Renowned Columbia Univ. economist says Trump's erratic trade decisions show him mentally unfit; should invoke the 25th.

Jeffrery Sachs is a renowned Columbia University professor of economics who heads its Center for Sustainable Development and serves as a senior adviser at the United Nations.

According to Mary Papenfuss, reporter for HuttPost, Sachs "has criticized Trump’s economic actions several times. Earlier this year, he said the president’s tariffs prove he 'flunked economics' and makes 'primitive errors because he hasn't a clue as to how the world economy works.'" 

Papenfuss also quotes Sachs from previous criticisms of Trump, saying: "whatever US steel producers might gain from a trade war would be offset by the losses to steel users and consumers, plus the social costs of protecting uncompetitive jobs."

Sachs has labeled the massive tax cuts and budget deficits as part of the war of rich Americans on the poor that he describes as "unbelievable in any serious country."

So Jeffrey Sachs has long been a critic of President Trump. Now he has written a piece for CNN's web site that is extremely sobering. We've been hearing this from others; but now it's coming from a renowned economist saying that Trump is unfit to be president, based on the area in which Sachs himself is a world-recognized expert: world economic factors. Here is Jeffrey Sach's recommendation:

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"Maybe Donald Trump really is the Manchurian Candidate, a stooge of some foreign potentate. Much more likely, Trump is just mentally unstable and narcissistic.

"Whichever it is, Trump is rapidly destroying American global leadership, alliances, and interests. Wednesday's announcement of new tariffs on steel and aluminum exports from Canada, Mexico, and the European Union is the latest bizarre and self-destructive move.

"I have just returned from a trip to Europe. Across Europe, there was not a single word of respect for Trump. The constant refrain was extreme puzzlement and deep consternation. How did America fall so far so fast? What do we need to do to survive?

"Trump's so-called policies are not really policies. Trade wars are on, off, on hold, on again, within the span of days. Summits are on, canceled, or maybe on. Foreign companies are sanctioned today and rescued the next. He says one day he would like to see overseas troops called home soon, and tells them to stay the next. Global agreements and rules are ripped to shreds. Trump's garbled syntax and disorganized thoughts are impossible to follow.

"The US has probably never before had a delusional President, one who speaks gibberish, insults those around him including his closest associates, and baffles the world. By instinct, we strive to make sense of Trump's nonsense, inplicitly assuming some hidden strategy. There is none.

"Trump's trade actions are blatantly illegal. They are flimsily justified as an act of national security, but this is sheer nonsense. They are also fatuous in terms of US economic and geopolitical interests. Harming our closest allies, raising the prices on key intermediate products, and provoking retaliation cannot possibly deliver higher wages, better jobs, or an improved trade balance. Trump's latest notion to slap tariffs on German automobiles would be even more damaging geopolitically.

"Trump creates chaos for no reason other than his own flagrant inability to follow rules or respect the interests of others. His is a psychopath's trade war. The result will be to undermine the long-term role of the dollar, ratchet up the public debt, and undermine the current expansion through a spiral of protectionist measures and rising uncertainties for business.

"Trump's casual threats of a hot war with Iran or North Korea if his various demands are not met are of course even more dangerous.

"The real answer to Trump's trade (and other) policies is the 25th Amendment. Trump is unwell and unfit to be President. He is a growing threat to the nation and the world.

"The emperor had no clothes. This President has no sense."

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Although they have not yet spoken out publicly about it, word has leaked out that both Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan -- as well as many Republicans in Congress -- are quite concerned about these latest tariffs on our allies.

Of course, since Trump is so easy with reversing what he did or said yesterday, he can respond simply by lifting the tariffs even before they go into effect. That won't solve the larger problem or the larger threat of having an unfit president.

Sachs doesn't mention two other recent actions by Trump that could be added to his case. Perhaps his article was written before these occurred. In trying to justify his tariff on Canadian steel, Trump repeated what he's said before: that they're taking advantage of us in trade and we have this big trade deficit with Canada. In fact, it's a simple fact that we have a rather large trade surplus with Canada. So that was either an outright lie, or ignorance that's incompatible with being fit to handle our trade policy.

The other fact was Trump's violation of the rule that, when new economic data, like the unemployment/new jobs report is due, the administration does not speak about it for at least an hour after the report is released. This is to avoid any political influence on the markets, which respond, often dramatically, to such reports.

But, as president, Trump was briefed on the report the night before. So at 7:31 am he tweeted out: "Looking forward to the new jobs report at 8:30." And the markets responded, inferring from Trump's tone that the report would be good. That is exactly why we have the rule not to do that.

It makes little difference whether he did it our of ignorance or willfully to benefit his wealthy friends -- that is a forbidden act and for good reason. It's a form of insider trading. People go to jail for it.

Ralph