By Dan Calabrese ——Bio and Archives--March 14, 2018
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Mr. Kudllow—who worked as a White House budget aide and Wall Street analyst in the 1980s and early 1990s and built a career as a television and radio commentator in the 2000s—would bring a mix of views to the White House post. He supported Mr. Trump on tax cuts and deregulation, but has argued against the tariffs championed by the president and warned against rising budget deficits. Mr. Kudlow had been sharply critical earlier this month of the tariffs. When Mr. Trump called him on Sunday, Mr. Kudlow said, “I thought he was calling to bawl me out,” he said. Instead, he said the president walked through his reasons for implementing the tariffs. Mr. Kudlow said he spoke by phone again with Mr. Trump on Monday and again on Tuesday night, when he said the president offered him the position. “I immediately accepted. I said I would be honored to accept,” he said. Mr. Kudlow said the president called him again earlier Wednesday, after CNBC flashed his picture and reported that he was the president’s likely pick. Mr. Trump, he said, told him the news was being carried on TV and complimented Mr. Kudlow’s appearance. The two men are set to meet in Washington on Thursday, when Mr. Kudlow said the appointment could be formally announced by Mr. Trump.
Mr. Kudlow said he was encouraged by Mr. Trump’s decision to grant temporary waivers on the tariffs, including so far to Canada, Mexico and Australia. “He said to me several times, ‘I believe in global trade. I regard myself as a global trader, but it has to be fair trade to protect America,’” Mr. Kudlow said. “I’m on board with that. I personally hope widespread tariff use—it doesn’t come to that. But in some cases, it will.”Kudlow is basically Reaganesqe on economic policy - and you have to remember Reagan wasn't an entirely pure free trader either - and I have to wonder if Trump might have told him something about the tariff strategy that isn't being shared publicly, which put Kudlow more at ease with what's really going on. Anyway, if your fondest hope about a Trump presidency is that he'll continue a Reaganesque economic direction - guided by people who know it works and can appeal to Trump's business-friendly instincts to keep him on board with it - we couldn't have gotten a much better choice than Larry Kudlow.
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