Remarks by President Trump at the Economic Club of New York, November 12, 2019:

“After losing — and this is a number that’s hard to believe, and I’ve been saying it for three years, and I know it’s right because the fake news has never corrected me. If it was wrong, it would have been headlines: “Trump made a mistake!” — But they can’t say it.

“After losing 60,000 — can you believe that? — factories under the previous two administrations, America is now gaining over 10,000 brand-new, beautiful factories, and many, many more than that want to come back in. Because under my administration, we’re producing jobs and incentives for these companies to come back.

“I’m calling, as an example, Prime Minister Abe of Japan. And I say, “Mr. Prime Minister, Shinzo, we have a tremendous problem. We have big deficits with your country. You’ve got to start building plants.” He’s building many, many car plants now in the United States that he would’ve never built here if you didn’t have this kind of a President. And he’s very happy to be doing it.

“But they’re all coming back to the United States. They want to be where the action is. Very simple: They want to be where the action is. This is where the action is. There’s nobody close. There’s no country close.

“When I meet with the leaders of countries, as they come in — kings and queens and prime ministers and presidents and dictators — I meet them all. (Laughter.) Anybody who wants to come in — dictators, it’s okay, come on in. Whatever is good for the United States. We want to help our people. But the first thing they say to me almost always: ‘Congratulations on your economy.’ They all say it.

“ ‘Congratulations, it’s incredible what’s happened to your country. It’s incredible what’s happened to your economy.’ First thing they say in almost every instance.”

— except, of course, Democrats.

Friday, Nov. 23, 1979

{Working on The Meaning of Life}

Up at 8.10. Leave the house at 9.15 to drive to JC’s for writing session.

A very angry, abusive letter to The Times from a man called Allott in Finchley, who clearly doesn’t like Life of Brian, but admits he hasn’t seen it. It is proposed to send a Python reply to The Times saying ‘We haven’t seen Mr Allott, but we don’t like him.’

Finally we start to read the first sketches of the new movie. Eric has a couple of quite tart monologues, then I read the first of our two blockbusters. It’s received with much nodding and the ‘Some good bits’ line. JC reads a long and rambling and not awfully funny piece about Kashmir and sex and male brothels, which doesn’t go down very well. It’s our second effort (mainly TJ’s), including the clock presentation, which is the one big hit of the session.

And for tomorrow:

Wednesday, Nov. 24, 1976

A good, workmanlike Python meeting. John and G have a good idea for a Brian storyline and their two new pieces, though short, are not just on the point, but very funny — writing ‘Go Home Romans’ on the wall is going to be a little classic. I wish I’d thought of such a neat idea.

From 22 Park Square East we all (except Gilliam) pile into John’s Rolls and purr down to Audley St, Mayfair, for a viewing of selected Biblical epics, which we feel we ought to see. We nearly run over Elton John in North Audley Street and muse on what a strange headline it would make — ‘Elton Run Over by Pythons.’

The viewing theatre at Hemdale is very comfortable, which is just as well as the films — Barabbas, King of Kings, The Greatest Story Ever Told and Ben Hur (we see bits of each) — are extremely heavy and turgid. Best performances and best writing always centre on the baddies — Herod, Pilate, etc — and the nearer you get to Jesus the more oppressive becomes the cloying tone of reverence. Everyone talks slower and slower and Jesus generally comes out of it all as the world’s dullest man, with about as much charisma as a bollard.

We had a few good ideas during the viewing (midst much silly giggling and laughter). I suggested we should have four Wise Men — the fourth one being continually shut up by the others, who always refer to themselves as the Three Wise Men. ‘Four.’ ‘Ssh!’

— Michael Palin, Diaries 1969 – 1979: The Python Years

US Chickens Headed to China After Beijing Lifts 5-Year Ban

Per the Scottsbluff (Nebraska) Star Herald | 11/18/19:

WASHINGTON (AP) — China is lifting a five-year ban on U.S. poultry, a goodwill gesture at a time when the world’s two biggest economies are trying to finalize a tentative trade deal.

China had blocked U.S. poultry imports a month after an outbreak of avian influenza in December 2014, closing off a market that bought more than $500 million worth of American chicken, turkey and other poultry products in 2013.

“The United States welcomes China’s decision to finally lift its unwarranted ban on U.S. poultry and poultry products. This is great news for both America’s farmers and China’s consumers,” said U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who predicted that U.S. poultry exports to China could surpass $1 billion a year.

…

China agreed to buy more U.S. farm products, and President Donald Trump dropped plans to hike tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese imports.

I know there’s a joke in there somewhere about white meat becoming Red meat, but let it pass. In the meaantime, savor General Sun Tzu’s chicken.