Letters to the Editor: When it comes to TACO, be careful not to ‘poke the bear’ in Trump’s case

To the editor: President Trump started his second term by announcing huge tariffs, which could well damage the economy, start a trade war and a recession and result in empty shelves throughout the country. Then he wisely, on his own initiative or based on advice from his staff and appointees, changed his mind and backed off on some of his tariffs. That is all good.

TACO (“Trump Always Chickens Out”) is not helpful (“Guess who suddenly has a ‘TACO’ allergy? How a tasty sounding acronym haunts Trump,” May 30). It does not benefit America that the president is ridiculed for changing his mind. Trump takes great umbrage at being ridiculed in that manner. Unfortunately, given his personality and his seemingly ardent belief that he can do no wrong, the next time he announces huge tariffs, he may well stick with them just to prove he does not always change his mind. Do we want that result? Of course not. Let’s not poke the bear.

Leonard Venger, Tarzana

..

To the editor: TACO is neither new nor limited to tariffs and trade agreements in Trump’s life. It would be good and relevant to dip into the historical record to track the vengeance threatened and dropped as a result of the 3,500 legal cases Trump was directly involved in before he entered politics. That’s to say nothing of the countless times that he has allegedly tried to renege on the legitimate debts he has incurred throughout his lifetime.

Joel Pelcyger, Los Angeles