Random Thoughts #72

Random Thoughts #72

The Supreme Court just ruled that Lisa Cook can stay at the Fed – for now. It will hear arguments in January as to whether the president can fire her “because” (rather than “for cause”.

The Wall Street Journal still calls it the Defense Department. I wonder if they still say “Gulf of Mexico”?

Birthright citizenship

The Trump Administration has finally gotten around to asking the Supreme Court to rule on whether the president has the power to rescind birthright citizenship. Recall that the 14^th Amendment has been interpreted as anyone born in the United States is automatically a citizen, with the exception of children born to foreign diplomats. When John McCain decided to run for president, his citizenship was called into question because he was born in Panama where his father who was in the Navy was stationed. Article II of the constitution states: “No person except a natural born citizen … shall be eligible to the Office of President.” Also the status of Barry Goldwater arose because he was born in Arizona when it was a territory and not a state. In both cases, it was determined that they were “natural born” citizens. The 14^th Amendment states that all “persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.” President Trump’s executive order declared that only newborns whose parents have permanent legal status are “subject to the jurisdiction” of the U.S. and therefore eligible to be citizens. Two lower courts ruled against the president. Now the Supreme Court will hear the case in its next session. Although I may be incorrect, I am assuming that the issue will concentrate on those children born after the Court’s ruling rather than to take away citizenship from those already born. As I wrote before, if it is the latter then Colin Powell would lose his citizenship as well as perhaps the vice president’s wife.

Trump’s American socialism grows more tendrils

Trump who has told Big Pharma how to price their drugs is now threatening to investigate the rising costs of farm inputs. His agriculture secretary says that the costs of fertilizer, seeds, fuel and equipment will be scrutinized by the antitrust division of the Department of “Justice”. I wonder if the administration is going to do a repeat of Nixon’s foray into wage and price controls when in 1971 he declared “I am ordering today a freeze on all prices and wages throughout the United States.” He just might if inflation now over 3 percent keep rising. 

More government intrusion into the private sector was when Trump invoked his “golden share” authority denying US Steel the ability to close one of its plants. The “golden share” gives the president the power to veto certain corporate decisions – in this case a plant closure. The “golden share” is only new to the US. Other countries like Brazil and China exercise this power over certain of their businesses. Now the question will be whether the use of the “golden share” will significantly reduce the profitability of US Steel to the point where the owner Nippon Steel will ask for relief. Other examples of Trump’s socialism are Nvidia and paying the administration 15 percent of their sales from chips sold to

China, the president’s $8.9 billion stock deal with Intel, the arrangement with MP Materials that makes Defense Department the principal shareholder of the rare earth miner and an equity stake in Lithium America.

Now the president has demanded that Microsoft fire Lisa Monaco, its vice president of global affairs. Trump dislikes Monaco for her role as deputy attorney general in the Biden Administration and their various investigations of him. Trump tweeted “She is a menace to US national security especially given the major contracts that Microsoft has with the United States Government.” Am I the only one who thinks this is vindictive and a bit overwrought? Let’s see how Microsoft responds to this latest incursion of the president into private enterprise.

Call it what you will MAGA people but it is American socialism.

LB and OZ?

I can’t be the only one who has wondered why “pound” is abbreviated “lb” and ounce is abbreviated “oz”. Southern Living magazine tells us that pound comes from ancient Rome, where the unit of measure was “libra pondo,”which meant “a pound by weight.” The abbreviation lb. is derived from “libra.”  Ounce is from the Latin word “uncia” which medieval Italian turned it into “onza.” Hence the abbreviation “oz.”