https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-17-2025
"Yesterday at the meeting of the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7), a forum of
democracies with advanced economies, President Donald Trump told reporters:
“The UK is very well protected. You know why? Because I like them, that's why.
That's the ultimate protection.”
Commenters often note that Trump talks like a mob boss, but rarely has his
organized-crime style of governance been clearer than in yesterday’s statement.
Also yesterday, Ana Swanson and Lauren Hirsch of the
New York Times reported
that Trump has taken unprecedented control over U.S. Steel. Japan’s Nippon
Steel has been trying to take over U.S. Steel since 2023, but the Biden
administration blocked the deal for security reasons. In order to move it
forward, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick demanded an agreement that gives to
the president and his successors, or a person the president designates, a
single share of preferred stock, known as class G, or “gold.” The deal gives
the president permanent veto power over nearly a dozen actions the company
might want to take, as well as power over its board of directors.
Swanson and Hirsch note that the U.S. government historically takes a stake in
companies only when they are in financial trouble or when they play a
significant role in the economy. “We have a golden share, which I control, or
the president controls,” Mr. Trump told reporters on Thursday. “Now I’m a
little concerned whoever the president might be, but that gives you total
control.”
This kind of deal echoes those of the authoritarians Trump appears to admire.
His ongoing support for Russian president Vladimir Putin was on display at the
G7, when he echoed Russian talking points that blamed European countries and
the United States for Putin’s war against Ukraine, rather than acknowledging
that it was Russia that attacked Ukraine after giving assurances that it would
respect Ukrainian sovereignty in exchange for Ukraine’s giving up the Soviet
nuclear weapons stored there."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
