Are you enjoying Trump’s roller coaster ride?

[Bloomberg]( Today’s Agenda - The [Kavanaugh drama]( is the latest example of [Trumpian chaos](. - Trump’s UN speech [got sovereignty all wrong](. - China’s not exactly [being straightforward]( about its economic goals. - The Fed is doing the right thing by [plowing ahead with rate hikes](. - Trump is doing the wrong thing by [squeezing legal immigration](. Trump’s Chaos Hits New Heights This email should hit your inbox about 30 minutes before President Donald Trump is scheduled to begin a 5:00 p.m. ET news conference, in which he’ll probably defend his embattled Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who today was [accused by a third woman]( of sexual misconduct. What Trump says could validate what’s written below, or render it moot, or start a war with France. Who knows? That’s just the way news and politics are these days, like a roller coaster off the tracks, but with more nausea. As of this writing, Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee still plan to hold tomorrow’s hearing to discuss the claims against Kavanaugh, who has vehemently denied them all. This approach worked for Clarence Thomas, and [it could work for Kavanaugh](, Noah Feldman writes, giving Republican senators just enough cover to put him on the Supreme Court and satisfy the fervent wishes of their voters. It’s still possible [the newest claim](, the most explosive of all, will, as Noah puts it, “form a pattern as clear and repeated as we have come to expect in well-publicized #MeToo cases.” If so, then the political track could shift very suddenly – maybe as soon as tonight. Read the [whole thing](. For now, though, it’s driving Kavanaugh to the high court. But the victory is already tainted. Kavanaugh earlier this week took to Fox News to clear his name – a first such media appearance for a Supreme Court nominee and one of the clearest signs of how the process, and the court, [have become hopelessly politicized](, Bloomberg’s editors write. "In choosing Fox, Kavanaugh picked a team, and opted for home-field advantage." Read the [whole thing](. One thing is clear: Trump is [firmly in charge]( of Kavanaugh’s take-no-prisoners defense. And that’s kind of ironic because, as Kara Alaimo notes, Trump’s own [misogyny inspired the #MeToo movement]( (and its recent branch, #WhyIDidntReport) that has ensnared the judge. But such is life in the world’s worst amusement park. Trump’s Warped Global Vision Trump spent most of the day palling around with world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly, just like some kind of globalist. But his isolationist speech to the UN the day before still echoed. In it, he suggested the world should embrace his vision of extreme sovereignty. But James Gibney writes Trump’s love for national self-determination apparently ends at America’s shores – and his opposition to the global order [shows a misunderstanding]( of just how it actually helps nations better protect and govern themselves. Trump targeted Iran in that speech, and he’s pressing other nations to join him in sanctioning the country for its nuclear program and general evildoing. The rest of the world, so far, is mostly balking. And rather than rattling Iran, [Trump’s attacks are uniting and encouraging it](, writes Azadeh Moaveni. “Since its 1979 revolution, Iran has been an outsider in the global club led by the U.S. Trump’s hostility has given it a chance to see itself instead as an insider, with Washington fulminating on the sidelines.” Bonus realpolitik reading: India might want to join the EU, Russia and China in a special purpose vehicle to trade oil with Iran, avoiding U.S. sanctions. [But it can’t](. – David Fickling China Misunderstands Itself Trump today aimed his fury at his chief trade-war target, China, which he [claimed is interfering]( in the midterm elections by taking out ads in the Des Moines Register. We’ve [written a lot here]( about how [Trump misunderstands China](’s negotiating position. But in some ways China also seems to misunderstand, or at least misrepresent, China: Beijing yesterday said its economic model benefits the U.S. and vice-versa – while failing to mention how hard it’s working to [break that old model]( in a way that challenges the U.S. directly, writes David Fickling: “To make this next shift easier, the U.S. needs to accept that it’s inevitable. But China also needs to be honest about what’s happening.” Read the [whole thing](. Bonus China reading: - China’s Internet censors divide the country into [information haves and have-nots](. – Adam Minter - Foreign funds [still see green shoots]( in China’s bear market for stocks. – Shuli Ren Full-Steam-Ahead Fed The Federal Reserve raised its key interest-rate target today and and signaled it would keep doing that for a while longer. It also stopped describing itself as “accommodative” to economic growth. That may seem significant only to Fed Kremlinologists but is the latest tiny step in [removing “training wheels”]( that have helped mollify financial markets since the crisis, writes Dan Moss. Not only is the Fed declining to pacify investors, it is also [wisely ignoring the tantrums of Trump]( by steadily raising rates over his objections, write Bloomberg’s editors. Bonus Fed reading: - The Fed sent a clear signal today: The [yield curve will flatten]( until morale improves. – Brian Chappatta - Instead of fighting non-existent inflation, the Fed should keep the pedal to the growth medal to help [more women get back to work](. – Karl Smith Trump’s Self-Defeating Immigration Plan Trump’s Department of Homeland Security wants to deny green cards and visas to immigrants who avail themselves of public welfare benefits. The theory is this will lure more skilled immigrants while discouraging those icky tired, poor, huddled masses. Noah Smith writes [this is a boneheaded scheme]( for two reasons: First, low-skilled immigration is already on the decline. Second, poor immigrants who get a hand surviving here often thrive, starting new businesses and technologies. Chasing them away will only make America’s declining entrepreneurialism worse. Read the [whole thing](. Chart Attack Even if Kaepernick blowback hurts Nike Inc.’s U.S. sales (and it probably won’t), the company’s strength overseas [means it can roll with the punch](, writes Sarah Halzack. [Underemployment is the new unemployment]( since the financial crisis – and we don’t talk about it or measure it properly. – Leonid Bershidsky Quick Hits Merck & Co. Inc. is [rewarding CEO Ken Frazier]( with a longer tenure – but he has to show he’s still got tricks up his sleeve. – Max Nisen No, Obama is not smashing any norms by [being political in his post-presidency](. – Jonathan Bernstein Firing Rod Rosenstein would [cause a political crisis](, but not a constitutional one. – Stephen Carter Building more houses [won’t fix Britain’s property market](. – Lionel Laurent When superstar scientists die, they [create opportunities for new scientists](, according to, uh, science. – Faye Flam ICYMI Trump’s tariffs [took $1 billion]( in Ford Motor Co. profit. Area [oligarch goes missing](. Kickers The [podcast bubble]( may be bursting. The [descendants of Pablo Escobar’s “cocaine hippos”]( are flourishing. Filter makers [look to manta rays]( for inspiration. NASA’s new TESS telescope is going to [find a whole bunch of new planets](. Prince and Tom Petty [both have new albums](. Note: Please send manta rays, suggestions and kicker ideas to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net.  *** New subscribers can [sign up here](. [FOLLOW US [Facebook Share]]( [Twitter Share]( SEND TO A FRIEND [Share with a friend] You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022 If you believe this has been sent to you in error, please safely [unsubscribe](.