It’s safe to say that no other president-elect in history has created as much furor over what his administration may try to do than Donald J. Trump. His campaign remarks signal revenge and threats against Jan 6 Committee members, wholesale changes in established Federal Departments, calling all remote workers back to the office, and relegating some Federal functions (like Education) back to the states. His candidates to lead various departments have already made hasty and dangerous comments about their plans. RFK Jr., with no medical or scientific training or experience, has declared that he will banish vaccines because they “do more harm than good”. As Head of the CDC, NIH and other health agencies, this kind of nonsense is very disturbing. And there are a number of specific issues that will REQUIRE attention immediately. Unresolved are the following: abortion, climate change, immigration (deportation of 20 million??), changes to welfare programs (require work for eligibility??) and many more related issues. Facing some of the unpopular stances on abortion, climate change and immigration, Federal judges are consistently ruling against state laws because they know–to be re-elected–they must side with the majority of voters in their state. Expect the abortion issue to be court-decision outlawed in most states by the end of 2025. And finally, the ever-present sword of inflation. Trump swung that sword constantly during the campaign. Now that he’s won he says that reducing food prices is very tough because Biden let them rise. It’s all Biden’s fault. Expect pressure to lower prices as 2025 rolls on–especially if Trump levies huge tariffs on imported goods. EVERY ITEM YOU BUY WILL COST MORE IN 2025 IF THESE TARIFFS HAPPEN. COUNT ON IT. Just for the record, we import 49% of all imports from China, Canada and Mexico. It doesn’t take an economist to forecast what a 60% tariff on Chinese imports will do your budget. And he wants to add 20% to Canadian and Mexican imports. Do the math. Even the experts are predicting major inflation pressures next year. But–if you’re a billionaire–it won’t seem that bad…especially if increased inflation allows you to increase the cost of your products or services. We think we’re starting to see an “us against them” mentality emerge from the Trump team strategy book. Be aware.

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