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Darrell Castle endeavors to give his opinion on the subject of tariffs and what they mean for the United States.

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RESETTING THE ORDER

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 11^th day of April in the year of our Lord 2025. It’s difficult to leave the subject of war and talk about tariffs but I have been waiting for the wars to pause long enough for me to do it. The wars haven’t cooperated, but I have to pause them for this week since the subject of tariffs can no longer be ignored.

I don’t claim to be an economist but I do know something about economic history so, I will, therefore, endeavor to give an opinion on the subject of tariffs and what they mean for us. I used to study the marketing theory of one of the great marketers in the world today, Dan Kennedy. People would pay handsomely for Dan’s advice and they would often ask him, so what should I do, this or that, and his answer was, yes. In other words, he would advise them to implement all those ideas at the same time. President Trump seems to have adopted that shotgun approach to how he deals with the US economy and its relationship with the world.

The tariff seems to be the base of Trump’s economic program and he has announced the implementation of 10% baseline tariffs on all imports but he has now temporarily paused them for 90 days. My understanding is that all reciprocal tariffs are paused except China which stands at 125%. He said that “yippy” globalists and “queasy” skeptics fueled his decision. I guess that means people were getting nervous and that made him nervous.

Tariffs are a tax on the importers of goods and the people who buy the finished products from the imported goods ultimately pay the tax. True, the buyer is free to not buy but in any event the tax money goes to the government and that explains the idea that tariffs will help reduce the deficit and therefore debt. The problem is that if we think about it the flaw in that reasoning is that increased revenue comes at the cost of decreased production thus offsetting any gains. Tariffs tend to slow down production wherever they are imposed. That is a concept proven time and again by history. The Chinese are a little uppity right now so their 125% tariff stays in place. The UN tells us that China now has 31% of world manufacturing and that is expected to increase to 45% by 2030. The idea then is to spur US manufacturing and that is a good thing but only if people have enough income to afford the products.

 Trump asserts that this tariff will correct decades of unfair trade practices that have disadvantaged American workers and industries. Quote from the president; “For too long, other nations have taken advantage of our open markets while imposing barriers to our products. Those days are over.” Think about it like this; a banana republic sells bananas to us and we sell them cars. We import twice as many bananas as that country does cars so there is a trade deficit and we put a 100% tariff on bananas so problem solved. The difficulty is that the banana republic now can’t afford nearly as many cars so it’s self-defeating.

 What he is attacking and threatening, then, is the order of the world that has existed since the end of WWll. It’s a globalist order in which the United States controls the world’s access to money with its reserve currency status while foreigners make stuff and exchange it for US debt and a promise to make interest payments on it.

The economic world order alters or changes from time to time as it did with the end of the gold standard in 1971. Things seemed to work well until the first really expensive war collided with the civil rights movement in which millions of additional Americans had to be included in the social fabric of America, its welfare, and its politics. President Johnson talked from time to time about how difficult it was to pay for both at the same time. His biography has many references to the predicament that he was in.

President Nixon found it impossible to do both and the triple blow was the promise of redeeming dollars with gold. His answer was to take the US off the gold standard thus reneging on that promise. Suddenly the dollar was free, almost literally, with no restraints which allowed the nation’s politicians to spend without limit. The debt grew and grew along with the deficits each year until now it is estimated that this fiscal year’s interest payment will be approximately 1.2 trillion.

 The US paid a price for being chosen to lead the world and impose our will on it, i.e. you do what we say or we are going to war and that means invasion and regime change. To stay leader in that game the US had to assume a role of uncontrolled military spending and to justify that, the masses had to be pacified. The US lost its way somewhere along that road and I think Trump is trying to find the way back. He might use a meat clever when a scalpel would work but I still think that is what he intends. If you read his book, the Art of the Deal, you can clearly see the tactics.

The rise of the computerized world powered by the internet brought the world together and allowed the oligarchs of the various nations to work together to accomplish globalization. The whole world was globalized and interconnected. US manufacturing was offshored meaning our capacity to make things went to foreign workers because US workers were just too expensive. Gradually, the middle-class jobs disappeared and all those factory jobs had to be replaced with something else. Do you know what the most common job in America is today, well its retail sales.

Those people who once worked in a steel mill as their fathers had done are now working at Walmart, carrying bags in hotels, or selling shoes. Their pay reduced from factory pay which included benefits and retirement, to minimum wage and the reality of constantly moving from job to job. People would be living in abject poverty except for the easy availability of credit because nobody can live on their income. This was a never-ending cycle because the easy credit which meant unlimited fuel for the economy drove prices up and made it even harder. Final result for each formerly middle-class American family was unpayable debt and bankruptcy, then the cycle would start over. Will tariffs bring back American manufacturing and reopen our shuttered rust belt factories, I sure hope they do.

Globalization, as the president sees it then, is other nations taking advantage of America and stealing America’s wealth but the reality is this. Foreigners shipped us cars, clothing, electronic gadgets, medicine, etc. and the US shipped them debt securities, blips on computer screens, and a promise that those blips could buy things. In other words, they made our goods and we gave them I.O.Us. as debt, which was a burden born by the hard-working American taxpayer. America lost its status as the world’s largest exporter and instead exported mostly debt. That debt has to be paid eventually by someone and that eventually is fast approaching.

Some of the things we import in great numbers are vital to the American people. The product I’m thinking of is antibiotics which is almost exclusively made in China now. The other things which are vital to the nation are not as vital to each person as being able to cure an infection in one’s body. Things such as computer chips and the all-important rare earth minerals without which the electronic gadgets could not work. Perhaps that is why Trump is trying so hard to secure Ukraine’s rare earth deposits for the US.

China’s economy is more dependent on the United States than the US economy is dependent on China but that doesn’t mean China will go away peacefully. One tactic is selling US treasuries thus making them worth less and driving up the cost of refinancing the roughly 9 trillion dollars of debt which must be refinanced very soon. China has also been able to reduce its total exports to the US to around 15%. It managed to do that by transshipping goods through Vietnam, Thailand, and other Southeast Asian countries. That’s probably why the Trump team told the Vietnamese that even reducing their tariffs to zero would not be enough.

The reciprocal tariff for Vietnam was 46% before the pause. I have a list here in front of me of every country in the world and only the big trading partners are being heavily taxed and the vast majority of countries are 10%. Even most of Europe is 10% but the Europeans are the enraged ones second only to China. I suspect that the real reason for the Chinese uncompromising attitude is that to just accept an equitable tariff with all this publicity would be an admission that the world order still puts them below the US and they are not willing to admit that to the world. The Europeans, on the other hand, just want things to continue as they are.

The Europeans talk about war and bluster with paranoia regarding Russia, but they expect the United States to pay for it.  The American people have made it clear that they want an end to these wars and that they can’t see any US purpose in fighting them. The administration said that some 70 countries have contacted US trade officials to negotiate reduced tariffs and most have offered to reduce their tariffs on American goods to zero. Would reducing tariffs worldwide to zero be a good thing for everybody.

 I’m not sure because it seems to me that it would further degrade US manufacturing thus driving down wages even further but zero tariffs are apparently not his intent. Would zero tariffs make for a more peaceful world. Maybe, and if so perhaps it would be worth it. I’m not sure how sustainable the US economy can be when it is based almost entirely on buying things that others make in exchange for ever increasing debt.

Trump also used the tariffs as a weapon to intimidate countries into doing what he demands. He used high tariffs against certain countries in Latin America to force them to repatriate their criminals which he wanted deported. That tactic worked against small, weak countries but I doubt if it would work against more powerful countries like China.

Finally, folks, if resetting the world order economically can be accomplished by tariffs to make the world a more peaceful place to live, work and raise our families that would be a good future. I hope and pray that it is so.

At least that’s the way I see it,

Until next time folks,

This is Darrell Castle,

Thanks for listening.

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Darrell Castle talks about efforts to end the war in Ukraine as well as the apparent military buildup in the Middle East for a coming US attack against Iran and its Nuclear Research Facilities.

Transcription / Notes

PEACE WITH RUSSIA—WAR WITH IRAN

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 4^th day of April in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about efforts to end the war in Ukraine as well as a recent New York Times article which attempts to explain the war against Russia. I will also talk a little about the apparent military buildup in the Middle East for a coming US attack against Iran and its Nuclear Research Facilities.

Last Sunday, March 30, 2025, the New York Times published an extensive article by investigative reporter Adam Entous entitled “The Partnership: The Secret History of the War in Ukraine.” Mr. Entous claims to have interviewed many sources in various countries while working on the report which he says took over a year to complete. His report provides some answers to the question of how Ukraine was able to effectively keep Russia at bay and on the defensive for over three years.

You know my position by now that the Times has become nothing more than a mouthpiece for the Democrat Party so this article which started a year before the presidential election is puzzling. I suppose the idea is that it can’t hurt Biden now so why not publish and reveal what many of us have suspected all along. I certainly suspected it but I admit that I didn’t suspect the extent of US involvement alleged by the Times article. Mr. Entous would have had to talk to and probably clear his article through some very high-ranking individuals and the Russians were certain to see it right at the time when negotiations with Putin are at a critical stage.

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Darrell Castle talks about the recently released 80,000 files, so far, concerning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the immense power of the deep state.

Transcription / Notes

JFK’s GRAVE

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday, the 28^th day of March in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about the recently declassified and released 80,000 files, so far, concerning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Those files remind us of the immense power of the deep state and how its members tend to close ranks when threatened because they derive great wealth and power from their membership,

I remember that day quite clearly because I was 15 years old and at a high school track meet when the news told the world what supposedly happened. The coach told us the track meet was over and school was closed for the day. It was scary and a sobering time for a 15-year-old trying to make sense of the world anyway, but this Report is not a rehash of the assassination but instead it is a look at what it all means for the world and how its aftermath still resonates in the world today.

That day was an eye opener for some people but for most of us it has taken decades for our eyes to fully open. Polls taken throughout the 1950’s revealed that over 70% of Americans trusted the government and believed that it would do what is right “most of the time.” A follow up question showed that most of the time meant “just about always.” November 22, 1963, began a long decline in the public’s confidence that is greater today than at any other time in our history. That former trust in government is gone and today’s polls show only about 22% still trust in government.

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Darrell Castle talks about the wars currently on-going in the world and how they are being used to form a new order of the world.

Transcription / Notes

THE U.S. AND RUSSIA HAVE COMMON INTERESTS

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday, the 21^st day of March in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about the subject I hate the most, and that is war which seems to be almost everywhere. The partial ceasefire in Ukraine, the open fire now in Gaza, and the U.S. war in the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden and Bab-el-Mandab against the Houthis.

War shapes the world order and I guess it always has. For example, the military defeat of Napoleon in 1814 led to the Congress of Vienna which cemented Great Britain as the leader of the new world order instead of France. I suppose since those countries controlled the world it would be OK to call that a world war resulting in the new order which existed until World War One or 1914. The victors in WW l set the order with the formation of the League of Nations which totally collapsed when Germany decided that it would be a better world leader than Britain. The victors in World War ll formed the new order with the United States as its leader and the United Nations to cement the order permanently.

The Soviet Union, which was one of the victors in WW ll didn’t accept the U.S. as world leader and that resulted in a 40 year long world order which became the cold war. The end of the cold war brought an end to the Soviet Union which dissolved into the Russian Federation. The global elite of the world had to find a way to continue the struggle to feed the eternal death machine so the conflict between NATO and Russia continued. We won’t move one inch closer to Russia Reagan told Gorbachev but later presidents reneged on that promise and the struggle continued.

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Darrell talks about several things that taken together, in his opinion, represent an attempt by President Trump to reset the global order.

Transcription / Notes

RESETTING THE GLOBAL ORDER

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 14^th day of March in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about several things that taken together, in my opinion, represent an attempt by President Trump to reset the global order. Some of those things include a proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine, along with the US and Europe’s special relationship and the attitude of the US toward Russia.

US national security advisor Mike Waltz and Secretary of State Marco Rubio went to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for talks with Ukrainian officials about a proposal for ending the Ukraine/Russia war. It’s a very difficult thing to end a war unless you are able to raise your flag over the enemy capitol. Getting two warring sides to just stop fighting and stand in place is very difficult because one side or the other always has the advantage or momentum and wants to keep it.

This particular peace conference was apparently brokered by the Saudis who had several representatives in attendance. One important party missing from the meeting was Russia which will obviously have to be onboard if the ceasefire has any chance of working.

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Darrell Castle talks about Europe, Zelensky, and the war in Ukraine as well as the President’s speech to Congress and the Democrat reaction to it.

JEFFERSON WAS RIGHT ABOUT EUROPE

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 7^th day of March in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about Europe, Zelensky, and the war in Ukraine as well as the President’s speech to Congress and the Democrat reaction to it.

I will start today’s Report with a disclaimer. When I talk about Democrats and say nasty but always truthful things about them, when I refer to them in some disparaging terms I am talking about the politicians and their useful idiots in the media and not about individual Americans who identify as Democrats many of whom are dear friends or even relatives. So, I have no apology to offer for anything I have said or will say today about Democrat politicians because if I did not believe my position to be true I would certainly change it. In addition, there are some Republican politicians almost as bad as Democrats, almost but not quite because they know better but are simply reacting as the self-serving political hypocrites that they are.

The title of this Castle Report is taken from a quote by Thomas Jefferson offered more than 200 years ago but just as true today as it was then.

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Darrell Castle talks about taking on or contending with the deep state or permanent Washington and how that relates to money, debt, credit and taxes.

Transcription / Notes

THE THEATER OF TAX AND SPEND

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 28^th day of February in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about taking on or contending with the deep state or permanent Washington and how that relates to money, debt, credit and taxes. Many taxpayers feel as if they have been and are being robbed by government officials and bureaucrats and that just might be because they are.

If you are like me then you know a lot of people who live on the edge barely making ends meet from week to week. I meet people literally everyday in my law practice who tell me they are one missed paycheck from the street. It is very distressing for those people when they find that much of the money taken from them as taxes was stolen by some invisible blob operating out of Washington D.C.

We are told during each presidential administration that the country has cast itself into penury by ceaseless efforts to care for its population as well as maintain a global security network to keep them safe and free. That statement is the opposite of truth as is normal for Washington. The recent theft, estimated at 4.7 trillion as is known so far, represents about two thirds of the annual national budget, but it disappears and is apparently impossible to trace. Nobody who should know does know and even fewer care where it goes.

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Darrell Castle talks about the remarks of Vice President Vance at the annual Munich Security Conference and the European response to those remarks. In addition he discusses DOGE and its examination of the Military Industrial Complex.

Transcription / Notes

RUDE AMERICAN OFFERS EUROPEAN INDEPENDENCE

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 21^st day of February in the year of our Lord 2025. I will be talking about the remarks of Vice President Vance at the annual Munich Security Conference as well as the European response to those remarks. In addition, I will talk a little about DOGE and its examination of the Military Industrial Complex (MIC).

Yes, J.D. Vance spoke to Europeans about their relationship with the U.S. at the annual Munich Security Conference which had as its main emphasis the U.S. role as the guarantor of European Security and the European and American roles in Ukraine. He called the Europeans out for censoring their people and for allowing third world migrants to destroy their communities. He seemed to indicate that these policies were not in the best interest of the European people and they also hinder our fellowship with them. I will point out that those have also been the policies of the United States for at least the past 4 years and in part for all the years since 9/11, but the European elite bought what the Biden administration was selling to them hook, line, and sinker.

I suppose he was telling Europe that that the new sheriff in the U.S. believes in free speech and in preserving the quality of life for the American people. The subjects that Vance discussed in his speech were, in my view, an admission that the empire is in trouble and changes have to be made right now to save a free republic for our children. The debt faced by the country will lead to ultimate collapse and chaos and something must be done to change or at least slow the process of that looming disaster. The content of his speech acknowledged that reality without really saying it out loud.

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Darrell Castle discusses the corruption that only the US taxpayers can provide with $50 billion per year of their hard-earned money, all laundered through an organization called the United States Agency for International Development.

Transcription / Notes

USAID—FINANCIAL LAUNDRYMAT FOR THE CORRUPT ELITE

Hello, this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. Today is Friday the 14^th day of February in the year of our Lord 2025. Yes, this is Valentine’s Day, but I speak not of love today but of corruption and not just any old corruption but the kind that only the US taxpayers can provide with $50 billion per year of their hard-earned money all laundered through an organization called The United States Agency for International Development.

USAID was formed by an Executive Order of President Kennedy in 1961. He looked at the world and concluded that he might be able to spare the world from some of what President Eisenhower had gone through by just spreading some US money around in countries to help their people instead of using that money to destabilize them and start eternal wars. That process has become known over the years as soft power.

It seemed to work too, at least it worked for the few years of his too short life. USAID built schools, hospitals, and roads across much of Africa. JFK became a revered figure, especially in Africa, and you can still find hospitals and schools named Kennedy across Africa. Once Kennedy was assassinated by a lone nut who was, coincidentally, also assassinated by a lone nut, things started to change at USAID. The agency evolved over time into nothing more than a $50 billion slush fund for the politically connected to inflict their ideologies on people across the world. The uncovering and correction of this corruption is being labeled by certain Democrat politicians and their media mouthpieces as a coup, but no it is not a coup. A coup is what your CIA and State Department using USAID money has been conducting against foreign countries for at least the last 50 years.

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Darrell Castle continues to share his thoughts on the confirmation hearings of Tulsi Gabbard and RFK, Jr. and shares his thesis that the hearings revealed a lot more about the U.S. government, especially the Senators who questioned them, than it did Tulsi and RFK, Jr.

Transcription / Notes

THE TRIALS OF TULSI AND RFK, JR.

Hello, THIS IS Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. This is Friday the 7^th day of February in the year of our Lord 2025. I will continue to give you my thoughts on the confirmation hearings of Tulsi Gabbard and RFK, Jr. as well as my thesis that the hearings revealed a lot more about the U.S. government and especially about the Senators who questioned them than they did about Tulsi and RFK, Jr.

Both nominees were passed by the committee and now await a full Senate vote on whether or not they will be able to participate in Donald Trump’s efforts to dismantle the shadow government that has run the world for many years. Tulsi was advanced to a senate vote by the intelligence committee on a vote of 9 in favor and 8 opposed. So, 8 senators could not bring themselves to vote yes on Lt. Col. Gabbard who has served her country so faithfully for most of her life.

The senators seemed very concerned because of what they know will happen if these two nominees are confirmed. The deep state of secrecy and shadows will be opened at least in part for the people to see what they have been funding for many years. Since Tulsi is nominated for the office of Director of National Intelligence secrecy is of the most vital concern for the senators. They just can’t bear the thought of someone shining a light on the graft and corruption that permeates Washington. We the people have no right to know where all the money is going and where it all comes from.