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Drudge Retort: The Other Side of the News
Thursday, January 08, 2026

President Donald Trump said Wednesday he would not allow defense companies to buy back their own stocks, offer executives large salaries and issue dividends to shareholders, singling out one of America's largest missile manufacturers as his biggest target.

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Over a quarter of Trump's proposed $1T military budget would go to just four companies who have spent $103B in taxpayer dollars on stock buybacks and dividends over the last decade. He wants to use your money to make the military-industrial complex even richer.

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-- Robert Reich (@rbreich.bsky.social) Nov 25, 2025 at 4:30 PM

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Admin's note: Participants in this discussion must follow the site's moderation policy. Profanity will be filtered. Abusive conduct is not allowed.

---- that, pedo bitch

#1 | Posted by LegallyYourDead at 2026-01-07 06:28 PM | Reply

Wait. Isn't government control of private business the economic aspect of fascism?

#2 | Posted by Dbt2 at 2026-01-07 08:11 PM | Reply

"singling out one of America's largest missile manufacturers as his biggest target."

Gee, I wonder how many billions Trump made shorting the stock that just dropped 2.5% today for absolutely no reason.

#3 | Posted by censored at 2026-01-07 08:20 PM | Reply

Capital Controls coming next?

Man, these Republicans sure do know how to run a Central Economy!

#4 | Posted by snoofy at 2026-01-07 08:23 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 4

Remember when the free market was a cornerstone of Republican policy?

#5 | Posted by qcp at 2026-01-08 08:51 AM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

@#4 ... Man, these Republicans sure do know how to run a Central Economy! ...

As I stated in a different thread, my view is that the defense industry has for years (decades?) been lax with our money.

Can you say "Military-Industrial Complex?" I knew you could. I was saying that back in the 1970's.

OK, that aside...

Is this the suitable approach to the problem?

Or is it the usual vacuous ~headline-grabbing~ event for Pres Trump?

#6 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-08 08:58 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

I'm uncertain I comprehend this agenda.. Scary rules are employed and shares exercised promoting share value dropping off. I can't imagine how, but unaware shareholders sell until it "bottoms", then the elite gobbling commences and up in value shares go, now free of those pesky retirement portfolios. Is there some AI-controlled mechanism that dumps this specific stock under certain circumstances? Musk has a predisposition for infiltration. This means Trump is withholding defence contracts until sector ownership is consolidated? Talk about polishing a turd.

"return the contractor to sufficient performance" - can we do that with the presidency?

#7 | Posted by redlightrobot at 2026-01-08 09:32 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 2

@#7 ... I'm uncertain I comprehend this agenda.. ...

Yeah, I'm in that same place.

i.e., what is really going on here?

I saw this ...

Trump's proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget sends military contractor shares higher
www.greenwichtime.com

... Shares of Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon parent RTX fell after the criticism but then roared back at the prospect of more lucrative government contracts down the road. ...

[shrug]


#8 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-08 09:49 PM | Reply

Spoken like a bunch of idiots who know little about how the defense industry works, and about the theories of capital investment and capital markets.

Defense companies can be highly profitable, but are also in cyclical businesses--good when they sell a lot of their wares, challenging when developing new weapons systems. Just look at the revenue and stock performance of RTX, NOC, GD and LMT compared to the SPX over the past five years. In some years they are crushing it, and in others under-performing the broader market.

Companies that build planes must be adjacent to airports. Such land, if available, is expensive, and buildings used to build planes are a challenge to build because of their size. Those which make munitions need places to test their wares, which means they have to trot them out to some place where test firings can take place, with military observers watching closely, to ensure the stuff works, flies where wanted, and blows up what it supposed to destroy. Not easy or cheap.

Investors seek a return on their investment, which for a stockholder means both dividend income and capital gain. Defense companies give out dividends--that's a reason investors buy their stock. When companies have no new investments that can reach or exceed their cost of capital, they typically disburse cash to stockholders in the form of special dividends or stock buy-backs. That's what stockholders expect, and they expect such because they have are residual claim to the company's profits.

The US military is going to avoid buying what it needs from foreign suppliers, which means they buy USA. If only one company builds the fighter planes wanted, well, that company has a bit of pricing power over the buyer (and the taxpayers covering the bill).

Der Dotard, Drinky Pete and the gang of fools need a little education before they open their mouths again on this topic...

#9 | Posted by catdog at 2026-01-09 01:04 PM | Reply

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