Riding the Floating BUS...

Reading the latest at American Prospect Online, fairly much sums up what I have ranted previously on about people who call themselves 'liberals' in the mainstream are some of the biggest pimps for TINA around:

Feature James K. Galbraith, son of liberal economist icon, John K. Galbraith. Galbraith II scribbles an article at American Prospect pleading for economic populists to "get with reality"(accept globalization/Free Trade). James spends the duration of his column slamming populists, yet claims to be a "populist's populist" himself. The man hand rings for everyone to "stop fighting NAFTA" and bashing China and just accept that laissez-faire is here to stay. Populists in America should focus on getting one-legged, single-parent, heroin addicted transvestites service-oriented jobs, according to folks like Galbraith.

Galbraith, James K., ignores the reality that the Free Trade economy has frozen wage growth in the USA for over thirty years, that overall GNP growth is related to domestic manufacturing, and the 'reality' that the predator Overclass - that as a liberal he detests - has made out like bandits at everyone else's expense since Free Trade has become dogma in America. The son of John Kenneth Galbraith is just another stooge, kinder and gentler Free Trader, in the Bill Clinton/Robert Rubin/Tom Friedman mode. For all of his pleas about reality, his claims in being a 'populist' is quite surreal, out to lunch. James K. Galbraith is the archetype of the type of liberal that the Democrats do not need. Undoubtedly, Jimmy G. is campaigning to join the next Democratic Administration, and they would be wise to keep this man out. Let the Republicans monopolize TINA and be the sole pimp of that whore. Democrats need a return to their New Deal roots and be a true alternative, be real economic populists, proud trade protectionists. James K. Galbraiths and fellow travelers need not apply.

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More outlines on the *floating Tariff* -

There are many strategic ways to tackle this such as a full floating tariff or a semi-floating tariff pegged to the floating US dollar. Implementing it would be tricky in the first place, and certainly it is not a perfect solution anyway. Frankly, I like the semi-floating tariff and a crude draft of it would be something like this:

Implement the floating tariff at the beginning of a fiscal quarter calculated at a rate to a projected valued trade balance based on the mean of the Dollar and let it float with the dollar's rise and fall. A High Dollar on the market will reduce the tariff rate, the Dollar riding lower will raise the tariff. At the end of each fiscal quarter, audit the total trade revenue of imports and the revenue attained by the fluctuating tariff. If a trade imbalance is the result, reset the tariff rate to make up for the previous imbalance and let the tariff ride along with the Dollar until the next fiscal quarter, audit again. A tariff 'surplus' can be used many different ways such as paying off foreign holders of Treasury Bonds, public investment in new industries, reducing the national debt and so on.

The effect on foreign markets with the floating tariff will likely breed a consensus to keep the USDollar 'strong' to avoid paying a higher tariff rate. China and Japan, however, will no longer see high US Dollar surpluses if the dollar floats high and buying Treasury Bonds to fund the US Debt will dissipate. It may be prudent, anyway, to 'close' the Treasury Bond window to foreign investors: the tariffs accumulated will be used to pay the national debt, and repay foreign holders of T-Bills. The schedule of payments will also be based on the 'floating maxim' :the more tariff revenue the more the return. Thus, this would be a dichotomy. There would be just as much reason to keep the dollar low so re-payments will accelerate, but a high dollar will mean lower tariffs. Any which way the boat is floated, it benefits everyone in some way. Domestically,a high dollar will check the rate of inflation even with tariffs, and private investors will be more willing to keep their money at home and invest in capital and re-tooling with the dollar having more value. When the dollar falls, tariffs automatically rise to generate more revenue. Since it is pegged to the floating rate of the dollar, inflation fear mongers will be likely just crying wolf. And need we remind them that Free Trade has never stopped the rate growth of inflation anyway.

The goal should be to get the USA self-sufficient and fiscally responsible again. A floating tariff, that everyone pays, will squelch cries of it being unfair and the like. That a tariff is based on market currency value should appeal to more than a few free-market purists and protectionists alike, and I believe it to be a practical compromise.
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The money generated from tariffs whilst it be variable &floating or fixed& static, can not only be used to perfect a balance of trade, pay off the national debt to manageable proportions, re-capture sterling credit, but used for a public-private re-industrialization of the United States. To return the USA to a manufacturing based nation again and away from the low-wage service and consumer oriented economy, the Federal Reserve System has to be restructured into a chartered *Third Bank of the United States*. Contrary to accepted belief, the Fed is not a 'National Bank' - it is almost totally privately owned and managed and has no checks on it's power or policies. The very fact that this privately operated edifice controls the money supply independently is a clear violation of the Constitution. Libertarians want the Fed destroyed for this reason. The need is to make the Fed into a true National Bank - something that America has not had since Andrew Jackson broke up the second-charter of the National Bank in the 1830s.

The structure of the 3rd Bank of the United States, BUSIII,should be completely under the umbrella of the Treasury Department, and the directorate of BUSIII will include both private and public officials to operate it, the public and private checking one another. Each director is approved by Congress that gets BUSIII into compliance of constitutional 'implied powers'. The accounts of the National Bank are audited weekly, both by an independent private auditor and a public appointed one. Congress has the power to request audits at anytime regardless. The minutes of any meeting of BUSIII officials are to be made public within three days of said meeting. Congress can remove any BUS III official it deems as corrupt.

All federal revenue collected will be placed into the Bank of the United States to generate interest. The proposed federal budget of any fiscal year will be submitted to BUS for compatibility of existing funds and returned to Congress with recommendations. The primary function of BUS will be to dish out loans to private manufacturers to build industries and to re-tool existing manufacturers based on Congressional approved fair living wages and benefits, demand that 51% of corporate stock be employee- owned; compliance with existing environmental regulations. Any recipient of a BUS loan deemed not in compliance with above will be declared insolvent and the loan will be called in. If repayment is not met, BUS will foreclose on said loan and auction the property of the foreclosure.....

Tariffs, a National Bank, internal improvements', self-sufficiency; dedication to the public good - this is the Federalist Tradition of the United States, what made America great and what can make it great again in the economic-commercial sphere. This is the alternative to the current globalist gnosticism.