Sunday, July 09, 2017

MayBot Cautioned Not to Jump Too Quickly Into Donald Trump's Lap.


British prime minister Theresa May went to the G20 summit in Hamburg looking for a date. With the combined impacts of the Brexit fiasco, her disastrous performance in Britain's last general election and the Grenfell Tower scandal, the MayBot is desperate for something, anything positive to show the folks at home that she is indeed "getting on with the job."

She got that in Hamburg in the form of a promise from Donald Trump to expedite a US/UK free trade deal very, very soon. Britain's business community, however, is warning May not to jump too fast into Donald Trump's lap.

The president of one of the most influential business groups in the country has warned Theresa May not to rush into a trade deal with the US.

Paul Drechsler, president of the Confederation of Business Industry (CBI), criticised the Prime Minister for seeking to make headlines instead of setting out the facts and evidence to the British public, when she met President Donald Trump at the G20 summit in Hamburg.

Mr Trump told reporters he expected a "very, very big deal" to be completed "very, very quickly".

Speaking on Sky News, Mr Drechsler, who campaigned with the CBI to remain in the EU, warned against the UK entering a "bear hug" with the US.

He said: "One has to recognise, not every trade deal is necessary a good and fair deal for both parties. The US has one of the best negotiating teams in the world in terms of trade deals.

"We don't want to walk into a bear hug and I would be wary of trying to be too fast on a trade deal. The important thing is to know what we want to achieve, what the objectives are and what the trade-offs are.

"A trade deal is a dog-eat-dog activity, it is not a diplomatic activity. And what worries me is that we are not honest to people about all these big issues so we are going for headlines rather than the facts and evidence."

May would also do well to recall the remarks of Trump's now commerce secretary, Wilbur Ross, from last December. From CNBC.

Wilbur Ross, President-elect Donald Trump's pick for Commerce secretary, has urged other countries to exploit the "God-given opportunity" to steal business from the U.K., according to a report in The Times.

Ross urged Cypriot financiers to strike during this "period of confusion" in Britain to draw businesses away from the City. He made the remarks before the U.S. election and his selection by the Trump.

"I recommend that Cyprus should adopt and immediately announce even more liberal financial service policies than it already has so that it can try to take advantage of the inevitable relocations that will occur during the period of confusion," Ross said, according to The Times.

He further added that Britain's departure from the European Union was a "God-given opportunity" for the City's financial rivals, especially Frankfurt and Dublin in particular.

If confirmed as Commerce secretary, Ross would be among those responsible for negotiating a free trade deal with the U.K. But his comments have sparked speculation that the U.S. may seek to exploit the uncertainty created by Brexit in order to lure business away from London.

I think I understand why the British commerce sector has reservations about the MayBot and her schemes.






4 comments:

rumleyfips said...

Great Britain is still a member of the EU. Can it , legally, negotiate a trade deal without EU consent ?

The Mound of Sound said...


That's a good point, Rumley. I expect you're right.

Anonymous said...

I was born in the UK 70 years ago and my parents brought my siblings and me to Canada legally in 1959.

So I have a few relatives back there in Blighty. Their economic circumstances and "class" vary. It's not just the CBI who think May is a nightmare, not by a long shot. It seems a pretty widely held view. Of course among a certain set, rather like here where Albertans breed blinkered Conservatives for the country with side assists from Saskatchewan and rural Ontario, there are the usual stalwart Tories come what May. Yes, indeed.

The CBI's reminder that US trade deal negotiators are harsh carries weight. Back during NAFTA negotiations, we got roasted if I remember the news of the time correctly. So when Trump said that Canadians outfoxed the US during those negotiations, I spewed my coffee over my tablet. One more example of how the man knows nuttin'.

I'm surprised that as Imperial Hegemony Master, Trump hasn't decided to forget about all these countries exporting stuff and taking gross advantage of the US, hah, hah.

No, he should just set up a America Appreciation Committee, and tax NATO countries in particular, and everyone else, maybe not quite so much. "We have to be fair, folks."

Why yes. Just send in the America is Great assesssment fee monthly for agreeing the US is the most wunderful place and needs money to continue illegal invasions to put those still unlawful places under the US business heel too, plus of course to help pay for setting up US bases to keep an eye on all the natives and to make sure they toe the line with payments. "No defaults, folks. Not allowed. Oh? We have over 800 bases around the world already? This is big, very big, folks. Yuge. All we need to do is send out reparations, er, Appreciation invoices and make sure they get paid. And we have enforcement officers on the spot already. We'll make America Super Great again in no time!"

And then we can all go away happy in a Mickey D greasy bad food fake news world and live happily ever after until the seas rise and smite us, tornadoes and hurricanes lay waste to us, wildfires scorch us, broiling heat kills off the elderly, crops fail and the world ends because as we all know man-made climate change doesn't exist. "Believe me folks. The Lord shall provide!"

BM

Anonymous said...

Good one, BM. My daughter and the kids...call it McShits now, did you know? They're quite funny, kids today.