Trump Gets China Advice From Slow-Growther

"(Peter) Navarro has been all over the place in defense of Trump’s economic policies lately – for example, with this spirited attack on Moody’s negative analysis of Trump’s economic plan. And while Trump may have stumbled across Navarro’s work on his own, it’s far more likely that he was led to it by Dan DiMicco, the former CEO of Nucor Steel, who’s been Trump’s leading who helped persuade his company to provide financial backing for the film version of Navarro’s book."

"So what’s a guy who once ran for office on an anti-growth platform doing as an economic advisor to a real estate developer running for president? As it turns out, this makes more sense than you might think."

"The common theme of Navarro’s thinking has been to use governmental power to create limits and walls, the better to manage things for the benefit of those inside the walls. This was the fundamental concept of 1980s-style California growth management, which often allied left-wing neighborhood anti-growth activists with right-wing anti-immigration activists. And it’s the fundamental concept of Trump’s campaign."