4 th of July, 2018 (Independence Day - USA) Jim Leonard So, now another 4th of July! Here is a view of the US that I wrote during the TPP discussions at the end of the Obama administration and start of the Trump administration: Reality Check for the Trans-Pacific Partnership: We are the United States of America We don’t back out of important trade agreements with our allies. We don’t run from global economic competition, we encourage it. We don’t abdicate our leadership responsibilities to any nation. If a trade partner tries to take unfair advantage of us we can apply the World Trade Organization rules to equitably solve such problems. We can continue to develop a globally competitive export economy, similar to the best there is. These Colors Don’t Run! Alas in 2017-18, the President of the United States violates every one of these calls. We’ll have to celebrate this 4th with the future in mind. The USA became exceptional in 1789 when the US Constitution was ratified. We’ve made a lot of mistakes since then, AND the current President does or says something nearly every day that diminishes our exceptionalism. We’ve overcome such obstacles before and will again. Hale the Glorious Fourth (4th of July headline written by Mark Twain in the Territorial Enterprise in Virginia City, Nevada, USA circa 1870.)
Mark Twain
Virginia City 1