logo
‘High people ideas': Dave Chappelle's scathing take on Trump's policies goes viral as trade war escalates

‘High people ideas': Dave Chappelle's scathing take on Trump's policies goes viral as trade war escalates

Independent09-04-2025

As the world reels from the impact of Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, a video mocking his plan by comedian Dave Chappelle has resurfaced.
The president sent stock markets plummeting when he announced the stiff levies, with even his close advisor Elon Musk openly questioning the policy.
But the world's richest man is by far the first to question the logic of Trump going to economic war with the world.
'High people ideas,' is how Trump's policies are described in a viral clip of Chappelle from 2017, which is being shared online after the White House broke decades of international trade convention.
'Like, he doesn't think these things through before he tells us. He just tells us what he's thinking as soon as it occurs to him,' Chappelle says in the clip.
'That s*** sounds nuts, 'I'm gonna go to China and I'm gonna get those jobs from China and bring them back here to America'. For what? So iPhones can be $9,000?'
'Leave that job in China where it belongs. None of us want to work that hard," he joked, adding: "I want to wear Nikes — I don't want to make them.'
China is at the centre of the trade war with the U.S., after 104 per cent tariffs came into force on Wednesday, with Beijing and Washington both vowing not to back down.
The Chinese embassy has since posted a video of former US president Ronald Reagan, famed for his commitment to free market economics, addressing the impact of tariffs.
Democrat campaigner Armand Domalewski shared the video with the caption: 'The Chinese Communist Party posting Reagan speeches about the importance of free trade…what a time to be alive.'
In the video, Reagan says that when a country decides to impose a tariff on foreign imports it 'looks like they're doing a patriotic thing by protecting American products and jobs'.
But he goes on to argue that it leads to less innovation and competition, as industries seek for government protections in the form of high tariffs.
The 'fierce trade wars' result in 'more and more tariffs', Reagan adds in the video.
Elon Musk, who heads the Department for Government Efficiency,and has overseen a huge cost-cutting drive within government, has also been vocal in his opposition to the tariffs.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO shared a video of Milton Friedman, one of the leading figures of free-market capitalism, in which he explains that no single person could make a single pencil by themselves.
Products are best produced through global cooperation and specialization, he argues. Musk likely sought to argue that products are best built with components from around the world, which are mass produced for cheap and then sold worldwide.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Trump deployed troops to LA. Was it an overreaction?
Trump deployed troops to LA. Was it an overreaction?

The Herald Scotland

timean hour ago

  • The Herald Scotland

Trump deployed troops to LA. Was it an overreaction?

Immigration agents carrying out Trump's goal of deporting 1 million undocumented immigrants annually sparked a series of sometimes-violent protests in the greater Los Angeles area. A small mob set multiple vehicles and a palm tree on fire, threw rocks and fireworks at police in downtown Los Angeles on June 7 and June 8 as thousands of non-violent protesters watched and occasionally cheered. Trump has dispatched 4,000 members of the National Guard and 700 Marines to Los Angeles, arguing that local law enforcement is overwhelmed. Few of those troops are actually on the streets, however. "If I didn't 'send in the troops' to Los Angeles the last three nights, that once beautiful and great city would be burning to the ground right now ..." Trump said in a June 10 post on his social media site Truth Social. The Los Angeles Police Department alone has about 9,000 officers to serve the city of nearly 4 million people sprawling across a land area that's one-third the size of Rhode Island. The larger Los Angeles metro area has more than 18 million residents and covers an area nearly the size of Maine. Local authorities say they have detained about 150 people in connection to the unrest that left small areas of the 5.8-square mile downtown marred with pervasive graffiti and a few broken windows. No serious injuries have been reported. The nightly protests are still being handled primarily by the Los Angeles Police Department and other local law enforcement officers. The graffiti criticizes Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, and more broadly raises concerns that the country is careening toward a fascist state. Some of California's leaders have accused Trump of using the protests as a pretext to strengthen federal control, especially in a state whose leadership he has long battled. Invoking the memory of Jan. 6 On June 10, Knowlton joined thousands of protesters as they marched around downtown, chanting slogans and criticizing Trump and his immigration-enforcement plans. Some waved the national flags of Mexico or El Salvador, while others carried upside-down American flags, a traditional distress symbol previously used by right-wing groups during the Biden administration. "We all know this is a power grab," Knowlton said before taking a selfie in front of a line of LAPD officers in riot gear. "What I want right now is for the city police to grow a spine and stand up to the feds." Knowlton, a professional musician wearing a sarape adorned with an eagle, carried a sign aimed squarely at Trump: "Marines!! Where were U Jan 6?" Like many protesters, Knowlton said he found it infuriating that Trump refused to call out the National Guard during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, and then pardoned the people who violently breached the building and attacked Capitol police officers. "It's funny that you can send the Marines in for some fireworks but you can kill a police officer in D.C. and get a pardon," Knowlton said. An 'experiment' to displace local control? While some people set off large fireworks that echoed around buildings and a few threw water bottles, most of the protesters remained peaceful, although they were occasionally redirected by local police with pepper-ball guns when they got too close to protected buildings like the police headquarters. Many federal buildings in the area, including courthouses and office buildings, were unprotected and targeted with graffiti. On June 11, Mayor Karen Bass said she believes her city is "an experiment" for White House officials in learning how to displace local control. Trump called up the National Guard over the objections of Gov. Gavin Newsom, who promptly sued to stop him, calling it "an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism." In turn, Trump suggested that Newsom could be arrested. "I feel like we've all been in Los Angles a part of a grand experiment to see what happens when the federal government decides they want to roll up on a state or roll up on a city and take over," Bass said. "It's a sense of intimidation and fear that is just so unnecessary and so corrosive to our city." A city of immigrants Across the city, community members worry that the Marines and National Guard will dangerously escalate any violence that does occur. Trump has promised that anyone who assaults a federal officer or member of the military will face swift punishment. One-third of Los Angeles County residents were born in another country and nearly one in 10 lack documentation to remain legally. But many of those undocumented parents have children who were born American citizens, making Trump's aggressive immigration enforcement unwelcome in this city of immigrants. Retired teacher Jose "Bear" Gallegos, 61, who attended protests in the city of Paramount on June 7, said he was angry that California National Guard troops had been called up by Trump over Newsom's objections. Carrying rifles, the guard members spent Monday and Tuesday controlling access to the Paramount Business Center, which Gallegos said is home to a small federal detention said he was among the protesters hit with pepper-ball rounds, and drew a contrast between the armed troops and unarmed protesters worried about family and community members."We don't have guns. All we have is prayers and feathers," he said. Former Los Angeles deputy district attorney Alfonso Estrada said introducing more federal troops to what is effectively a law-enforcement situation may further exacerbate tensions with protesters, but also with local police who didn't ask for that help."It also creates an awkward jurisdictional issue for local law enforcement agencies and their members who now have the national guard and U.S. Marine Corps operating in their jurisdiction," said Estrada, now in private practice as a partner at the California-based law firm Hanson Bridgett LLP. Estrada added: "The unnecessary and provocative acts of the executive branch endanger both the general public and local law enforcement officers who will bear the brunt of the political backlash and anger that Los Angelenos are feeling for the executive branch targeting its immigrant community and population without due process."

How Trump's $45 million DC parade will lower food prices
How Trump's $45 million DC parade will lower food prices

The Herald Scotland

timean hour ago

  • The Herald Scotland

How Trump's $45 million DC parade will lower food prices

President Trump promised to get those grocery prices down. He's a master dealmaker, so he said prices would drop on Day 1. I've noticed that didn't happen, since I'm still paying $10 for a box of Patriot-O's cereal ("It's like an insurrection in your tummy!") and alternating which kid gets to eat dinner each night. Trump spending millions sending troops to LA will lower food prices But that's all part of Trump's genius. He SAID grocery prices would fall immediately, then they didn't, and now he's spending millions on things that appear to have nothing to do with lowering grocery prices or inflation. CHECKMATE, DEMOCRATS! Opinion: After LA, Trump hard launches new First Amendment: Only MAGA can protest I'm confident that once MY president uses loads of taxpayer money squashing the LA protests he smartly provoked and celebrating his birthday by destroying the streets of DC with a tank parade, grocery stores and food suppliers will have no choice but to drop their prices. Because who knows what this guy might do next? It's the art of the deal, baby! Trump's business savvy means we all benefit from his birthday parade Say you're a grocery store owner and you're about to slap a price tag on a box of cereal. Those cereal producers might be charging the store more because of Trump's incredibly smart tariffs, or because of supply chain issues, or because of the inflation Trump promised would disappear, that hasn't disappeared yet. (That's also part of his master plan - he's trying to confuse inflation so it won't know what to expect out of him. Classic dealmaker maneuver.) Opinion: Trump lied about LA protests to deploy the National Guard. He wants violence. If you're a Marxist, radical, socialist Democrat, you probably think: The grocery store owner is going to put a higher price on the cereal because it costs them more, and they need to make a profit. WRONG! 'I'm going to patriotically lower the cost of this cereal' That grocery store owner is going to think: "Since President Trump was willing to spend millions in taxpayer money to send the Marines into Los Angeles to fight people I don't like, and because he loves America so much he made America pay for his birthday parade, I'm going to patriotically lower the cost of this cereal to make my president look good, even if it means I'll go out of business in three months." Duh. That's a little thing called good ol' American capitalism, you lefty doorknobs. Look it up!! Enjoy the military parade and the US invasion of LA, MAGA! So yes, as an American who loves America and has invested my life savings in President Trump's cryptocurrency, I feel 1,000% confident that dropping nearly $200 million on invading Los Angeles and rolling tanks through our nation's capital will lower grocery prices and probably also reduce inflation. The rest of you just don't understand how America can get great again. Maybe if you watch the big June 14 military parade that we're paying for, you'll understand. Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on Bluesky at @ and on Facebook at

Live updates: New Jersey primaries decide candidates for governor
Live updates: New Jersey primaries decide candidates for governor

The Herald Scotland

timean hour ago

  • The Herald Scotland

Live updates: New Jersey primaries decide candidates for governor

But unlike Virginia - the other off-year race state, where this year both the Republican and Democratic nominee for governor became official in April ahead of any primary - New Jersey's candidate field is packed on both sides. There are five Republicans on the ballot, though former state assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli is widely seen as the favorite to win. He comes into Tuesday evening with President Donald Trump's full-throated endorsement. Among Democrats, Rep. Mikie Sherrill leads the pack of six by a slight polling margin. She faces competitors like Newark mayor Ras Baraka and fellow member of Congress Josh Gottheimer. This race is particularly important for national Democrats because it will be the first major competitive primary since their shattering defeat in the 2024 presidential race. A poll conducted by Emerson College in May found among registered Democratic voters, Sherrill had a solid lead with 28%, but another 24% were undecided. In the last weeks of the race she has faced attack ads for accepting donations linked from a corporate PAC tied to SpaceX, which is owned by Trump "frienemy" Elon Musk. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has pitched himself as the candidate most willing to take on Trump. He was thrust into the national spotlight in May after a confrontation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at a federal facility But if electability remains a worry then N.J. Democrats may bet on a safer choice such as U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, who co-founded a bipartisan group dubbed the "Problem Solvers Caucus" that tries to sniff out consensus in Congress. Others in the race, such as Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, are looking for an opening, too. He's been running as a "pragmatic progressive" for voters fed up with the state's political machine. -- Phillip M. Bailey Current New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, is term-limited and cannot run again in this year's race. Murphy has served as top official in the state since 2018 and will conclude his second consecutive term next January. His absence from the race leaves the contest wide open for either party to claim the governor's mansion. The president first announced his support for Ciattarelli in a Truth Social post on May 12. "Jack Ciattarelli is a terrific America First Candidate running to be the next Governor of a State that I love, NEW JERSEY!" Trump wrote. "Jack, who after getting to know and understand MAGA, has gone ALL IN, and is now 100%" The two have not always been the best of buds publicly. In 2015, Ciattarelli called Trump a "charlatan." Then in his second campaign for governor in 2021, he kept the then-former president at arm's length. Bygones appear to be bygones, though. Trump told voters in a telephone rally on June 2 Ciattarelli "is the most experienced and battle-tested" candidate.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store