The Essence of True Leadership
July 11, 2019
After a remarkable 19 year career in leadership at the University of South Florida, President Judy Genshaft retired on July 1 in a planned and orderly transition, welcoming a new president, Dr. Steven Currall.
President Currall has spent his first few days talking with students, faculty, alumni and other stakeholders to ensure an open and honest transition.
In a recent radio interview, I was inspired to hear Currall tell us that his mission is to build on the accomplishments of the Genshaft administration.
Currall said, “My job is to help the USF community make the right decisions for the university in the long run. Sometimes those are group decisions: it might be my top leadership team, it might be decisions that the Board of Trustees has to make, sometimes the decisions that I have to make personally. But I don’t think it’s wise for a leader to try to do something simply symbolic as a way to establish authority.”
“I think the more mature approach is really just always to be thinking about what’s in the best long term interest of the university. I try to make decisions that will be received well and be seen as thoughtful and aligned with the strategic vision of the university.”
True Leadership: (1) A strategic vision toward the future. (2) Decisions aligned with the best long-term interests of the institution. (3) Building on an existing foundation of progress and excellence.
Wouldn’t this theory and practice help make our country a stronger and better place to live, work and relax?
An Economic Genius: Part One
July 9, 2019
Donald John Trump was one of 366 student members of the class of 1968 who was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce at Pennsylvania State University (Penn State).
Other than his bachelor’s degree and some experience working in the family real estate business, there is no evidence that Mr. Trump has pursued additional education, credentials or capabilities in the field of economics.
Trump’s paucity of bona fides in the world of economic theory and practice has not deterred him from taking an active role in testing new economic concepts.
From an economic perspective, the presidency of Donald Trump will likely be remembered primarily for his America First posture, which has influenced immigration, tariff and tax policies.
Immigration: Trump administration policy decisions focused on immigration have dramatically hurt domestic agriculture, food processing, hospitality, tourism and other low-wage, entry-level service occupations.
Tariffs: Tariffs imposed on imported goods and materials are nothing more than a tax paid by the end user, in many cases, the American consumer.
Tariffs can be effectively used as a component of a strategic long-term plan to reposition the competitive position of American manufacturers on the world stage.
There is no known evidence that tariffs have ever brought any long-term value-added when arbitrarily and capriciously applied.
Trump administration subjective tariffs on imported steel and aluminum (justified as a means to “protect our country and our workers”) have proven to be a financial burden on several high-wage value-added U.S. industries, including: Automotive; Aerospace; Construction; and Manufacturing.
Tax Cuts: The signing of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in December 2017 was lauded as landmark legislation which would: (a) lower taxes on businesses and individuals; (b) stimulate higher wages and more jobs; and (c) result in a larger and more dynamic economy as a result of dramatically increased domestic business investment in plant and equipment.
Almost two years after the passage of TCJA, it seems clear that some near-term economic stimulation was achieved, but the long-term impact on gross domestic product (GDP) will be modest, if at all. The impact will be smaller on gross national product (GNP) than on GDP because the law generated net capital inflows from abroad that must be repaid in the future.
The expectation touted by elected officials in their frenzy to pass the TCJA envisioned some $4 Trillion being repatriated, generating new and potent investment and jobs in the U.S.
Most recent estimates reflect $3 Trillion (or more) in profits that U.S. companies have left parked overseas, with about $465 Billion in “repatriated” cash returning to the U.S. to enjoy a tax rate of 15.5% (vs. the 35% prior tax rate) on profits returned to the U.S. from overseas.
A good outcome? Sure, in the short term. Capital investments? Plant and equipment? Not so much. There is virtually no evidence that any of the repatriated cash was invested in job creation. It was invested in executive bonuses; stock buy-backs; debt repayments; and some dividend enhancements.
Please stay tuned, there is more to come…..
Dennis Rodman is Angry
June 30, 2019
And, Rodman has a right to be angry.
Rodman is a basketball legend, having earned a spot in 5 NBA championships over a 14 year NBA career.
Rodman began his professional career with the Detroit Pistons in 1986, spending 7 years with the franchise earning a reputation as a real team player and the team’s primary defender and rebounder, despite his propensity for off-court drama.
After Rodman joined the Chicago Bulls, he helped that team win the NBA title three years in a row: 1996, 1997, and 1998. He was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2011.
Since 2013, Rodman has served as the unofficial U.S. Ambassador to North Korea, doing his best to create an open line of communication with Kim Jong Un, a noted fan of basketball.
Generally, Rodman travels on his own dime, with some financial support from Vice Media, an online gambling outfit and a marijuana cryptocurrency company.
By all accounts, Rodman used his celebrity and his charm to engage Kim Jong Un in friendly banter and sports talk, ultimately helping to defuse some of the geo-political tensions created as a result of the unilateral withdrawal of the North Korean regime from established world political platforms.
Despite a rather clear separation between former President Obama, Dennis Rodman and the North Korea relationship, the Chicago connections can’t be ignored.
We’ve recently witnessed the intrusion of a political newcomer – a man with very tiny hands who is at least 5 inches shorter and 80 pounds heavier than Rodman – a man who has unapologetically usurped the role of Dennis Rodman as unofficial U.S. Ambassador to North Korea.
This political newcomer is Donald Trump, and he is using the full power of the U.S. Treasury to fund his assault on Dennis Rodman’s unofficial domain.
Is it possible that the Donald decided that Obama and Rodman, two black men with a solid Chicago connection, are his enemy?
Although Donald Trump himself has yet to demand the release of Dennis Rodman’s birth certificate, there are rumors that Trump son Eric has questioned Rodman’s history of achievements in the NBA, and has publicly wondered about Rodman’s place of birth.
How very sad that Donald Trump is unwilling or unable to work with an accomplished athlete to build on an established positive foundation toward a better world for everyone.
No one should be surprised when the Rodman-Trump dichotomy surfaces into a major political cleavage. How very sad, indeed.
The Grim Reaper?
June 18, 2019
The U.S. Senate consists of 100 members – 2 elected from each state — independent of population. Under the Constitution, our elected Vice President serves as the President of the Senate, and presides over the Senate’s daily proceedings, and only the Vice President has the authority to cast a tie-breaking vote.
Over the past 2 decades, I’ve become more and more befuddled, baffled and bewildered by the apparently bad behaviors of some of those elected to represent us in the U.S. Senate.
Currently, it seems that one of the 2 Senators elected from Kentucky – Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell – has acquired extraordinary power over the operation and functionality of this key part of the legislative branch of our federal government!
While it is perfectly clear that McConnell has usurped extraordinary power over the functionality of the Senate, he could have only acquired this power from the spineless reptiles who worship at his feet.
How can it be possible that one person – elected from the great state of Kentucky – has the arbitrary and singular power to schedule — or not schedule – votes on bills by the Senate?
How can it be possible that one person – in this case, the Senate Majority Leader – has obtained the power to fully obstruct a government of the people, by the people and for the people?
The arbitrary and unilateral power of the Senate Majority Leader is not derived from the Constitution, from any law, or from formal rules of the Senate.
Instead, it is entirely based on informal, colloquial and unwritten rules established over time by a collection of precedents, beginning with an informal ruling by then-Vice President John Garner in 1937 which created a “right of preferential recognition”.
Vice President Garner – serving in his Constitutional role as Senate President – may have been trying to create order within a body of highly assertive and opinionated elected officials from very diverse geographic and economic backgrounds.
Regardless of intent or motivation, the Garner precedent continues to serve as the foundation upon which Majority Leader power is based in the Senate today.
Today, there is one person — elected by some voters in Kentucky — who has the power to obstruct a government of the people, by the people and for the people.
Very recently, Mitch McConnell proclaimed that no issues which he objects to would be voted on in the Senate. He said, “So think of me as the Grim Reaper” — the guy who is going to make sure that we fully support the agenda of our current President.
Is this what the American people really want?
What the Mueller Report Actually Said
May 30, 2019
On Wednesday, May 29, 2019 Robert Mueller broke 2 years of silence to speak to the American public about the Special Counsel Report which bears his name.
Mueller advised Americans to read his report if we want to understand what really happened in 2016. “We chose those words carefully, and the work speaks for itself,” he said.
The pressure is on. We need to read the Mueller Report.
The Mueller Report is huge, and it is written in ‘legalese’ – well beyond the interests and/or abilities of most American adults. You want footnotes? Volume I of the Mueller Report includes about 199 pages of text, illuminated by 1,283 footnotes. Volume II adds another 182 pages of content with almost 1,100 footnotes. That is almost 2,400 footnotes! Yikes!
According to the national not-for-profit organization Reading is Fundamental, 93 Million American adults read at or below the basic level needed to contribute successfully to society.
I have to guess that the majority of these 93 Million American adults lack the motivation — and the skills — needed to read, comprehend and analyze the contents of the Mueller Report.
I’m retired and I have plenty of discretionary time. I have read significant portions of the Mueller Report. It is not an easy task.
Yet, I discovered that Volume I provides a powerful and comprehensive look at the events and evidence related to foreign election interference.
Volume II documents a number of actions directly or indirectly initiated by Donald Trump intended to impede or obstruct the FBI investigation into foreign election interference, and further actions intended to obstruct the Special Counsel investigation.
I predict that the Mueller Report will become a significant historical document for U.S. history scholars.
As it stands, it is just too academic and complex to become a widely-read, popularly acclaimed explanation of current events for most American adults.
Thankfully, all is not lost!
In its May 29, 2019 issue, The Atlantic published a synopsis penned by David Frum which helps bridge the gap between legalese and the typical American adult’s willingness and ability to read, comprehend and understand the conclusions reached by Mueller and his team.
I encourage you to make the time to read Frum’s article.
Mueller Report
May 29, 2019
Several of my friends have wondered: What part of “… this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him” supports the “No Collusion, No Obstruction” response from the Trump White House.
My theory is based on a variety of academic studies over the past 2 decades which have determined that an ‘average American adult’ reads at (or about) the eighth grade level.
The reading skills of American adults are significantly lower than those of adults in most other developed countries, according to a study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development based on a sample of 160,000 people from two dozen developed nations.
The Mueller Report is an academic treatise written at a level which clearly exceeds the abilities of most American adults to engage; read; analyze; and conclude.
The ability to read fluently, critically and for understanding— to be able to learn from text— may be the most important foundational skill for U.S. adult citizens’ health, well-being, and social and economic advancement.
Critical reading skills are the gateway to lifelong learning, education, and training.
The internet and social networking currently operate through the written word, thus reading literacy provides access to an infinite and readily accessible library of the world’s knowledge, as well as the ability to communicate with friends, family, and employers.
The digital revolution provided access to information which is the foundation for an informed society — except for those adults who continue to struggle to read and/or comprehend.
We have a crisis in America. The Mueller Report is written at a level which exceeds the skills of the majority of Americans — including many of those currently serving in Congress — to understand, analyze and arrive at critically informed conclusions.
The Pew Research Center recently reported that adults with a high school degree (or less) represent the majority (37%) of U.S. adults who report not reading books in any format in the past year.
I have to wonder – and I hope you will join me — How many of these 37% of adults who don’t read books (and perhaps don’t read critically?) are members of the Trump Base?
I’m Not a Crook, and I Don’t do Cover ups!
May 22, 2019
President Trump threw a temper tantrum today in the White House Rose Garden, forever preserved in the digital media universe.
Through his actions and words today, President Trump has provided clear and irrefutable evidence that he is unable to separate questions about his personal character from the primary duty of his current and sworn role to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States” which I translate as an obligation to provide competent and impartial leadership for the entire population of the United States.
His public pronouncement that, “I don’t do cover ups” is clearly false.
Following that statement, the first image that flashed into my head was recorded for public record on Air Force One (early April, 2018) when President Trump responded to a reporter’s question about the cover-up payment(s) to Stormy Daniels that, ‘I know nothing about that’ further referring any questions to his then-Attorney, Michael Cohen.
Another indelible image again involves Air Force One and the infamous June 2016 Trump Tower meeting between Trump Jr., various Trump campaign people, and a Russian lawyer. In early July 2017, while flying home from Germany aboard Air Force One, President Trump personally dictated a statement on behalf of Trump Jr. which said that Trump Jr. and the Russian lawyer had “primarily discussed a program about the adoption of Russian children” in June 2016, further stating that the subject of the meeting was “not a campaign issue at the time.”
That meeting has continued to be a constant thorn. In late July 2018, following public testimony by Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump took to Twitter to respond to some negative press reports, “I did NOT know of the meeting with my son, Don Jr….”
He didn’t know? Cover up? I think yes.
The most egregious example of Trump cover ups is his obstinate refusal to allow the public release of bank records, tax returns or any relevant financial records pertaining to his personal and business activities. We know from public information that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization and/or entities controlled by him: (a) Declared bankruptcy 6 times; (b) Have been shunned by most traditional banking organizations; (c) Consistently sell condominiums and other developed properties in ‘all-cash’ transactions, often to anonymous entities connected to Russia or former Soviet republics.
I applaud Speaker Pelosi for her insistence on a thorough and methodical process to follow and identify all of the facts. Indeed, no one is above the law, including the President of the United States.
I strongly encourage our elected officials to stay the course and to demand full disclosure and independent comprehensive review of Trump family and Trump Organization financial records. The American People deserve nothing less.
Don’t Tread on Me
May 17, 2019
The late George Wallace, former Alabama Governor, was noted for his rigid and often harsh opinions which he shared freely with the rest of the world. In his 1963 inauguration speech, Wallace proclaimed, “Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever.”
In response to what he felt was federal government overreach in its attempt to desegregate the University of Alabama, Wallace said, “The unwelcomed, unwanted, unwarranted, and force-induced intrusion upon the campus of the University of Alabama today of the might of the central government offers frightful example of the oppression of the rights, privileges and sovereignty of this state by officers of the federal government.”
Or, slightly modified to address current events, “The unwelcomed, unwanted, unwarranted, and force-induced intrusion upon the reproductive rights of women across the State of Alabama today of the might of the state government offers frightful example of the oppression of the rights, privileges and sovereignty of individual citizens by elected officials of the state government.”
It’s one thing to observe the sons, male cousins and grandsons of the late George Wallace as they link hands with the remaining white male disciples of the former Alabama Governor to assert their testosterone-fueled dominance over whatever they find annoying or objectionable.
It’s another thing to listen to female elected officials in Alabama proudly proclaiming victory over the right of women — as individuals protected by the same rights the US Constitution conveys to men — to make determinations over their own reproductive health.
Alabama House Rep. Terri Collins, who sponsored the bill, publicly identifies as female, as does Alabama Governor Kay Ivey who signed the bill into law.
Have they completely lost touch with reality?
Someone recently said, “I don’t know of any woman who engaged in sexual activity – forced or consensual – with the hope to have an abortion.”
Abortion is not a sport; it is a deeply personal and painful decision which should be made carefully and rationally, because it has lifetime repercussions.
Those who fly the Gadsden flag and rail against government intrusion on individual rights are often the very same folks who are adamantly pro-life and who vehemently oppose a woman’s right to self-determination.
The Gadsden Flag says it all…
The Sport of Tax Avoidance
May 11, 2019
Let’s be clear: the terms ‘tax evasion’ and ‘tax avoidance’ are often used interchangeably. However, only those activities which occur in a tax avoidance scheme are considered lawful.
Plenty of reliable media sources have carefully examined and reported on the awful legacy of Donald Trump’s multiple bankruptcies on a myriad of small businesses: architects, carpet suppliers, lighting and electrical distributors, even custom cabinet-makers.
A recent expose published by The New York Times focused on Trump’s taxes and revealed a previously unexposed nuance: many of his unpaid bills were essentially ‘double counted’ through the magic of accrual accounting. Thus, Trump and his Organization underpaid many vendors, while concurrently creating a paper loss for Trump which translated into a ‘tax loss carryforward’ good to shield future profits from future taxation.
If people had been able to look at this bad behavior as a base line, and project it forward, they might have been able to see how much damage The Donald has already done to families and communities in the U.S.
Following his inauguration in January 2017, Trump’s operating principles haven’t changed at all.
A direct result of the introduction of Trump operating principles into the Executive Office has become an oblique assault on moderate and small family-owned businesses across the U.S. — in the manufacturing sector; in retail; agriculture; mining; ranching; hospitality; media; transportation; entertainment; food; construction; business services; technology; and more.
The foundation of success epitomized in the American Dream is entrepreneurial — hard work, focus and sacrifice oriented to a long term view.
The minority of small business operators who operate like Trump — those who operate at the margins and take advantage of honest business people who operate on the platform of honesty and honor — get put out of business quickly.
Tax avoidance – using any and every loophole to avoid paying taxes – is legal, even when some of the activities involved may be considered by some to be morally repugnant.
Somehow, Trump has been able to use his unique combination of charisma and showmanship to fool a rather sizeable segment of American adults into believing his shtick.
How very sad…
An example of world leadership, released by Donald J. Trump on Sunday, May 5 at 9:08 AM ET:
“For 10 months, China has been paying Tariffs to the USA of 25% on 50 Billion Dollars of High Tech, and 10% on 200 Billion Dollars of other goods. These payments are partially responsible for our great economic results. The 10% will go up to 25% on Friday. 325 Billions Dollars….” “…of additional goods sent to us by China remain untaxed, but will be shortly, at a rate of 25%. The Tariffs paid to the USA have had little impact on product cost, mostly borne by China. The Trade Deal with China continues, but too slowly, as they attempt to renegotiate. No!”
Impulsive? Impetuous? Misinformed? – OR — Calculated? Intentional? Willful?
However you slice it, when the President of the United States threatens — on a Sunday morning in May — to further disrupt world markets through his personal vision of how the world should behave, the predictable short term outcome is a stock market rout.
{One of the reasons it is predictable is that we have witnessed several similar episodes over the 2+ years Trump has occupied the Oval Office.}
Both Market Manipulators and Inside Traders know that when the Stock Market is confronted with unanticipated news, the Stock Market generally reacts with an abrupt and unexpected increase (or decrease) in value. And, Long-sellers (or short-sellers) get enriched (or damaged) as a result of their positions.
If they went long (or short) because of access to confidential information (known as “Insider Trading”) they have committed a white-collar crime that is often prosecuted as a felony, punishable by severe fines and prison terms of up to 20 years.
The Questions:
- Has Trump, his family, any of his cabinet members, advisors, their families and colleagues benefited by taking a long (or short) position in advance of one of Donald Trump’s unexpected and abrupt announcements?
- Is Trump a willful Market Manipulator?
- Are there any foreign (off-shore) entities which have left a trail indicating a prior knowledge of Trump Tweets?
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