He had it 38 years ago and never had another one
The New York Times published this a few years back explaining that ad from 1987:
Like so many Americans of his generation, Trump’s world view was shaped by the trauma of the hostage crisis and the sense of US decline in the late 1970s and 1980s. He also shared the widespread sense that America’s allies were not pulling their weight, in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, and that these “friends” were taking unfair advantage of the United States with respect to trade. In September 1987, Trump paid almost $95,000 to take out a full-page newspaper advertisement that ran in the New York Times and several other outlets to air his grievances with America’s leaders and its allies. .
He sounded like a simpleminded fool then and he sounds even dumber now after everything that’s happened in the nearly 40 years since he saw something on Larry King that gave him the idea. In case you can’t read it above, here it is:
There’s nothing wrong with America’s Foreign Defense Policy that a little backbone can’t cure.
An open letter from Donald J. Trump on why America should stop paying to defend countries that can afford to defend themselves.
To The American People:
For decades, Japan and other nations have been taking advantage of the United States.
The saga continues unabated as we defend the Persian Gulf, an area of only marginal significance to the United States for its oil supplies, but one upon which Japan and others are almost totally dependent. Why are these nations not paying the United States for the human lives and billions of dollars we are losing to protect their interests? Saudi Arabia, a country whose very existence is in the hands of the United States, last week refused to allow us to use their mine sweepers (which are, sadly, far more advanced than ours) to police the Gulf. The world is laughing at America’s politicians as we protect ships we don’t own, carrying oil we don’t need, destined for allies who won’t help.
Over the years, the Japanese, unimpeded by the huge costs of defending themselves (as long as the United States will do it for free), have built a strong and vibrant economy with unprecedented surpluses. They have brilliantly managed to maintain a weak yen against a strong dollar. This, coupled with out monumental spending for their, and others, defense, has moved Japan to the forefront of world economies.
Now that the tides are turning and the yen is becoming strong against the dollar, the Japanese are openly complaining and, in typical fashion, our politicians are reacting to these unjustified complaints.
It’s time for us to end our vast deficits by making Japan, and others who can afford it, pay. Our world protection is worth hundreds of billions of dollars to these countries, and their stake in their protection is far greater than ours.
Make Japan, Saudi Arabia, and others pay for the protection we extend as allies. Let’s help our farmers, our sick, our homeless by taking from some of the greatest profit machines ever created — machines created and nurtured by us. “Tax” these wealthy nations, not America. End our huge deficits, reduce our taxes, and let America’s economy grow unencumbered by the cost of defending those who can easily afford to pay us for the defense of their freedom. Let’s not let our great country be laughed at anymore.
Sincerely,
Donald J. Trump
He simply does not understand how trade works. In fact, his thinking has actually evolved in one small way. He now believes that we don’t need to trade with other countries at all and America can build, grow and manufacture everything people could want or need at home and will sell overseas but only as long as there are no taxes or tariffs on American goods. He believes we can do this without immigration somehow (prison labor?) In other words he has actually become even dumber as time went on about how the world works.
Sure, there are useful tariffs at times and the US needs to manufacture more of its necessary goods if only for reasons of national security. But this is just nuts. Trade is inherent in capitalism and his fundamental lack of understanding about how it works is leading us to a trade war, a recession and a rapid, chaotic,devolution of the world economic order — and not in a good way.