Trump and Putin; possible rate cuts; lawmakers and redistricting : NPR

Scott Simon, host:

President Trump continued his attacks on the federal reserve this week so as not to reduce interest rates. Yesterday, the Fed chair, Jerome Powell, said that a possible cup could be in sight. We are now joined by Ron Elving from NPR. Ron, thank you very much for being with us.

Ron Elving, byline: delighted to be with you, Scott.

Simon: The simple suspicion of this possibility sent the stock market. Is it potentially good news for the economy?

Elving: Well, many investors surely think so, or at least they think that many other investors will think, and equity prices will therefore increase. And they certainly increased yesterday. But it is good to remember that Powell was teasing a possible drop in rate because he says that he sees a potential weakness of the economy. A softer labor market, among others. He was also worried out of obstinate inflation and the impact of prices. But he does not want his tight money policy to give the economy in recession. It depends so much on what the figures say in September. If Powell sees the prices increase inflation more than what he expected, he could withdraw the drop in rates. But if he likes trends in a month, he can make a modest cut and refer to more to come. A drop in rate of all size would be a trophy for Trump and its high -pressure governance style.

Simon: Texas republican legislators voted to redraw the Congress cards to try to stimulate the party’s electoral chances. Democrats in California have retaliated, starting the same type of path. Now Missouri, Indiana, other states that contemplate the same thing. Is there a Gerrymandering arms race?

Elving: Oh, it’s on. Trump lets the red states know that they expect them to come to duty. He wants them to claim swing district district seats which, during a mid-term year, like next year, could well vote against the White House party. And if it is a arms race, the Republicans are better armed. There are more states where they control the governor and the legislative assembly. So, if it will be a total war with everyone pushing the super partisan cartography to the maximum, the probable winners, at least in the short term, would be republican.

The losers, once again, are the voters of all the districts where they thought they could vote significant for the congress in a competitive race. It is obviously not good for democracy. It is an abuse of power, but it was practiced by both parties in the 1700s. It was considerably improved, of course, by modern computer applications and contemporary data. We therefore see the new technology at the service of the oldest political reasons.

Simon: Ron, the week started with the hopes of peace between Russia and Ukraine. Trump has now established a new deadline for two weeks. Closer to any type of agreement, do you think?

Elving: We hate saying no, after all the efforts that were made, after all the demonstration of the unity by the European allies. But it is difficult to see what reported peace this month or could do it in the last two-week Trump window. Trump abandoned his request as a ceasefire as a prerequisite for an agreement. Putin abandoned. Well, Putin abandoned what? He has not yet started a meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy yet. Putin continues to bomb the cities of Ukraine and the people who live there. He continues to insist that Ukraine abandoned land seized by the Russian army and perhaps more and more.

And where is Trump in all of this? It seems clear that he wants peace to happen for fighters and for his own heritage. But the Russians? Trump needs a tool or a tactic to transform Putin. And unless he is ready to commit American forces, he must fall back on more economical sanctions. And when he threatened with more strict economic measures recently, he is again fell. The present moment must therefore be very discouraging for Ukraine and its defenders.

Simon: Columbia district, troop deployments before his third week. The president says he will ask the congress more money for improvements in the city. Said it will be maximum in terms of beauty. Will it happen in other cities?

Elving: Well, we are not yet sure that this will happen in DC to start. But if this is the case, he will surely try Trump to take into account the more important constitutional and political problems of the care of cities which are in states which are not as subject to federal orders as this city is a unique situation. As for maximizing beauty, the model here might be the new oval office. This can be the ultimate case of beauty in the eye of the spectator.

Simon: Ron Elving de NPR. Thank you so much.

Elving: Thank you, Scott.

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