Trump has thrown out the global economic playbook. It’s time for Australia to write its own rules | John Quiggin

We must ditch the illusion that the US will return to normal and instead become more self-reliantGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastWith the resumption of parliament this week, and an election only months away, we have seen even more of the usual point-scoring about the cost of living, tax breaks for long lunches and budget deficits. But since the return of Donald Trump to the White House, the assumptions on which Australian economic policy have always been based are obsolete.It’s not just the “rules-based international order”, symbolised by the already moribund World Trade Organization, that is gone. Trump is ruling by decree (more politely referred to as “executive order”) and encountering little resistance. Corporations have rushed to buy his favour (or placate his wrath). The US Treasury appears to have been turned over to Elon Musk. No one can predict what will happen here, but a major financial crisis can’t be ruled out.John Quiggin is a professor at the University of Queensland’s school of economics Continue reading...