You’ve probably heard that Donald Trump had a conversation with Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, the president of Mexico. What you may not have heard is that there are wildly differing versions of what was said and where things now stand between the U.S. and Mexico. Trump is framing the conversation as a victory lap, naturally, whereas President Sheinbaum told him the simple facts of the matter. Reading into this a bit more closely and between the lines, this is the shape of things to come for four years: a bona fide stateswoman, or statesman, telling the reality TV pretend-president how things actually are in the world. And then Trump ignoring all that and spinning it whatever took place to his glorification.
Pretense is the order of the day and so is disinformation. The real battle that will take place during Trump II is fact vs. fiction. You know the famous Orwellian quote, “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.” Expect to see a wealth of fake news and spin become the norm in the next few years. The uphill task we face as Democrats is to make sure we know what’s real and we get that word out. Meanwhile, here’s a sampling of what’s going on in Trump world.
No, it took 1 phone call to fold on ignorant tariffs. Because here’s a rundown of what President Sheinbaum reportedly actually said that makes Trump’s claim sound like a bad joke:
Migration Already Decreasing: She pointed out that border crossings were already down 75% from late…
— Human☮🇺🇸🇺🇦🇺🇸🌊 (@4HumanUnity) November 28, 2024
Here’s the entire tweet: No, it took 1 phone call to fold on ignorant tariffs. Because here’s a rundown of what President Sheinbaum reportedly actually said that makes Trump’s claim sound like a bad joke: Migration Already Decreasing: She pointed out that border crossings were already down 75% from late 2023 to late 2024. No magic deal with Trump needed, just facts. Tariff Threat Backfire: She warned him that his beloved 25% tariffs would hurt both economies, not just Mexico’s. “Mutual understanding” was her call, not bending to his demands. U.S. Drug Problem: She laid the blame for the drug crisis right where it belongs: U.S. consumption. “Maybe fix your own backyard first,” was the subtext. Weapon Flow into Mexico: She threw the U.S. gun pipeline into the mix, pointing out how those weapons fuel violence south of the border. Bet Trump didn’t tweet about that one. No Blanket Migration Promise: She didn’t agree to “stop migration” as he claimed. Instead, she talked about how Mexico was handling migrant caravans within its own borders, a far cry from giving Trump his wish list. Call for Dialogue: She pushed for mutual respect and understanding, basically, diplomacy 101. Not exactly the subservient “yes, sir” he wanted. In short, she gave him a polite reality check, and Trump spun it into a victory lap. Classic.
Here’s what the Washington Post has to say. This is the new Media Speak, where they continue to sanewash Trump’s insanity.
“There will not be a potential tariff war,” she [Sheinbaum] said in her daily news conference.
Sheinbaum and Trump have given dramatically different versions of the call Wednesday. Trump said on his Truth Social platform that Sheinbaum had agreed to “stop Migration through Mexico,” which would mean “effectively closing our Southern Border.” In a second post he said this change would take effect immediately.
That prompted a tweet late Wednesday from Sheinbaum: “Mexico’s stance is not to close borders but to build bridges.”
The messages reflected the confusion swirling around the relationship between the United States and its top trading partner, as Trump prepares to take office. Sheinbaum said Thursday that her government would continue policies put in place under pressure from the Biden administration, that have disrupted the flow of U.S.-bound migrants. Apprehensions at the U.S. border have plunged about 75 percent since December.
You see where this is going. This is the reality check. Sheinbaum is telling the truth and attempting to be diplomatic about it so as not to fire up his nibs, the Child in Chief, into a tantrum. This is the way of the world for the United States going forward the next four years. The legitimate leaders of the world will work around the United States, because it’s now so hard to work with the United States.
Gabriel Guerra, a communications consultant and former Mexican diplomat, said the head-snapping change from Monday indicated that Trump had been seeking all along to score a political victory — not impose tariffs.
“He can now say his communiqué [on tariffs] was so strong and powerful, and the best communiqué in the history of the world, and he got Mexico to quickly comply,” Guerra said. Yet Sheinbaum suggested that Mexico had not committed to any dramatic change. “This is going to be tinkering with what we’re already doing,” Guerra said.
The phone call appeared to reflect Trump’s lack of knowledge about the current situation in Mexico. Sheinbaum said the incoming U.S. president asked about fentanyl use in Mexico, which is very low. She also responded to his concerns about a migrant caravan that recently formed in southern Mexico, assuring him it would not reach the U.S. border. While video images of such processions alarmed Americans in 2018, during Trump’s presidency, no similar caravan has reached the United States since then.
Trump shocked governments and businesses Monday when he threatened the 25 percent tariff on both Mexico and Canada unless they stopped the “invasion” of fentanyl and migrants. Sheinbaum had responded angrily the next day, threatening tariffs of her own.
Sheinbaum doesn’t want this to escalate out of control. She is humoring Trump. She will continue to humor Trump. So will they all. And Trump will continue to peacock and say these are all great victories.
Let’s see what actually happens. Will Trump impose these 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico and alienate them, not to mention unravel hundreds of years of good neighbor policy? It’s highly doubtful. If he does, it will blow up in his face. Yet if he doesn’t, and people continue to rely on his word, to their detriment, that’s going to bring repercussions of a different sort. The only thing that is certain at this point is that whatever he does, Trump will spin it as a massive win — until the lie can’t hold water anymore, just like happened with COVID.
In short, we will get two versions of the truth going forward: Trump’s victory lap version and then what actually happened. We lived through it once. We’ll live through it again.
How long, do you suppose, until the Muskrat begins blocking foreign leaders who take to Twitter to “correct” one of Trump’s blatant falsehoods?
The cure for that, of course, is the continuing abandonment of xitter and the wholesale crossover to BlueSky by, now, seemingly everyone.
(‘X’ pronounced in the Greek way as in ‘Shh’)
So why not tell the truth on every single available platform, no matter how small. BlueSky is full of magats coming from twit because it’s no fun over there anymore. They are blocked and reported. But there are people on there telling the truth as well. Everyone must tell the truth. Retailers don’t care if tariffs are imposed or not. Prices are going up. And the reason for that should be put out there, much as I’d like to blame tyrant. It’s corporate greed. The tyrant was beaten by a strong woman. THAT must be announced loudly. His threats didn’t work. THAT must be announced loudly. The truth must be out there. Muskrat is a slime ball with too much money who will get far richer at our expense and off the abuses he creates in the government. If the tariffs are or are not created, the tyrant must be outed. We can be afraid or we can stand up like the President of Mexico and tell the truth. If we don’t do more, we will not have anything left.