The problem with Tim Scott’s ‘abstract’ defense of Trump’s agenda              MSNBC LogoDECISION 2024 Rachel MaddowMorning JoeInside with Jen PsakiDeadline: Legal BlogThe ReidOut BlogTrump Documents LibraryColumnistsMSNBC FilmsMSNBC LogoFeatured ShowsThe Rachel Maddow ShowMondays 9PM ETMorning JoeWeekdays 6am ETDeadline: White House with Nicolle WallaceWeekdays 4PM ETThe Beat with Ari MelberWeeknights 6PM ETThe ReidOut with Joy ReidWeeknights 7PM ETAll In with Chris HayesTUESDAY-FRIDAY 8PM ETThe Last Word with Lawrence O’DonnellWeeknights 10PM ETThe 11th Hour with Stephanie RuhleWeeknights 11PM ETAlex Wagner TonightTuesday-Friday 9PM ETFollow msnbcMoreMSNBC on PeacockMSNBC ColumnistsTV ScheduleMSNBC NewslettersPodcastsTranscriptsMSNBC Insights CommunityMSNBC StoreHelpTrump Trials Documents LibraryWeekday ShowsWay Too EarlyJosé Díaz-Balart ReportsMSNBC ReportsAndrea Mitchell ReportsKaty Tur ReportsSymoneThe Katie Phang ShowWeekend ShowsVelshiInside with Jen PsakiWeekends with Jonathan CapehartAlex Witt ReportsPoliticsNationAymanAboutContactHelpCareersMSNBC StoreAD ChoicesPrivacy PolicyDo Not Sell My Personal InformationCA NoticeTerms of Service (Updated JULY 7, 2023)MSNBC SitemapClosed CaptioningAdvertiseJoin the MSNBC Community© 2024 NBCNEWS.COMMaddowBlogFrom The Rachel Maddow ShowALL MADDOWBLOG POSTSTHE RACHEL MADDOW SHOWFULL EPISODESPODCASTSRACHEL ON BLUESKY Previous PostNext Post The problem with Tim Scott’s ‘abstract’ defense of Trump’s agendaAsked about one of Donald Trump’s worst economic ideas, the senator said the former president “talks in the abstract.” This sparked laughter for a reason.SHARE THIS —Oct. 3, 2024, 9:40 AM EDTBy Steve BenenAs 2024 got underway, Susie Wiles, one of Donald Trump’s top advisers, spoke with wealthy Republican Party donors at a luxurious Florida hotel. That wouldn’t have been especially notable, except for the fact that Wiles delivered a curious message to her deep-pocketed audience.As NBC News reported at the time, she specifically warned the GOP donors that they’d probably hear the former president say all kinds of ridiculous things in the coming days, weeks and months, and they should simply disregard those comments. The prospective campaign contributors were instead told to focus on the fact that Trump was likely to win, whether his public comments made sense or not.This came to mind watching Sen. Tim Scott on CNBC trying to defend the former president’s stated plans for inflation-driving tariffs. HuffPost noted what happened after the South Carolina Republican was asked to defend Trump’s threat to hit John Deere with a 200% tariff in a possible second term.‘You agree with all the tariffs. Do you think John Deere, 200%? Do you think companies that make stuff here should have a 15% tax? That’s industrial policy, isn’t it?’ [‘Squawk Box’ host Joe Kernen] asked of Trump, whose tariff proposals have prompted warnings by economists. ‘I believe that President Trump oftentimes talks in the abstract, number one,’ Scott replied.”
It was at that point when CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin interjected, asking, “What are we supposed to believe, then?”Read moreThat need not be a rhetorical question.In reality, the GOP senator almost certainly knows that Trump’s increasingly bizarre tariff agenda would be a disaster. I can say this with some confidence because Scott is on record already having said so.The result, of course, was a challenge for the South Carolinian: He was on national television as a surrogate for Trump, whose tariff plan he opposes. And so, asked about his party’s nominee and his bad idea, Scott was reduced to saying that Trump “talks in the abstract.”RecommendedMaddowblogAs errors pile up, Musk and DOGE appear increasingly incompetentThis generated on-set chuckling, and for good reason. For one thing, as far as the former president is concerned, there’s nothing “abstract” about his economic and trade plans, which he talks up on a nearly daily basis.For another, to Sorkin’s point, we’re in the midst of a presidential campaign. The stakes couldn’t be much higher. If Americans are supposed to see the Republican Party’s presidential nominee and perceive his promises as “abstractions,” the result is a race in which no one will know — or even can know — what the candidate actually intends to do with power.Steve BenenSteve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."CONTINUE READING Previous PostFor Trump, Jack Smith’s new filing doesn’t just pose legal troublesNext Post Vance’s views on the 2020 race matter, whether he likes it or notLatest PostTrump-appointed prosecutor kicks off ‘Operation Whirlwind,’ eyes SchumerAboutContactHelpCareersMSNBC StoreAD ChoicesPrivacy PolicyDo Not Sell My Personal InformationCA NoticeTerms of Service (Updated JULY 7, 2023)MSNBC SitemapClosed CaptioningAdvertiseJoin the MSNBC Community© 2024 NBC UNIVERSALNBC News LogoMSNBC LogoToday Logo 
By "abstract" he means zero substance, no specifics, like a child reading a book report on a book they only read the title of and the back cover.