Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: James Seagrove who wrote (1062543)	3/26/2018 12:26:05 PM
From: Wharf Rat	Respond to of 1573806

To: James Seagrove who wrote (1062543)	4/3/2018 11:54:24 AM
From: Brumar89	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1573806

Trump's ie James Taggart's War on Amazon and Ayn Rand: I wonder if I'm the only one who notices a Randian theme in Trump's war with Amazon? Trump is our James Taggart type & Bezos our Henry Rearden. Trump is a rich spoiled rotten brat. He's tried to combine a life as a wannabe "playboy" with that of a wannabe business tycoon. His independent business ventures have failed spectacularly, producing a string of bankruptcies and repossessions. He's been repeatedly bailed out by his father and his wealthy siblilngs. Using underhanded means, he's been elevated to the highest political office where he rules as a corrupt, incompetent plutocrat. Bezos is a real billionaire and a self-made one. A man of vision, Rand would say. "Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps down new roads armed with nothing but their own vision. Their goals differed, but they all had this in common: that the step was first, the road new, the vision unborrowed, and the response they received—hatred." Ayn Rand

To: James Seagrove who wrote (1062543)	4/3/2018 12:12:00 PM
From: Brumar89	Respond to of 1573806

POTUS launches war on Amazon. Gabriel Sherman?Verified account @gabrielsherman Trump preparing to launch a war on Amazon. Advisers urging him to open tax investigations and cancel Amazon’s federal contracts. My latest: [ What good is the Presidency to a corrupt plutocrat if you can't use the IRS and other agencies to punish and destroy your enemies businesses? ] “TRUMP IS LIKE, ‘HOW CAN I F--K WITH HIM?’”: TRUMP’S WAR WITH AMAZON (AND THE WASHINGTON POST) IS PERSONAL With the West Wing finally calm, Trump is contemplating a multi-front campaign against Jeff Bezos. BY GABRIEL SHERMAN APRIL 2, 2018 7:07 PM By Andrew Kelly/REUTERS. For the first time in Donald Trump’s presidency, the West Wing soap opera appears to be in hiatus, with many of its starring characters (Gary Cohn, Hope Hicks) either permanently offstage or with much reduced roles (John Kelly, Jared Kushner). Currently, there’s one star—a situation Trump is obviously enjoying—and his new freedom is used to focus ever more closely on his perceived enemies and obsessions. Amazon, whose owner, Jeff Bezos, also owns The Washington Post, is currently the main target. Trump has ripped into Amazon in recent days, claiming in a series of tweets that Jeff Bezos’s tech giant benefits from billions in subsidies from the U.S. Post office while skirting sales taxes. “Unlike others, they pay little or no taxes to state & local governments, use our Postal System as their Delivery Boy (causing tremendous loss to the U.S.), and are putting many thousands of retailers out of business!” Trump tweeted. On Monday, he wrote: “Only fools, or worse, are saying that our money losing Post Office makes money with Amazon. THEY LOSE A FORTUNE, and this will be changed. Also, our fully tax paying retailers are closing stores all over the country . . . not a level playing field!” The tweets caused Amazon’s stock to plunge 5 percent on Monday. Now, according to four sources close to the White House, Trump is discussing ways to escalate his Twitter attacks on Amazon to further damage the company. “He’s off the hook on this. It’s war,” one source told me. “He gets obsessed with something, and now he’s obsessed with Bezos,” said another source. “Trump is like, how can I fuck with him?” According to sources, Trump wants the Post Office to increase Amazon’s shipping costs. When Trump previously discussed the idea inside the White Hose, Gary Cohnhad explained that Amazon is a benefit to the Postal Service, which has seen mail volume plummet in the age of e-mail. “Trump doesn’t have Gary Cohn breathing down his neck saying you can’t do the Post Office shit,” a Republican close to the White House said. “He really wants the Post Office deal renegotiated. He thinks Amazon’s getting a huge fucking deal on shipping.” Advisers are also encouraging Trump to cancel Amazon’s pending multi-billion contract with the Pentagon to provide cloud computing services, sources say. Another line of attack would be to encourage attorneys general in red states to open investigations into Amazon’s business practices. Sources say Trump is open to the ideas. (The White House did not respond to a request for comment.) [ If TX's AG does this, I will vote against him. ] Even Trump’s allies acknowledge that much of what’s fueling Trump’s rage toward Amazon is that Amazon C.E.O. Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post, sources said. “Trump doesn’t like The New York Times, but he reveres it because it’s his hometown paper. The Washington Post, he has zero respect for,” the Republican close to the White House said. While the Post says that Bezos has no involvement in newsroom decisions, Trump has told advisers he believes Bezos uses the paper as a political weapon. One former White House official said Trump looks at the Post the same way he looks at the National Enquirer.“When Bezos says he has no involvement, Trump doesn’t believe him. His experience is with the David Peckers of the world. Whether it’s right or wrong, he knows it can be done.” vanityfair.com