TRUMP THE NEGOTIATOR – AT 11:51 A.M. ET:  The president has scored a major victory on trade in his negotiations with the European.  From Investors Business Daily:

Trade War: EU officials and Donald Trump decided Wednesday to call off their costly trade war and instead do what Trump does best: Cut a deal on trade and go home. Don't ever underestimate Trump's negotiating chops.

Facing the possibility of the U.S. slapping 25% tariffs on EU-built cars, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and his top trade official Cecilia Malmstrom "agreed to work with the U.S. administration to lower industrial tariffs on both sides, increase LNG exports and soy beans to Europe, and align regulatory standards to allow for medical devices to have better market access in Europe," an EU official said.

Late Wednesday, details of an agreement on autos were still being worked out.

Even so, the deal for now ends the possibility of a debilitating U.S.-EU trade war, which would affect some $718 billion in total trade — our largest trade relationship, even bigger than China — and would have had devastating impacts on a number of industries on both sides of the Atlantic.
But Trump emphasized again his concern over what he sees as the lopsided trade relationship between the U.S. and EU.

"Over the years, the United States has lost hundreds of billions of dollars to the European Union and we just want it to be a level playing field for our farmers, our manufacturers, for everybody," Trump told Juncker Wednesday.

COMMENT:  Already the Dems are out disparaging the deal, but what will they say when the results start to show?

We have a midterm in four months.  Historical tradition dictates that the Democrats should be cleaning up, counting their gains in dozens of House seats.  And, yes, it may happen.  But the polls are showing a tight race, and that fact alone should give the president some encouragement.

If Mr. Trump can build a series of victories, he could be in a position to neutralize history, and then march strongly to 2020.  Big "if."  But Trump is, as the story asserted, not to be underestimated.

July 26, 2018