'It's all fake': White House insider admits Trump's trade war is just for show
Source: Raw Story
July 5, 2025 8:42AM ET
According to a White House insider who is deeply involved in talks with U.S. trading partners, Donald Trump's tariff threats are not to be taken seriously because they are just a "theatrical show" being put on by the attention-obsessed president. According to a report from Politico, as Trump's 90-day window on getting trade deals done before onerous tariffs are put in place looms, there is no real urgency at the White House which has negotiators and even some White House staff taking a dim view of the proceedings.
Politico's Daniel Desrochers and Megan Messerly are reporting, "Foreign officials, trade experts, lawmakers and even some White House allies have expressed a nihilistic view of the July deadline, questioning whether a deal with the Trump administration means anything at all given the presidents penchant for using tariffs as leverage to get his way."
After noting Trump himself was wavering this past week when he told reporters, "We could extend it, we could make it shorter. Id like to make it shorter, one insider offered a candid assessment about what is really going on.
Trump knows the most interesting part of his presidency is the tariff conversation, they admitted. I find it hard to believe hes going to surrender it that easily. Its all fake. Theres no deadline. Its a self-imposed landmark in this theatrical show, and thats where we are.
Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/trump-tariffs-2672734163/

bucolic_frolic
(51,381 posts)Power and dominance and control exerted in the public space to make himself the most important.
RockRaven
(17,620 posts)Lower sales from retaliatory tariffs or nationalistic boycotts? Real.
Bengus81
(9,002 posts)BOSSHOG
(43,225 posts)But I have my own regular list of stuff to get. The prices are creeping upward. Trump is a monster and the gop is a crime syndicate.
surfered
(7,862 posts)Irish_Dem
(72,217 posts)And he hoped lots of bribes would come his way.
wolfie001
(5,681 posts).....I'd say he succeeded. Thanks to his scummy and putrid cult.
Irish_Dem
(72,217 posts)llmart
(16,620 posts)he thinks he's going to be the first human ever to not die. Ha! He's in for a huge shock. All the billions in the world and he'll still be six feet under just like all the rest of us, and Melanie will be laughing all the way to the bank. Or maybe she'll have to fight tooth and nail his evil, money grubbing spawn.
Either way, my goal in life is to outlive that hatefilled blob.
BurnDoubt
(802 posts)kept alive so he could watch his "vision" be turned to shit before his eyes when he dies.
Not Bitter.
llmart
(16,620 posts)which is sometimes referred to as ocked in syndrome where the person can't move or speak or eat or breathe without a machine. I want that to be his demise where Malaria has to make the decision to pull the plug. Let's see how quickly she does it.
BurnDoubt
(802 posts)But the smart money would be on selling tickets.
BidenRocks
(1,836 posts)It's Futurama
Attilatheblond
(6,643 posts)The ground in California would throw Trump's corpse out.
Martin Eden
(14,602 posts)By selling tickets to visitors with full bladders.
Attilatheblond
(6,643 posts)Melania will check the laws in every state/county where he owns property, compare the savings, then dump is dead ass in property in the place with the best 'deal'.
Martin Eden
(14,602 posts)To empty our bladders.
MadameButterfly
(3,248 posts)the planet so he can eek out a few more years staying out of jail and feeding his need for attention.
I predict he won't live out his term. But what will be left?
wolfie001
(5,681 posts)Day in day out, night in night out. WTF!!!
MadameButterfly
(3,248 posts)wolfie001
(5,681 posts)I can't wear khaki pants anymore.
msongs
(71,790 posts)republianmushroom
(20,614 posts)LetMyPeopleVote
(166,210 posts)
ananda
(32,566 posts)It may not be working to plan, but it's definitely
not just a show.
Septua
(2,819 posts)It's narcissism and ignorance and authoritarianism and it's revenue for the tax cuts.
ananda
(32,566 posts)You know -- hey, look at this and don't look at that.
reACTIONary
(6,561 posts)Figarosmom
(6,830 posts)Their most beautiful places to build a trump resort, golf club, hotel or casino. That's the "deals" he's making.
chowmama
(855 posts)The problem is that nobody knows what Trump will do from minute to minute. He's completely unstable and any stimulus at any time could send him right into Crazytown. And the 'insiders' can't control him. Only the most deluded of them think that's even a possibility.
Tariffs is one of his go-to's. How far he goes with it at any time is anybody's guess. He might Taco out this time and a few more times, but he has no grand scheme, and the theatrical show is reality TV - mostly scripted by the writers, but a participant could go off the rails and blow the whole show sky-high. And that's easy to do, when all you want is attention and you have no actual beliefs. Or knowledge, or intelligence. Or sanity. For a reality show, it's ironic that none of it is actually real to him.
His other go-to's to threaten countries are invasion and bombing. He hasn't tried invasion yet, but he's already done some bombing. I don't know what the insiders think they'll be able to do when he decides that will get him more attention.
Nice statement, but it's meant to reassure the populace. I remain unreassured.
RedWhiteBlueIsRacist
(838 posts)
multigraincracker
(35,978 posts)Bernardo de La Paz
(57,015 posts)Gimpyknee
(340 posts)Deminpenn
(16,886 posts)the first tariffs were announced and shortly thereafter put on pause.
And look no further than the stock market that after an initial tank is now back to close to where it was at the end of Biden s term.
thought crime
(488 posts)All about boosting his image and brand. It still does lots of damage.
twodogsbarking
(14,352 posts)ancianita
(41,013 posts)But if it's profitable all insiders are instructed to give the felon all the presidential credit, and write promotion messaging to be used by the party faithful in media and congress.
GoodRaisin
(10,323 posts)Attilatheblond
(6,643 posts)The 'Builder/Deal maker' can amuse himself pretending to build then destroy, be a bully, and just stay out from under foot of the fascists actually running things. 'Give him some toys, a pat on the head. Tell him he's a big boy doing great things. Just get the brat outta our way'.