In this episode of Doug Casey's Take, Doug and I dug into the real drivers behind Trump's reshoring agenda. Spoiler: it's not about jobs or prosperity—it's about gearing up for war. Trump doesn't talk about building refrigerators; he talks about AI, "big things," and most of all, military equipment.
But Doug sees the fundamental contradiction here. The U.S. controls about 75% of the world's armament trade, yet our supply chains run through China—our supposed enemy.
Doug also calls out the bigger picture—this is all happening without any coherent plan. As he put it, Trump "makes you feel like a pinball being bounced around" because of his "having absolutely no philosophical core or no understanding of economics whatsoever." Doug sees it for what it is: chaos without economic philosophy, just erratic policymaking.
Doug also rightly notes that:
More and more wealth is being directed into the coffers of the U.S. government, which is increasingly bankrupt.
Regardless, if this economic powder keg blows—and Doug thinks it's baked in—Trump will probably become the fall guy. Won't matter if it's his fault (though, in some ways, it absolutely will be). Tariffs, inflation, weaponized databases, and Palantir will all be his legacy. When the collapse comes, financial or geopolitical, don't be shocked if the red hats quietly disappear.
We also cover other important topics our paid subscribers asked about, including:
How Palantir’s role in Gaza’s targeting system foreshadows U.S. social credit scores.
The risks of a financial earthquake as markets teeter on Federal Reserve money creation.
Why Russia’s response to Ukraine’s drone attack could target military HQs with hypersonic missiles.
The irony of a Harvard ethics professor fired for fabricating data.
How William F. Buckley’s prolific legacy contrasts with his prickly encounter over a pot-smoking anecdote.
Why the 19th Amendment and democracy’s “mob rule” produce low-quality leaders.
The historical pivots of Dunkirk’s evacuation and the Battle of Midway’s accidental U.S. victory.
Timestamps (from Youtube):
00:00 Introduction and Overview
00:08 Trump's Reshoring Agenda
01:20 Chaos in Trump's Policies
02:04 US Armament Trade and China Relations
03:28 Sovereign Wealth Fund and Economic Insanity
04:48 Trump's Popularity and Deep State Opposition
07:22 Palantir and Privacy Concerns
12:47 Financial Markets and Potential Collapse
14:58 Russia-Ukraine Conflict
18:01 Harvard Professor Scandal
21:32 William F. Buckley's Legacy
26:12 Journalistic Attitudes Towards Gold and Debt Crisis
27:44 Media Bubble and Bad Judgment
30:06 The 19th Amendment and Democracy
36:17 Historical Events: Dunkirk and Midway
43:12 Current Events and Political Climate
50:44 Concluding Thoughts and Membership Information
P.S. In this episode, Doug highlights the U.S.'s reliance on China for rare earths—or as Doug calls them, "exotic elements"—that are critical to military equipment. And it so happens that rare earths are precisely the focus of the latest issue of Crisis Investing, where we feature a rare earths pick positioned to benefit from the escalating U.S.–China trade tensions. Even if you’re not a paid subscriber, I’d still recommend checking out the lead story. It looks back at China’s rare earths embargo in 2010 and why that moment still matters today. Some interesting charts in there too.
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