RUSH: Trump takes a call from the female president of Taiwan, and everybody in the diplomatic corps and everybody in the Washington establishment, anti-Trump Trumpists or anti-Never Trumpers and leftists and the media have a collective cow. “Oh, my God, he’s so stupid. You don’t do this. They’re not official. He just slammed China. He just insulted China. He doesn’t even know it, the guy is so stupid, his ego is so bad, anybody could call him and congratulate him and he’ll take the call. He didn’t know that he’s not supposed to talk to her.”
And they began their narrative that Trump’s demonstrating his naivete, his ignorance, his lack of qualifications, and demonstrating just how dangerous he is going to be. And then somebody said, “Wait a minute. What if he did this on purpose?” And they all paused with a note of fear. “Wait a minute. On purpose? You mean Trump did this on purpose? You mean Trump did this as a strategy?” Yeah. And then they said, “Well, Trump’s not that smart. No. It has to be one of his advisers, it’s probably Bannon. Trump’s not smart enough to do this. Trump couldn’t figure this out. Trump doesn’t know enough to do this.”
And then as time trickled by it became apparent that yes, Trump did it, Trump did it on purpose, it was strategic, and it had a reason. It had a diplomatic reason and the diplomatic reason was exactly what he said during the campaign. We’re being led by a bunch of dumb people right now doing a bunch of dumb things, and I’m gonna stop it. If I’m elected we’re gonna start being smart. And so he takes a call from somebody he is not supposed to take call from. Why isn’t he supposed to take the call? Well, they say you’re just not supposed to take the call. Who is “they”? The people have been screwing things up for the last 40 years.
So now the media is once again on defense, Trump on offense, media on defense, trying to figure this out, trying to come to the conclusion Trump may have been doing this on purpose. They’re asking, “Why would Trump want to insult the Chinese, for crying out loud? Does he not know how dangerous this?” To which the retort is, “Were you not listening during the campaign?”
Did you not hear every Trump rally, every Trump rally and probably over half of Trump TV experiences he criticized the ChiComs. He called ’em out by name. He accused them of manipulating their currency to our detriment. He accused them of dumping all kinds of inferior products on the U.S. market. He caused them of this and that and the other thing and he said it was gonna stop.
It makes perfect sense that he would take a call from the leader of Taiwan if for no other reason to get the attention of the ChiComs. It makes perfect sense if you ever took the time to listen to Trump. But even those who did listen to Trump, there’s another thing he does that has them befuddled, and that is he apparently means what he says, and they are not accustomed to that. And by “they,” I’m talking about the establishment. Both parties, diplomatic corps, the elites, they speak in a different language.
They never telegraph what they’re really thinking, what they’re really going to do. They speak in code. They speak in diplomacy. As such, you never tell anybody what you’re gonna do, you never tell anybody what you really think, you gotta leave your options open. Trump doesn’t do anything but tell people what he thinks, and he’s now acting on what he said he was gonna do, and it’s just foreign to most people in Washington.
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“Donald Trump Threatens Payback for U.S. Companies That Move Abroad — Donald Trump is threatening to impose heavy taxes on U.S. companies that move jobs overseas and still try to sell their products to Americans.” He said he was gonna do this during the campaign. Nobody ought to be surprised.
You know, I think a lot of people watching this — I’m not talking about you Trump supporters. I’m talking about the critics of Trump, opponents of Trump, I think they didn’t attach any seriousness to him during the campaign. They just thought he was doing things the way they do. Just say what you have to say to set yourself apart, to be different, get people’s attention, lie to them if you have to. But he doesn’t mean this stuff.
And now here he is president-elect, and he’s beginning to implement everything he said he was gonna do, and they’re just stunned. “This is crony capitalist. He can’t do this.” You know, how did the federal government collect money? Not the right question. How did the U.S. raise money before the 13th Amendment and the establishment of — not the 13th. It was in 1913. Before the establishment of the income tax, what was the primary funding mechanism for the United States government? Does anybody know? Tariffs. Tariffs on imported goods. Tariffs on domestic goods that were exported.
Tariffs was the primary funding source, before the income tax. “Are you saying they’re justified?” No. Did I say that? I’m just telling you. Tariffs is how the U.S. funded itself before the income tax came along. Trump is merely beginning to implement everything he said he was gonna do, and people are having a cow about it for a host of reasons. Anyway, we still gotta get to the Taiwan call and the funny Drive-By Media and establishment reaction to it.
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RUSH: I want to start with last Wednesday. Go back to something I pointed out last Wednesday on this program.
RUSH ARCHIVE: They’re honestly sitting there, after having listened to Trump for a year and a half, after having watched Trump — or at least they’ve had the opportunity — assuming he’s got no plan. Well, he most certainly does have a plan, and he’s been very clear about it. He’s been very precise about it. What is it about it that these people don’t see? Why are they not able to listen to what Donald Trump says he’s gonna do and believe he means it? Well, they don’t believe it and they don’t believe anybody in their world would ever speak this way, would ever have think kind of agenda or these kinds of objectives, and so nobody else would either. No reasonable person could possibility behave like Donald Trump does, not in our world. “What if Trump’s got no plan?” He’s got no plan? His plan is what’s behind him running for office. His plan is to make the country great again!
RUSH: He had one of the most detailed and lengthy agendas of any candidate I can recall. And he mentioned his agenda practically every rally. It’s not a mystery what Donald Trump’s plan is. And, by the way, I was very on the money with this. His plan is what’s behind him seeking the office. And he’s been very clear. And one of the things he’s been clear on is that he thinks the ChiComs are running rings around us, manipulating their currency, getting our trade balance out of whack, messing around with imports and exports. He’s had China on his mind ever since he got into this campaign.
When he talks about trade, NAFTA, jobs leaving America, he’s always got the ChiComs in the mix. It shouldn’t be a mystery to anybody that he would take a phone call from the leader of Taiwan. So let’s go to the audio sound bites. Drive-Bys amazed. At first they said, “This is idiotic. This guy doesn’t know what he’s doing. This is so bad. This is such a faux pas. This is a humongous mistake. This is why we didn’t want Trump. This is embarrassing. We can’t possibly have a dummkopf like this.” And then one of the Drive-Bys posited, “Hey, wait a minute, what if he does have a plan and what if this is it?” And now they’re panicked like this.
CHARLIE ROSE: It is reported that they thought long and hard about doing this, so it was intentional.
MAJOR GARRETT: Some thought this might have been an inadvertent mistake, but we have learned the Trump transition team spend some time arranging this call.
CHUCK TODD: So this was an intentional sort of challenge.
NORAH O’DONNELL: Whether it was out of ignorance or some plan to send a message to China.
BRIAN KILMEADE: Looks like it’s calculated, intentional to send a message.
DAGEN MCDOWELL: That was intentional. That wasn’t a mistake.
BOB KERREY: It’s a remarkable change, if it’s intentional.
DAVID IGNATIUS: I wouldn’t think it was wise unless you had a detailed plan for what to do next and next.
CHRIS CUOMO: Do you have any reason to believe that what we just saw with Taiwan and now these tweets about China are part of a thought-out plan?
RUSH: You hear all those people, you got the Drive-By Media people in there, you got the Washington Post David Ignatius, Bobby Kerry, a bunch of people, F. Chuck Todd, Charlie Rose, they can’t believe it. And now the fact that he may be intending to do this? It’s even worse. Now they think he’s provoking these big, bad ChiComs, and who knows, they might nuke. Oh, this is dangerous, oh, my God, we’ve elected Barry Goldwater, oh, no. They’re in panic city. But they’re really not. Well, they are, but not for the reason I — They are starting to confront, beginning to confront the reality that the guy’s serious, that he’s smart, and that he meant it, and that he’s the opposite of everything they believe in.
And I think they’re now starting to get very, very concerned. And these tweets are his way of staying on offense. These tweets are his way of keeping them on defense. These tweets are his way of relegating them to irrelevancy. He’s telling them he doesn’t need them to get his message out to the American people. And he said, “Hey, look, if you people would report honorably and honestly about me I wouldn’t have to do all these tweets.” And Mike Pence said (paraphrasing), “Wait a minute, you telling me we can’t wait a call from a Democrat leader in Taiwan but Obama can get in bed with Castro?”
Is that what you’re telling us, that Obama can call every fleabag communist tinhorn dictator in the world and that’s great, and we take a call from a Democrat ally in Taiwan and the world’s coming to an end? And he’s right. Matthew Dowd, Alex Castellanos debating whether Trump’s call was intentional on ABC yesterday.
DOWD: I don’t think it was intentional for Donald Trump to sort of reset the China policy of the United States of America through one phone call. I think he got a phone call, it fed his ego if a president of Taiwan calls him up. The problem is is when you don’t have a real fundamental strategy in place. What is your Far Eastern policy? What’s it gonna do to your relationship with North Korea that you need the Chinese for? What’s it gonna do on climate change that you need the Chinese for? And what’s it gonna do on Iran that you need the Chinese for. Donald Trump didn’t think all those things through.
RUSH: Wait a minute. That’s Matthew Dowd, a former Republican Bush analyst that has now gone over to the dark side. These questions are amazing. (imitating Dowd) “I don’t think it was intentional. I think Trump doesn’t know what he’s doing. He got one phone call, it’s his ego on parade. The problem is there’s no fundamental strategy in place, what’s your Far Eastern policy?” The Norks? Are you kidding me? The ChiComs aren’t doing a thing to rein in the Norks. We’re demanding that the ChiComs make sure the Norks don’t nuke everybody, and the ChiComs are sitting there laughing at us. They’re not gonna be anymore.
“What’s it gonna do on climate change?” The Chinese have told climate change to go (raspberry). The Chinese and climate change, need the Chinese on climate change? From everything we know, Trump doesn’t believe in your version of climate change. We now got that under advisement with Algore in and out of there. We’re being very patient on that. Hang in there, be tough. Iran? The Chinese helped Obama in coming up with a horrible Iran nuke deal! Which Trump has also honestly said is a bad deal. If the Chinese facilitated all of this, it’s no wonder Trump wants to reverse it. Here’s Alex Castellanos in reply.
CASTELLANOS: We’re seeing disruption, and it’s freaking out the news media and the old establishment in Washington. Guess what? That’s why Donald Trump was elected, to do exactly that. I feel like we’re watching Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan Show.
DOWD: Do you think the Taiwan call was deliberate?
CASTELLANOS: I think, actually, it was. Apparently his aides were over there at some point. And, you know, it was almost three months ago to the day that China snubbed the president of the United States —
RUSH: Stop the tape. That’s enough. Castellanos is a former Republican analyst, and he believed that the call was done on purpose, which it was. There’s no doubt about it. But listen to one more here. Charlie Rose as on CBS today speaking with author Ian Bremmer. He’s also the president of the Eurasia Group — E-u-r-a-s-i-A. Europe-Asia. Eurasia Group. And Charlie Rose said, “Ian, it’s been reported that they thought long and hard, the Trump people, about doing this. So was it intentional? Is that your reading of this?”
BREMMER: My reading is that there are few people that are in the transition team around Trump that have been talking to the Taiwanese for some time and love the idea of reaching out. I don’t believe that Trump had the sense personally that by having a phone call as president-elect with the Taiwanese president, that he was setting policy.
RUSH: So if it was intentional, it came from advisers. Trump has no idea. This is like Reagan. Reagan didn’t know what was going on. He was sleeping. He was dozing. Jim Baker was really running the show, and that’s why we could rely on it. Now they’re trying to say, “Well, yeah, Trump had no idea what he’s doing here. I don’t believe Trump had the sense that by having the call he was setting policy. Trump’s so stupid, I don’t think Trump knew.” These guys… You watch. It’s amazing. These guys are gonna have their heads bitten off. They’re gonna be fully exposed as the arrogant snobs that they are, and it isn’t gonna be much longer.
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RUSH: I’m gonna tell you what’s beginning to dawn on these people, the establishment types, the losers, the anti-Trumpers. What’s beginning to dawn on them is that he’s going to be successful, and that’s got them paranoid. And that they will not be able to talk us, the general public, out of believing it and accepting it. They have been able to destroy successful Republican presidents. It took ’em five years to destroy Bush, but they were able to do it — well, four. Trump is a different guy.
Trump fights back from the moment it happens, and he doesn’t allow whatever they say to settle in and start flowering. He destroys it the minute he hears it, or tries to. And they’re not accustomed to this. They do not have an answer to Trump’s tweets. They only know one way of doing things, and they are not adaptable, folks. This is the wonderful thing about the Drive-Bys. They’re so stuck in the way it’s always been done and in routine and the way they’ve been taught — and the narrative here, the narrative there — that they don’t know how to adapt to this.
So they’re just gonna keep trying everything that they’ve always tried in the past that’s worked. And it’s dawning on ’em it might not with Trump.