Coffee Talk with Tiff

October 21, 2025 12:55 pm EDT Tiff Coffee Talk with Tiff 0
Coffee. Photo by Jonathan Thursfield.

It’s Tuesday…

President Shitshow’s public schedule for…

10/21/2025:

Nothing to see here—just the leader of a shuttered government pretending everything’s fine and throwing himself parties on our dime.

Speaking of our dimes, crews are busy demolishing part of the White House so the president can have his own ballroom. Because nothing says “fiscal responsibility” like chandeliers during a shutdown.

*Flashback*

07/31/2025:

Asked about his ballroom vanity project over summer, President Sir Lies-A-Lot promised it wouldn’t “interfere” with the East Wing — it’d sit nearby, not touching, out of reverence for the building he insists he “loves.” A curious way to show affection, by taking a wrecking ball to it.

Reporter: Mr. President, can you talk about your plans for the new ballroom that was announced today?

President Sir Lies-A-Lot: Yeah.

Reporter: The $200 million—that’s going to be paid for by yourself?

President Sir Lies-A-Lot: By me, yeah.

Reporter: Via donations?

President Sir Lies-A-Lot: It’s a private thing. Yeah, I’ll do it, and we’ll probably have some donors or whatever, but it’s about $200 million. We’ve been planning it for a long time. They’ve wanted a ballroom at the White House for more than 150 years, but there’s never been a president that was good at ballroom. I’m really good.

In fact, I looked at one that we just built in Turnberry in Scotland, and it’s incredible. We’re good at building. I’m good at building things. And we’ll get it built quickly and on time. It will be beautiful—top, top of the line. We’ve retained the best architects and engineers and everything else. It will be built over on the east side.

And it will be beautiful. It will have views of the Washington Monument. It won’t interfere with the current building. It’ll be near it but not touching it, and pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of. It’s my favorite. It’s my favorite place. I love it. But they’ve wanted it. And you know, when they have big events—you entertain the president of China, or the president of any place—and you have big crowds.

*End flashback*

MAGA Twitter is busy calling the President “generous” for paying out of pocket for a monument to himself—something that’ll “last long after his presidency” (if he actually leaves in 2028, color me shocked). Meanwhile, the White House quietly admitted “the United States Secret Service will provide the necessary security enhancements and modifications.”


Flash News

Trade and Farmers.

Everyone’s talking about skyrocketing beef prices (still climbing, by the way). President Trade Deals Are Easy When You Can Lie About Them told reporters, fresh off another weekend away, that “Argentina is fighting for its life” and “they’re dying” — which somehow justifies “lending” them $40 billion (it was $20 billion before inflation kicked in) and maybe importing beef to “help drive down costs.”

Reporter: But sticking with soybeans and then Argentina — you know, you’re looking to do that deal with Argentina? [Inaudible]

President: With respect to beef?

Reporter: Are we expecting a beef deal?

President: No, no — I assume you’re talking about beef, yeah, to get beef prices down. The only price we have that’s high is beef, and we’ll get that down. And one of the things we’re thinking about doing is beef from Argentina.

Reporter: But my question is, what do you have to say to U.S. farmers who feel that the deal is benefiting Argentina more than it is them, as they are a top—

President: Argentina is fighting for its life. Young lady, you don’t know anything about it. They’re fighting for their life. Nothing’s benefiting Argentina. They’re fighting for their life. Do you understand what that means? They have no money. They have no anything. They’re fighting so hard to survive. If I can help them survive in a free world, I happen to like the president of Argentina.

President: I think he’s trying to do the best he can. But don’t make it sound like they’re doing great. They are dying, all right? They’re dying.

“They are dying, all right? They’re dying”…

October 7th, 2025:

Speaking of tariffs…

The Trump administration is quietly watering down some of the tariffs that underpin the president’s signature economic policy.

President Trump in recent weeks has exempted dozens of products from his so-called reciprocal tariffs and offered to carve out hundreds more goods from farm products to airplane parts when countries strike trade deals with the U.S.

The offer to exempt more products from tariffs reflects a growing sentiment among administration officials that the U.S. should lower levies on goods that it doesn’t domestically produce, say people familiar with administration planning. That notion “has been emerging over time” within the administration, said Everett Eissenstat, deputy director of the National Economic Council in Trump’s first term. “There is definitely that recognition.”

The move comes ahead of a Supreme Court hearing in early November on the reciprocal tariffs—a case that could force the administration to pay back many of the levies if it loses in court. The White House, Commerce Department and U.S. Trade Representative’s office didn’t respond to requests for comment.

[snip]

Last month, Trump issued new exemptions for products from gold to LED lights and certain minerals, chemicals and metal products via a list called “Annex II” that includes many products that are or will be covered by the Section 232 levies.

He also previewed hundreds of potential exemptions to come in the future: The order includes a list of products that could receive zero tariffs under trade agreements with foreign nations that are being negotiated by Trump’s team. That list, dubbed “Annex III,” is aimed at “products that cannot be grown, mined, or naturally produced in the United States,” the order states, such as “certain agricultural products; aircraft and aircraft parts; and non-patented articles for use in pharmaceutical applications.” 

The September order also allows new authority to the Department of Commerce and the U.S. Trade Representative’s office to grant tariff exemptions themselves, without Trump himself issuing executive orders mandating the new carve-outs.

WSJ.com. 10/17/2025.

This morning the Secretary of Ag., Brooke Rollins said that yes importing beef from Argentina was a possibility. But don’t worry ranchers it won’t be a lot cause Argentina’s beef industry is facing “foot and mouth disease issues”.

To summarize: tariffs are “great,” except for the hundreds of products quietly exempted from paying them. Argentina, meanwhile, is apparently “dying” and “fighting for its life” — just two weeks after its president threw a massive concert to celebrate his book release. And don’t worry about those skyrocketing beef prices; we’ll fix that by importing beef from Argentina, where, like Mexico, where, like Mexico, herds are literally sick. #Winning.

There’s more, but we will cover that tomorrow when hopefully I don’t have to go out into public…

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About Tiff 3342 Articles
Member of the Free Press who is politically homeless and a political junkie.