Little Marco: the unemployment rate is currently too low, please make it higher

It’s well known that the cycle of American politics is Republicans ruining the economy –> Democrats fix it –> Republicans ruin it while somehow getting credit for the economic conditions created by the previous president is the Great Cycle of American politics. In this case, however, the wrecking of the economy part is proceeding more quickly and comprehensively than usual:

International tourism to the U.S. is falling fast, and the actions of the Trump administration are only likely to make things worse, industry experts say.

Why it matters: The travel industry was worth $1.3 trillion in 2024, and supported 15 million U.S. jobs, per the U.S. Travel Association. Now, that revenue — and those jobs — are being threatened.

The big picture: Non-U.S. citizens were already wary about visiting the U.S. in March, according to Aran Ryan at Tourism Economics.

• Visits from Germany alone plunged 28% year-on-year in March, he wrote in a recent report, showing the “early ramifications of a potent mix of negative sentiment, which has developed abroad in response to polarizing rhetoric and policy actions by the Trump administration, as well as concerns around tighter border and immigration policies.”

What’s next: “March may be just the beginning,” he added, noting that the “Liberation Day” tariffs will only damage sentiment further.

Driving the news: Secretary of State Marco Rubio sent an extremely harsh message on Saturday to anybody thinking of visiting the country.

• “Visiting America is not an entitlement,” he wrote in a Fox News opinion piece. “It is a privilege extended to those who respect our laws and values.”
• “We expect — and the law requires — all visa holders to demonstrate their eligibility every day their visa is valid.”

I’m not sure that creating maybe 50 coal mining jobs while decimating a $1.3 trillion dollar industry is a good tradeoff, but then I’ve never played a successful businessman on a mediocre reality TV show before. Anyway, perhaps the State Department will start a “Visit America: more likely than not masked goons won’t put you on a plane to El Salvador” campaign to try to turn things around.

Yeah for example there's this one western country ruled by the totalitarian left where they're so intolerant of speech that they check your social media for thoughtcrime at the border and if an immigrant posts online that Israel should bomb fewer people the police shows up at your door wearing masks

[image or embed]— Maia (@maiamindel.bsky.social) April 16, 2025 at 5:14 PM