I'm Magna Chakrabardi and this is the jackpot where on point news analyst Jack Beaty

helps us connect history, literature and politics in a way that brings his unique clarity to the world we live in now.

Hello there Jack.

Hello, Magna.

Episode 53, what's the headline?

Reality Bites.

Okay, I have to be honest,

as a Gen Exer, all that conjures in my mind is the movie with Winona Ryder and Ethan Hawk,

but I'm going to presume that's not what you're talking about.

It's not.

That was a 1994 romcom also with Ben Stiller.

I've never seen it, but I've got good good reviews but it's a very useful metaphor about if

you if we put economic before reality we get where I'm going to wind up. But first, I'm going to take a

divagation to Trump Tower in 2003, to Washington DC D.C. 20 years later,

to William McKinley at the turn of the 19th century,

and finally to the big bite,

reality will take from your wallet if Trump follows McKinley and imposes

crushing tariffs, that is taxes, on American consumers and taxpayers.

Okay, that's quite a journey.

Let's go to Trump Tower, the year 2003. Trump has exhausted run through the half billion dollars bequeathed

him loaned him by his father and and now he's about to get a new half billion this time from the

apprentice the television program reality TV program that ran for I think 10 or 14 years something like that big

...