, Portland, NYC & D.C. Per the memo, below is how DOJ is supposed to determine what the "anarchist jurisdictions" are:

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@snlester

6 years

Article I, Section 8: "The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises"

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

6 years

There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal. If we don’t make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out. Congress should not interfere w/ these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off...

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@snlester

3 years

"Over the next decade, our domestic panda program will produce bears that are larger, cuter, and can consume bamboo at twice the rate of their Chinese counterparts. Ask yourself, who should be deciding where these adorable animals are dispatched in nations across the globe?"

The Onion

@TheOnion

3 years

Senate Passes $50 Billion Bill To Combat Chinese Influence By Developing Own Pandas

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

Good point by @AdamPosen : "the fetishization of manufacturing jobs is hardly a neutral policy. The image of men doing dangerous things to produce heavy stuff seems to resonate with nostalgic voters in a way that women providing human services does not."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

We need to be working together with other countries on vaccine development and production, not engaging in destructive economic nationalism.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

This reminds me of Trump's quest to find Obama's real birth certificate.

Josh Hawley

@HawleyMO

3 years

Millions of voters concerned about election integrity deserve to be heard. I will object on January 6 on their behalf

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@snlester

3 years

“As president of the Yale Law School Federalist Society just over a decade and a half ago, Hawley... wrote numerous blog posts in favor of nation building in Iraq, and backing the Bush administration's ‘broader geo-strategic goals.’”

Josh Hawley

@HawleyMO

4 years

Take Tony Blinken. He’s backed every endless war since the Iraq invasion. Now he works for #BigTech and helps companies break into #China . He has no sense of what working Americans want or need

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Simon Lester

@snlester

2 years

For people who want student debt forgiveness, is there a plan to avoid having a new group of students with the same debt problems in 10 years?

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Trade lawyers.

Lisa Park

@lisasungpark

6 years

Who wins a trade war? @philipilevy explains @voxdotcom

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@snlester

6 years

"The president is expected to declare an economic emergency under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, giving him unilateral power to immediately impose tariffs and at least foreshadowing his administration’s plans to cap Chinese investment." Yikes.

Inside U.S. Trade

@insidetrade

6 years

White House set to announce 301 findings, remedies after Lighthizer testifies on Capitol Hill this week

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@snlester

6 years

During the GATT negotiations in 1947, one of the US delegates offered an explanation of the scope of the security exception that had been proposed by the US:

The Drafting History of GATT Article XXI: The U.S. View of the Scope of the Security Exception

In the New York draft of the GATT, the security exception was in Article 37, and was combined with the exceptions that are now part of GATT Article XX. Here's what the security exception looked like...

worldtradelaw.typepad.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

John Oliver did an outstanding job last night with Trump's trade policy:

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

This seems like what a trade agreement between the Soviet Union and East Germany would look like.

Adam Behsudi

@ABehsudi

5 years

So President Trump wanted China to buy $70billion in U.S. farm products. He said own team suggested $20billion. China agreed to $50billion. Still no details on how U.S. will guarantee that Beijing will implement such a massive commitment.

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@snlester

2 years

For dramatic effect, @scottlincicome is going to drink some European baby formula live on camera during the hearing, even though the FDA hasn't approved it. Tune in to see if he survives!

Cato Trade

@CatoTrade

2 years

TOMORROW at 2:30 PM: @scottlincicome will testify on consolidation in the baby formula industry before the @JudiciaryDems Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights. Watch here: #CatoTrade

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

BREAKING: All candidates for political office have baggage that will be used against them by their opponents.

Meagan Day

@meagankday

5 years

Everyone is aware, I hope, that if Warren wins the nomination the fact that she passed herself off as Native American and “the first woman of color tenured professor at Harvard Law” is going to be a focal point of the general election.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

2 years

Apple is just exercising its free speech (the right not to speak). Trying to interfere with that is the anti-free speech position.

Elon Musk

@elonmusk

2 years

Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?

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@snlester

5 years

"A 'Made in America' iPhone Would Cost $2,000, Studies Show"

A 'Made in America' iPhone Would Cost $2,000, Studies Show

Large multi-national corporations like Apple, although many are headquartered in the USA, operate in global marketplaces for inputs, parts, production, and sales and have to operate with a global...

fee.org

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

5 years

Build your products in the United States and there are NO TARIFFS!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Counterpoint: The Kodak loan is the real world of industrial policy as we find it, and we are not better for it.

Todd N. Tucker

@toddntucker

4 years

"In the real world as we find it, America has no choice but to adopt an industrial policy, and we will be better for it,” Mr. @oren_cass said.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

9 months

Counterpoint: Foreign investment in the U.S. South has turned that region into a manufacturing powerhouse.

Steve Cortes

@CortesSteve

9 months

.⁦ @JDVance1 ⁩ is exactly correct. We cannot allow foreign control of US Steel…

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

I was glad to see @AmbassadorTai push back on an argument that she shouldn't care so much about people outside of the U.S.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Ah, I see now. "Oracle’s chief executive, Safra Catz, has dined at the White House with Trump and served on the president’s transition team after his election in 2016. Oracle co-founder and chairman Larry Ellison hosted a fundraiser for Trump this year."

TikTok has chosen Oracle as U.S. ‘technology partner,’ rejecting Microsoft’s bid

Oracle emerged as a likely victor in a deal with TikTok, although it was unclear what it will win or if the Trump administration will sign off on it.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Cherry-picking tariff data for individual products is not that helpful. Good average tariff data is here: China's tariffs are higher because of development status when it joined WTO.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

6 years

When a car is sent to the United States from China, there is a Tariff to be paid of 2 1/2%. When a car is sent to China from the United States, there is a Tariff to be paid of 25%. Does that sound like free or fair trade. No, it sounds like STUPID TRADE - going on for years!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

8 years

Actually, Trump knows virtually nothing about trade policy or trade agreements.

Maggie Haberman

@maggieNYT

8 years

Trump has a strong case to make on trade, when he makes it. He made it once and then chased shiny objects for most of the debate.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Important NAFTA text change on gender discrimination:

Celeste Drake

@CDrakeFairTrade

6 years

New text of Footnote 13: “The United States’ existing federal agency policies regarding the hiring of federal workers are sufficient to fulfill the obligations set forth in this Article. The Article thus requires no additional action on the part of the United States, ...

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

Isn't there some word Republicans keep using to describe this sort of economic policy?

Daniel Dale

@ddale8

4 years

Trump in Nebraska touting the billions in public money his administration has given to farmers: "In fact, some people say our farmers do better now than they did when they actually had a farm. Heh."

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

@scottlincicome The appropriate response is to slap tariffs on ourselves.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

I suspect that Trump made these comments knowing they would be leaked, as part of a negotiating strategy. Silly stuff, but par for the course.

Daniel Dale

@ddale8

6 years

NAFTA BOMBSHELL: The Star has obtained inflammatory secret comments about Canada that Trump made "off the record" yesterday, and they have upended the talks this morning:

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Let me add a couple layers of complexity: - The tariffs are taxes that hurt US consumers and businesses. - When we hit them with tariffs, they hit us back with retaliatory tariffs. - Other countries are lowering their tariffs with each other through trade deals.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

6 years

Tariffs are the greatest! Either a country which has treated the United States unfairly on Trade negotiates a fair deal, or it gets hit with Tariffs. It’s as simple as that - and everybody’s talking! Remember, we are the “piggy bank” that’s being robbed. All will be Great!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

So it's not about national security. Got it.

Jenny Leonard

@jendeben

6 years

Mnuchin justifying the use of 232: “I think we have the right combination here of doing something to protect U.S. industry from dumping and unfair competition in the appropriate way. The objective is not to put tariffs on everybody but to solve the issue.”

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

The Appellate Body crisis itself is a huge problem, but a bad side effect has been the surge of op-eds in major newspapers that pretend to be an honest attempt to diagnose the WTO's problems, but are, in fact, terribly uninformed and hacky.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

7 years

I brought you champagne It's not from the French nation I hope this won't end In trade litigation #TradeValentines

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

Let's keep in mind, though, that what Trump says might not mean what he thinks it means, and it also might not mean anything.

The Associated Press

@AP

5 years

BREAKING: Trump says he'll be 'formally terminating NAFTA,' says Congress will have choice between replacement or nothing

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Trump just called for going "tariff-free," "barrier-free," and "subsidy-free." The G7 countries should should accept his proposal, publicly endorse it, and suggest a date to begin the negotiations:

The G7 Countries Should Accept Trump's Proposal to Negotiate Total Free Trade

This is from Trump's press conference at the G7 yesterday: Q Mr. President, you said that this was a positive meeting, but from the outside, it seemed quite contentious. Did you get any indication...

worldtradelaw.typepad.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

U.S. Trade Rep. Bob Lighthizer has spent the last few weeks trying to construct a narrative about the Trump/Lighthizer legacy on trade. I respond to some of his arguments here: Here's a thread about it. 1/

The Trump/Lighthizer Legacy on Trade

With the Trump administration now finished, we are in the period where people will be spinning Trump's time in office into the narrative they want to create. On trade policy, Trump's U.S. Trade...

ielp.worldtradelaw.net

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Simon Lester

@snlester

2 years

The first MPIA arbitrators are: - Mr José Alfredo GRAÇA LIMA (Chairperson) - Mr Alejandro JARA - Mr Joost PAUWELYN Congrats and good luck to them!

The Colombia - Frozen Fries MPIA Appeal

The first MPIA appeal (and second DSU Article 25 arbitration appeal) is now underway as Colombia has appealed the Colombia - Frozen Fries (DS591) dispute. The WTO announced today that the following...

ielp.worldtradelaw.net

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

This is negotiating bluster/nonsense. We should ignore it.

Jennifer Jacobs

@JenniferJJacobs

6 years

BREAKING: Trump says he’s terminating NAFTA and entering a different deal with Mexico, and possibly Canada if they want to negotiate “fairly.” If not, he says he put tariffs on Canada’s cars.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

@DanRDimicco VATs are non-discriminatory domestic taxes that apply to all products, like a state sales tax.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

The Foxconn Wisconsin project is a cautionary tale for advocates of industrial policy.

As the economy teeters, Trump’s ‘eighth wonder of the world’ wobbles with it

Plans to bring a high-tech factory to Wisconsin have repeatedly changed, sowing doubts.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

5 years

To clarify, the $11 billion figure is just the US proposal. WTO arbitrator will determine the appropriate amount of tariff retaliation by this summer. Also, EU will be able to retaliate for Boeing subsidies, although that case has moved more slowly.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

5 years

The World Trade Organization finds that the European Union subsidies to Airbus has adversely impacted the United States, which will now put Tariffs on $11 Billion of EU products! The EU has taken advantage of the U.S. on trade for many years. It will soon stop!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

Let's all agree to keep calling it TPP, not CPTPP. Everyone on board?

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Simon Lester

@snlester

1 year

To decouple health care from employment, we should end the tax exclusion for employer‐sponsored health insurance.

Ro Khanna

@RoKhanna

1 year

Your value as a person shouldn’t be tied to your job. That’s why we must decouple healthcare from employment and pass Medicare for All.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

2 years

US allows WTO panel report in Spain Olives dispute to be adopted, i.e. no appeal into the void. That's a nice sign of a good faith approach to WTO obligations, and perhaps an indication of positive developments for WTO dispute settlement in 2022.

Bryce Baschuk

@bbaschuk

2 years

US statement here:

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

The WSJ and many others argue for negotiating trade agreements that lower foreign tariffs. As for our coffers, I'm just glad Trump is acknowledging that his tariffs are a tax increase.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

6 years

Why is it that the Wall Street Journal, though well meaning, never mentions the unfairness of the Tariffs routinely charged against the U.S. by other countries, or the many Billions of Dollars that the Tariffs we are now charging are, and will be, pouring into U.S. coffers?

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

New op-ed from me: "US shouldn't leave the WTO over China" Here's a short thread. 1/

US shouldn’t leave the WTO over China

Hawley’s resolution for WTO withdrawal may be designed to make a political point. He probably does not expect an actual withdrawal. But if his larger goal is to press China to liberalize, there are…

thehill.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

I don't know any "pro-China" free traders, but there are free traders who think it's better to have China inside the trading system than outside. If China is outside, US has much less influence.

Ben Domenech

@bdomenech

4 years

Can we check in on all the pro-China free traders at DC thinktanks? They do realize their whole schtick is done, right?

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Simon Lester

@snlester

6 years

The US trade deficit "is the result of the world’s insatiable desire to invest in US assets, coupled with the American consumer’s preference to spend rather than save."

The topsy-turvy logic of Donald Trump’s trade tirades

Despite what the president says, tariffs between rich countries are low

www.ft.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

I don't mind if they get rid of the tariffs in a complicated and nuanced way.

Inside U.S. Trade

@insidetrade

3 years

Raimondo: U.S. will not “simply” get rid of Section 232 tariffs on EU

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

I'm going to leave the legal aspects of suing foreign governments in U.S. court to the experts, but let me just note that if this starts a trend of lawsuits against the U.S. government in domestic courts around the world, it's going to be quite something.

Eunice Yoon

@onlyyoontv

4 years

Missouri 1st US State to Sue #China for #Coronavirus . AG filed lawsuit against Chinese government, CCP, officials, institutions, alleging their actions to suppress info, arrest whistleblowers, deny contagious nature led to loss of life and severe econ pain.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

If the Trump administration hadn't put in so many poison pills, USMCA could have been passed by a GOP Congress back in 2018.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

4 years

Hard to believe, but if Nancy Pelosi had put our great Trade Deal with Mexico and Canada, USMCA, up for a vote long ago, our economy would be even better. If she doesn’t move quickly, it will collapse!

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Simon Lester

@snlester

1 year

More from Kissinger on China's aims here:

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Simon Lester

@snlester

4 years

I suspect that one big difference between @mcuban and @HawleyMO on the Uighur forced labor issue is that Cuban would let the Uighurs come to the US to escape their oppression whereas Hawley opposes that.

Josh Hawley

@HawleyMO

4 years

Listen to ⁦ @mcuban ⁩ tell ⁦⁦ @megynkelly ⁩ ⁦that it’s fine ⁦ @NBA ⁩ prostrates itself for #china & profits from forced Chinese labor because ... China is “a customer.” Translation: it pays

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Simon Lester

@snlester

2 years

Opinion | Biden must end this ruinous solar power trade war with China

Transitioning off fossil fuels — not propping up a small domestic industry — must be the priority.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Simon Lester

@snlester

3 years

Statements like "Trade should be a means towards development not and end in itself" confuse me. Trade promotes economic growth and peaceful international relations, and freedom to trade is an important freedom. But I don't know anyone who wants trade just to have more trade.

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Simon Lester

@snlester

8 years

Trump himself is proposing a massive tax increase -- on imports, and therefore on all consumers.

Daniel Dale

@ddale8

8 years

Trump alleges that Clinton is proposing a "massive tax increase." She is proposing a hike, but it's for the top 1%.

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