India-US relations: News and Discussions III

Bheeshma · Post by **Bheeshma** » 03 Feb 2017 21:55

Wallmart?? LoL thats the cheapest crappiest place to shop. Clearly whoever wrote it doesn't have a clue.

nirav · Post by **nirav** » 03 Feb 2017 22:10

Yeah... D mart isn't exactly top notch either

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 03 Feb 2017 22:25

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/worl ... 958504.cms

US President Donald Trump's defense secretary reaffirmed America's commitment to its mutual defense treaty with Japan on Friday during a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo.

Japan is putting together a package it says could generate 7,00,000 US jobs and help create a $450-billion market, which will be presented to Trump, government sources familiar with the plans said.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 03 Feb 2017 22:28

sounds like everyone is going to make American plants to manufacture goods destined for the American market but more expensive American workers... thereby increasing the costs for American consumers...
one hopes that the consumers are the ones who get the new jobs...

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 03 Feb 2017 22:45

Lalmohan wrote:sounds like everyone is going to make American plants to manufacture goods destined for the American market but more expensive American workers... thereby increasing the costs for American consumers...
one hopes that the consumers are the ones who get the new jobs...

That is true of any nation that makes and sells to its own population. The whole purpose of globalization was to reduce such costs. It could still work if the profits are distributed equitably. To me that has always been the problem.

Watch for regions within nations to compete for jobs , which in turn would fuel migration within the nation.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 03 Feb 2017 22:51

so ideally the rust belt is where these new plants should go... otherwise what will be achieved?

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 03 Feb 2017 23:13

Lalmohan wrote:so ideally the rust belt is where these new plants should go... otherwise what will be achieved?

No.

People within a nation can move. Trump has said (actually on abortion) states decide and people move to states that fit their needs. He is very clear on that.

BUT, this does gut Modi's MII game plan. I do not expect that to hurt India too much, *provided* India stops importing nonessentials - specifically from China. More to this.

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 03 Feb 2017 23:38

CRamS wrote:Suraj, I don't know what you mean by nativist mumbo jumbo. It seems to me you are putting a positive spin on those bigots. When Bannon says a few percentage of CEOs (he made an exaggerated claim) in silicon valley are Indian, and that is somehow a "threat", you don't call such a scum bag a bigot? Give me a break? I will admit, he has an intellectual core, no doubt about it. He is not a gas bag like Trump. You are listening to CNN/Fox too much to latch on their kind of positive spinning to describe even the worst of their bigots.

I don't understand why people don't get it. One might call it a legitimate grouse if you want, but the things that Trump, Bannon, and Co are railing against are a few non white faces in the halls of power, be it in politics or in other fields. For them, that is America losing its greatness. By any objective standard, Obama (who himself is a mouthpiece of the left of center) did not do a bad job either on economy or foreign policy from US interests PoV. But his very presence is what triggered this white Christian backlash. Nothing more to it.

100% agree..

The refugee crisis in Europe helped them too

ssundar · Post by **ssundar** » 04 Feb 2017 04:43

Lalmohan wrote:so ideally the rust belt is where these new plants should go... otherwise what will be achieved?

The states that are most intent on winning those investments will win them. The rust belt states are the way they are for a reason. Same reason new investments in India continue to go to the states that already have a lot of investment.

Trump is hopefully beating up the Republican governors of the states where his constituency lives the most and ask them to sweeten the pot for companies looking to invest in the US to keep Trump happy.

Kakkaji · Post by **Kakkaji** » 04 Feb 2017 07:25

Lalmohan wrote:sounds like everyone is going to make American plants to manufacture goods destined for the American market but more expensive American workers... thereby increasing the costs for American consumers...
one hopes that the consumers are the ones who get the new jobs...

As I understand it, the current labor costs in the US are lower than those in Germany or Japan. If you move away from the coasts, huge swaths in the middle have low labor costs and good infrastructure.

The US cannot compete in labor costs with China or Mexico, but it definitely can with Western Europe, Japan, and Canada, if a determined push is made.

IMHO the real villain in the globalization story is not Mexico, but China. With a command economy at home, they deliberately stole everyone's lunch in the globalization game. Now they have built so much overcapacity that no one else in the world can manufacture anything in competition against them. 'Beggar thy neighbor' is what they have done.

A local economist in my city has calculated that if Trump imposes his proposed 25% tariff on Chinese goods, it will increase the average price in Wal-Mart by 8%. I am quite willing to pay 8%, or even 20%, extra at wal-Mart if it stops sourcing from China (and Pakistan).

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 04 Feb 2017 08:34

Where is Indo-US *trade* headed?

What are the US items India can spend on and what are the Indian items, including off-shore/visa work, that India can export?

Can India benefit from the situation?

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 04 Feb 2017 08:50

I KNOW this is a touchy subject matter, but my feel is that unfortunately, India will have to orbit. Just a month or two ago I posted that India could form her own items that orbit her. Data points, IMHO, suggest otherwise.

One such is here.

Not an accident that I posted this topic here.

darshan · Post by **darshan** » 04 Feb 2017 09:10

Most of the US population already pays the price with boom and bust cycles. So if industry can be brought back in real and get this boom and bust cycles under control, then nothing wrong with it. And, if chinese take a hit or two along the way, then even better. Only time will tell.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 04 Feb 2017 18:50

http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/20 ... ion-000293

But little attention has focused on section four, which directs federal officials to implement a “uniform screening standard and procedure” as part of the “adjudication process for immigration benefits” for all individuals seeking to enter the United States. In immigration parlance, “immigration benefits” refers to any permission granted a foreign visitor, from full-scale refugee resettlement to a passport stamp for tourists visiting Disneyland. That wording is about as broad as it can get, lawyers said, and if taken literally would include every single foreigner coming to the United States. “[It] is basically everything,” said Dan Stein, the president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), a group that supports reducing immigration levels.

“What they are talking about doing has scared the shit out of my members, about the lack of guidance and lack of clarity,” said Ben Johnson, the head of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

The implications of the order as written are so extreme that most lawyers are convinced that the Trump administration will not adhere to its literal meaning; as with other sections of the order, they expect the White House to stray from the drafted language. But such uncertainty has left lawyers baffled about what the interpretation will actually look like, and wondering whether Trump and his top advisors really do intend to upend the U.S. immigration system—and possibly disrupt global travel altogether.

Said Kathleen Campbell Walker, an immigration attorney in Texas and former head of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, “Good Lord, I’ve been doing this for 31 years and I’m trying to figure out what this means.”

“Do they want to create, like we have for refugees now, a two-year process [for everyone looking to enter the U.S.] that involves multiple screenings and re-screenings and vetting by every single security agency?” said Donald Kerwin, the executive director of the Center for Migration Studies. “I don’t think so. I think that would shut down immigration to the United States.”

Former government officials from both parties pointed out that enforcing it would be virtually impossible with current resources, either forcing the administration to abandon the standard or dramatically reducing the number of foreigners who travel to the U.S.

“They just can’t physically do it. It really can’t happen,” said Legomsky, who also pointed out that if they did, it would cause blowback that would hurt American travelers as well. “Other countries would reciprocate some of our constraints on U.S. citizens seeking to travel,” he said.

“I don’t know what they mean by that,” said Robert Divine, the former chief counsel at U.S. Immigration and Custom Services during the George W. Bush administration. A uniform standard is so resource-intensive, he said, as to be completely unworkable. “They’ll find out that there aren’t enough resources to go around and the nation still needs the wheels to turn and people to come here. It’ll be a painful process of realization.”

More than 10 million people traveled to the U.S. on a visa in 2015—including immigrants and nonimmigrants—while tens of millions visited the United States without a visa. The section calls for the secretary of state, secretary of homeland security, director of national intelligence and FBI director to develop a “uniform screening standard and procedure” for all of them. That could slow travel to the U.S. to a crawl, upending the tourism industry and creating massive headaches for companies with foreign employees who frequently travel to the U.S. Foreign airline employees would have to go through significant vetting procedures every time they enter here.

So what does Trump really mean by a “uniform screening standard and procedure”? Immigration lawyers weren’t sure. Given Trump’s promise of “extreme vetting,” it could be very stringent, requiring an in-person interview, detailed documentation, medical histories and biometric testing such as fingerprints, among other information. The section suggests, but doesn’t mandate, in-person interviews, a database of identity documents and forms with questions to identify fraudulent answers and to confirm the applicant’s identity. That would be a huge break from the current system, which adopts a risk-based approach where people considered to pose a greater risk to the U.S. undergo a more thorough and lengthy vetting process, and in which people travelling from any of 38 specified countries—allies like Britain, France and Australia—don’t need a visa to visit at all. Requiring those travelers to undergo the same vetting procedures as a refugee would create an enormous strain on foreign consulates and U.S. immigration authorities, effectively imposing tight new limits on how many people can visit the U.S. each year.

rgosain · Post by **rgosain** » 04 Feb 2017 19:24

Here is a prime example displaying the nexus between the US EJ group CI, leftists in India and the various propagandists in West such as the Guardian.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/ ... ng-blocked

The road to hell is often paved with good intention and no doubt these groups would like to see their funds spent to achieve this whilst shedding crocodile tears. It was the MMS government who first had CI audited when it was discovered that a huge chunk of their donations were being diverted into the hands of the local Maoist outfits. Banning them under the anti-conversion law is a lot more diplomatic than exposing their real activities.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 04 Feb 2017 20:30

According to one U.S. official, national security aides have sought information about Polish incursions in Belarus, an eyebrow-raising request because little evidence of such activities appears to exist. Poland is among the Eastern European nations worried about Trump's friendlier tone on Russia.

From: https://apnews.com/9a5a5fbbb2ba45b2b9316e1734ec22eb

JwalaMukhi · Post by **JwalaMukhi** » 04 Feb 2017 23:13

https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/arti ... -eu-summit

Donald Trump should butt out of “European life,” French President Francois Hollande said, as European Union leaders warned they wouldn’t let the new U.S. administration undermine their values.

“I reacted when Donald Trump said it was marvelous for a country to leave the European Union, simply because it is not his business to get involved in European life,” Hollande told reporters at an EU summit in Valletta, Malta on Friday. “It is up to Europe to decide how many members it should have and how it should live.”

“To designate an ambassador, it is better if he believes in the institution in which he is supposed to work, it is as simple as that,” Hollande said.

“We cannot stay silent where there are principles involved,” Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat told reporters at the summit. “We will speak very clearly when we feel those principles are being trampled on.”

Europe is completely dhimmified and it is Shariah compliant zone. All the politicos are Islam pasand there and have no gumption to take the challenge. But they feel entitled to direct US into lot of misadventures, and keep requesting US to dole out money to meet their security needs. Interesting times ahead for Europe. Choices choices... Wahabis are rotfling at the predicament of Europeans.

Cain Marko · Post by **Cain Marko** » 04 Feb 2017 23:14

hanumadu wrote:What happens to the India-US "strategic partnership", "natural allies" and all that bonhomie? India is investing heavily in Iran and is negotiating gas deals with it only for 'zee to mess it all up. I hope we maintain good relations with Russia, now that US will probably prove to be an unreliable ally. If rest of the Europe goes the US way, we will only have Russia as an ally if we have even them.

Right now we are seeing an alliance between Christian and Sunni countries including Roos against smaller fish Shia countries like eyeran. An alliance that will gobble up iranian resources and divvy them up according to prearranged agreements. Trump suggested as much when he said we should have taken their oil. Russia will hardly complain if it gets a nice chunk of the Caspian region for rosneft. Remember the noises about trump getting 20% of rosneft from putin? Gulf wahabbi nations will at last get their access to europe overland and of course primacy over the shia once and for all.

But my guess is things never come out as planned....cometh the great war.

How will India out in this?

g.sarkar · Post by **g.sarkar** » 05 Feb 2017 01:39

http://www.spiegel.de/international/wor ... 32050.html
The New Age of Protectionism
Trump's Attack on Germany and the Global Economy
U.S. President Donald Trump wants to stimulate the American economy, but he has shown no interest in existing trade deals or in the basic rules of economics. It is a dangerous cocktail for German industry.
It has been quite a scene at Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York recently, with a never-ending parade of stretch limousines and armored S-Class Mercedes pulling up to the building. The heads of Ford, Tesla, Boeing and dozens of other companies have all dropped by for an audience with Donald Trump. The president has consistently gushed about the "great meetings," but little more than silence could be heard from the other side.
Behind the scenes, this much has become clear: They didn't come for negotiations or even to offer advice to the new president. They came to hedge their bets. They are on the defensive, in the hopes that Trump will be less aggressive with those who he knows.
Senior executives in Germany have been keeping close tabs on the stream of visitors heading for an audience with Trump, full of concern and nervous about what the future might hold. They have refrained from speaking about Trump publicly, but internally, it's the only thing they are talking about.
There is significant fear that they too might become Trump targets. Nobody knows what rules are still valid in this new political era, one in which billions in value can be destroyed by a single tweet. An era in which it is no longer clear who is a friend and who is an enemy.
It is an era that began on Donald Trump's first day in the White House, when he turned away from what has been the global economy's most important motor for decades: free trade and globalization no longer have any place in America's new populism.
Trump immediately backed out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and is intent on renegotiating other such free trade deals, these "horrible deals," which he sees as the source of America's downfall. "This wave of globalization has wiped out totally, totally, our middle class," he said while on the campaign trail.
On the same Monday, he received dozens of America's most important executives, representatives of the country's leading economic sectors. Trump called it a "listening session," but he didn't appear to be the one interested in listening. Rather, it was the business leaders who were to receive the new rules of this new era. "America first," is the only relevant philosophy, and those who go along will be rewarded by way of massive tax cuts and investments.
Those who resist will be punished, with tariffs, special taxes, government reprisals and, more than anything, the fury of the president -- announced on Twitter and followed by a plunge in the stock price on Wall Street.
Attack on the German Model
Trump's first week was a power play, full of attempts at intimidation and threats. It was a week that raised new, fundamental questions: Can Trump really suspend the fundamental rules of economics, which force multinational corporations to maximize profits and minimize costs? Can globalization be reversed through a few tweets? And most importantly, is the U.S. president risking a global trade war so that he can impose his domestic agenda? For the moment, the answers to these questions appear to be: Yes.
The consequences of this radical political shift are not limited to the United States. When the world's largest and most influential economy makes changes, the shockwaves can be felt everywhere. A new economic world order is coming into being. And it is an attack on the German model.
In his campaign speeches and tirades against globalization, Trump primarily identified China and Mexico as his enemies, but Germany, a nation of exports, is likely to be third on that list. No other large economy is more reliant on the free exchange of goods and services, on border-free trade and barrier-free exports, than the German economy.
...

Gautam

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 05 Feb 2017 02:55

NRao wrote:I KNOW this is a touchy subject matter, but my feel is that unfortunately, India will have to orbit. Just a month or two ago I posted that India could form her own items that orbit her. Data points, IMHO, suggest otherwise.

One such is here.

Not an accident that I posted this topic here.

No, China doesn't have an edge. AI vendors engage in lot of marketing propaganda. We can take it else where. Hope you have some background in Theoretical Computer Science.

Yayavar · Post by **Yayavar** » 05 Feb 2017 06:05

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 05 Feb 2017 06:32

matrimc wrote:
NRao wrote:I KNOW this is a touchy subject matter, but my feel is that unfortunately, India will have to orbit. Just a month or two ago I posted that India could form her own items that orbit her. Data points, IMHO, suggest otherwise.

One such is here.

Not an accident that I posted this topic here.
No, China doesn't have an edge. AI vendors engage in lot of marketing propaganda. We can take it else where. Hope you have some background in Theoretical Computer Science.

Did anyone claim that China had an "edge". "Gain" was the word they used.

No matter what, the reason I posted it is in relation to India. IF India falls too far behind, then India has no other option but to request help from some other nation - which is what I meant by "orbit", being dependent upon.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 05 Feb 2017 22:50

Seems like the major things that are likely to come up that might impact, for good or bad, Indo-US relations are as follows, in no particular order:

1. New curbs on labor movement.
2. New curbs on the trade of goods.
The above two may have effects that range from bilateral upto trade wars between blocs of nations.

3. US-China hostilities.
4. US-Iran hostilities.
5. Anglo-American attempt to break up the European Union.
6. US-induced global nuclear arms race.

The problem with thinking about these in general, for me at least, is that "it all depends on the details".

The "Understanding US" thread is not really helping in making any headway in this.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 05 Feb 2017 23:19

I happen to think all this chaos across the globe is actually a huge boon to India, especially with Modi at the helm (more later if need be).

WRT Indo-US, things on the trade front should be great. I expect trade to double, if not more. On the defense front, TBD. I am positive, but how much is the question. I will need to wait till at least June.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 06 Feb 2017 03:26

How India takes advantage of global chaos will be an interesting story.

ShyamSP · Post by **ShyamSP** » 06 Feb 2017 12:16

A_Gupta wrote:How India takes advantage of global chaos will be an interesting story.

India can't fix its internal failures and mechanisms, it is unlikely do much for by itself on global chaos, which is typically created and controlled by super powers, US and Russia. I am not sure India can put the boot and bite the bullet.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 06 Feb 2017 12:30

ShyamSP wrote:
A_Gupta wrote:How India takes advantage of global chaos will be an interesting story.
India can't fix its internal failures and mechanisms, it is unlikely do much for by itself on global chaos, which is typically created and controlled by super powers, US and Russia. I am not sure India can put the boot and bite the bullet.

India has no Choice. India has to do the transformation. It will be painful but necessary

Demonetization is the early steps for this transformation.

The opening for India will come and in some cases it has already come.

Geopolitical alignment and Chinese political transformation will give many options for India.

India has to pay for some of the changes it wants with war, industrialization, reduced soft power etc.

Some of the changes India does not want but will be forced into for example transforming Pak etc.

We have to make aware to the new generation what the new world will be . India will be doing part of the change.

habal · Post by **habal** » 06 Feb 2017 14:07

A_Gupta wrote:How India takes advantage of global chaos will be an interesting story.

Interesting for PIOs,
nightmare for unfortunate Indians.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 06 Feb 2017 14:41

if anything its the other way round - I think life for NRI's is going to get less comfortable but there is a chance that life in India might improve

habal · Post by **habal** » 06 Feb 2017 14:45

Lalmohan wrote:if anything its the other way round - I think life for NRI's is going to get less comfortable but there is a chance that life in India might improve

You think from poodledom, whereas I am thinking from India. Proof of who is right will come with election results.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 06 Feb 2017 14:56

ok then I have not understood you - how is life going to get better for PIO's (I assume you mean those who are outside India)? please help me understand your POV

habal · Post by **habal** » 06 Feb 2017 15:13

Right now Indians would love some stability and predictability instead of random changes in rules of operation. That is why interesting is not always good for those on receiving side of interesting events.

Ardeshir · Post by **Ardeshir** » 06 Feb 2017 18:01

SBajwa wrote:
by Sohamm
Trump presidency doesn't augur well for India as his right hand Steve Bannon is a brown hater and preaches for a white america.
Where do you get your news? US MSM like CNN?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Bannon

Bannon is a legitimate White Supremacist. I do lean towards supporting Trump, but Bannon doesn't seem like a guy I could trust. Sorry that I've got to quote this armpit of journalism (HuffPo), but you can find a direct quote from the interview on Youtube as well.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ste ... 9c1fa71e48
“When two-thirds or three-quarters of the CEOs in Silicon Valley are from South Asia or from Asia, I think...” Bannon said. “A country is more than an economy. We’re a civic society.”

Trump doesn't seem to have a problem with Indians, and most immigrants. Heck, he even made a pitch to the Republican Hindu Council. Bannon's angle seems to be about maintaining an Anglo-Saxon + Protestant Christian demographic.

Edit: Here's the link to the actual interview - https://soundcloud.com/breitbart/breitb ... 15#t=16:23

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 06 Feb 2017 22:24

NRao wrote:I happen to think all this chaos across the globe is actually a huge boon to India, especially with Modi at the helm (more later if need be).

WRT Indo-US, things on the trade front should be great. I expect trade to double, if not more. On the defense front, TBD. I am positive, but how much is the question. I will need to wait till at least June.

I'm hoping you will, over time, elaborate on this.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 07 Feb 2017 20:53

^^^^

On chaos and Modi?

Meanwhile a data point, Jan 31, 2017:

Meanwhile the Indian Navy has been in discussions with the U.S. on a buy of four Northrop Grumman E-2D Hawkeye Advanced Early Warning (AEW) aircraft for the 65,000-metric-ton planned IAC-2., which will be named INS Vishal. A shore-based version of the E-2D is being considered by the India-U.S. Joint Working Group on Aircraft Carrier Technology of the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI). With the USS Ford being inducted in March, the DTTI meeting scheduled for March may be shifted to May, AIN has learned.

Confusing. Are they ship or shore based?

nirav · Post by **nirav** » 07 Feb 2017 21:05

Ship+shore based is what I make of that..

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 08 Feb 2017 07:25

GOP senators aim to cut legal immigration by half
http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/07/politics/ ... tion-bill/

Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia argue the current amount of legal immigration is bloated with low-skilled labor and has contributed to the declining wages of Americans with high school diplomas or less.
"It's pulling the rug out from underneath them, and unless we reverse this trend, we're going to create a near permanent underclass for whom the American dream is always just out of reach," Cotton said at a news conference introducing the bill.

The senators want to roll back legal immigration in a three-pronged approach that aims to cut the number of immigrants by half, to 500,000 annually. They say their plan would not touch visa programs for high-skilled workers.

The bill, "Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment Act" (RAISE Act), would limit the number of family-based visas so that only spouses and unmarried minor children of citizens and permanent residents can get green cards. Currently the law also allows for parents of citizens, as well as siblings, both married and unmarried children over 21, along with their spouses and minor children.

One exception would be allowed. Elderly parents in need of caretaking would be able to get renewable temporary visas, but the parents would not be allowed to work, receive public benefits, and they would have to show guaranteed support of health insurance by the sponsoring children.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 09 Feb 2017 18:11

Steve Bannon's war on India's hi-tech economy
"The Trump administration's protectionism isn't just focused on foreign manufacturers, but competition from foreign services. "
http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/02/08/ste ... ign=buffer

In the early days of Trump’s administration, Bannon’s antipathy toward globalization has mostly targeted manufacturing industries, and especially the threat American companies face from Chinese competitors. But there are already signs the administration may open up an equally damaging second front in its protectionist battle, targeting global services as well. Beginning with a crackdown on the visas used by Indian software engineers working in America, this would accelerate the reverse of globalization and mark a further attempt to unpick the supply chains upon which global companies rely, just as Peter Navarro, the head of a new White House National Trade Council, made clear that unwinding those supply chains is now an explicit objective of U.S. policy.

....But as Arvind Subramanian, the government’s chief economic advisor, noted last week, the bigger worry is that these restrictions could herald a wider crackdown on outsourcing of all kinds, from back-office support to research and development and financial services. “We [India] are much more vulnerable to restrictions on services,” he said. “So one has to worry quite a bit that any reversal of globalization in this atmosphere could also mean restrictions on exports of services. And that’s bad news.”

There are good reasons to suspect a wider assault is coming. First, for those like Bannon, who see America as engaged in a battle for global economic supremacy, a blow against Indian IT would be symbolic.
...
More than that, though, services matter because they make up an ever-larger component of global trade. Services exports account for about $5 trillion annually, according to the World Trade Organization, worth about a quarter of trade in goods.
....
But more broadly, if you fear that Indian IT workers are undercutting wages in the United States, why not target other kinds of outsourcing too? Companies like GE and Cisco operate big research-and-development centers in India, employing thousands of engineers and scientists in jobs that could plausibly be done by more expensive American workers. Financial services is another example. Goldman Sachs, which often attracts Trump’s attention, runs its second-largest global office in Bangalore, employing more than 6,000 people. Rather than the stereotype of bored call-center workers, many of these perform sophisticated analysis or management tasks of the type that used to be done only on Wall Street.

There are many ways Trump could target these kinds of relationships. His administration could pressure companies to begin “reshoring” positions, not more basic call-center jobs, which would strike a populist tone, given the fact that many consumers dislike calling helplines abroad. The tax system could be used to target IT outsourcers too, not least the rules, known as transfer pricing, by which global companies are allowed to account for trade between internal units spread around the world. “If Trump wants to go after outsourcing, there are so many ways he could do it,” Saluja says.

Put another way, an initial skirmish over India IT visas is likely to be the thin end of a much bigger wedge. Of course, it’s possible that Bannon and Trump won’t go down that path.

Perhaps most critically is the fact that Trump’s economic worldview appears firmly stuck in the 1980s, when the location of factories, rather than the complexities of supply chains, was what mattered in the global economy. But Trump’s view of the world may be overshadowed by the nihilistic visions of his advisors, from Bannon to Navarro, who imagine a zero-sum world in which any victory for a foreign company is a loss for an American one — in any sector. Given the bruising record of Trump’s early weeks in power, it would be wise to take that threat both seriously and literally.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 09 Feb 2017 18:39

From twitter:
Rachel Martin Verified account
‏@rachelnpr

DHS Sec John Kelly tells me administration is thinking abt making people who want 2 come to US hand over cell phones & internet passwords.

https://twitter.com/rachelnpr/status/829405543311749120

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 09 Feb 2017 19:00

kelly is known for his "out of the box" ideas... which is why a lot of people worked very hard to keep him in a box whilst he was still in military intelligence...