The Dow crept higher on Thursday while Donald Trump ramped up his verbal assault on both the EU and "treasonous" Democrats in Congress. | Source: SAUL LOEB / AFP
The Dow slunk lower during on Thursday after Donald Trump unleashed savage attacks against political opponents on both sides of the Atlantic.
By the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had lost 14.04 points or 0.05 percent. The Dow had crept higher earlier in the session, only to suddenly swing lower shortly before noon ET. The index was last traded at 26,143.12
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also lurched slightly into the red, with the former dropping 0.07 percent to 2,886.09 and the latter dropping 0.21 percent to 7,947.6.
This morning, President Trump made his best effort to monopolize the headlines by launching another verbal assault on the European Union, chiding it both for its handling of Brexit and its “brutal” trading relationship with the United States.”
“Too bad that the European Union is being so tough on the United Kingdom and Brexit. The E.U. is likewise a brutal trading partner with the United States, which will change,” he railed, before issuing an ominous warning. “Sometimes in life you have to let people breathe before it all comes back to bite you!”
As CCN.com reported, the Trump administration recently announced plans to slap new tariffs on $11 billion worth of European goods. The White House desires to use those tariffs to punish the EU for allegedly providing illegal subsidies to aerospace giant Airbus, the chief competitor of embattled US firm Boeing. The EU retaliated by threatening to hike tariffs on US imports. Depending on how this plays out, Trump could find himself waging trade wars on two different continents.
Never one to limit himself to a war on just one front, the president fired another arrow at Democrats, savaging his political opponents as “TREASONOUS” for opposing his hardline stance on border security.
“I think what the Democrats are doing with the Border is TREASONOUS. Their Open Border mindset is putting our Country at risk. Will not let this happen!”
Meanwhile, congressional Democrats announced plans to cozy up to one of Donald Trump’s other punching bags, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. According to CNBC, Powell – a Trump appointee who the president has grown to loathe – will meet with top Democrats at a Thursday night policy retreat.
Trump has been sharply critical of the Powell-run Fed, blaming the central bank for stifling economic growth and triggering the stock market correction that crushed the Dow and its sister indices during the last several months of 2018.
While the Fed has already shelved its plan to introduce new interest rate hikes in favor of a patient approach, the White House has reportedly pressured Powell to go even further and cut rates.
Powell claimed in a recent interview that the president’s barbs do not influence his policy decisions, but many Democrats want more assurances – particularly as Trump schemes to stack the Fed with controversial nominees Stephen Moore and Herman Cain.
“I want to know from him whether he’s really feeling the pressure from the administration in regards to the interest rates,” Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) said of Fed Chairman Powell. “Is he free to do what he thinks is an appropriate thing in an independent manner?”
Trump has not yet commented on the pow-wow.
Last modified: September 23, 2020 12:37 PM
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