How can you convince others if you cannot convince yourself?

Harvard Professor, Ricardo Hausmann writes that all politicians tell lies, but they are most dangerous when they start believing in their own lies. "All governments lie. A few believe their own lies. But things get dangerous when they act in order to be true to their lies," he writes. He points to his own country, Venezuela, where first Hugo Chavez, and now Nicolas Maduro have almost destroyed the economy with their policy of "lavish spending, expropriation, price and foreign-exchange controls, and reckless borrowing abroad" and blaming the US for their total mismanagement. The 100-bolivar note, which was worth $46.5 in 2008, has fallen to $0.03 today. He then gives figures to try and prove that Donald Trump is lying about the effects of Nafta on jobs in the US. He says that Mexican value added was 7.7% of US manufacturing in 1993, but it rose to 10% by 2014, which is a gain of $50 billion. With average US productivity of $150,000 it represents 330,000 jobs in the US. We do not understand how value being added in Mexico can increase jobs in the US. Does it mean that Apple manufacturing its products in China is increasing jobs in the US? If so, why is Apple holding $200 billion outside the US? Economics is a strange beast indeed. While there are incessant attacks on Donald Trump, political correctness prevents any honest examination of Barack Obama's record. Recently Obama suggested that he could have won a third term easily. FDR he is not, so why the giant ego? "My name may not be on the ballot, but our progress is on the ballot," he said before the election, in September. Well, the people rejected him and his vision. He must wish he was in Africa where rulers run for third terms by force. Burundi is in a state of civil war after President Nkurunziza refused to step down when his term ended and now Joseph Kabila, of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is refusing to go after his mandate expired. Having made a mess of Libya by bombing Gaddafi, which led to the death of Ambassador Chis Stevens, he did not kill Bashar al-Assad of Syria. Whether it was because 10% of the Syrian population are Christians and support Assad's party we do not know, but his support of rebel groups has kept the civil war going for over 5 years and resulted in nearly half a million deaths. Yesterday, Russia, with the help of Turkey, announced a ceasefire which seems to be holding. So, in retaliation Obama expelled 35 Russian diplomats and levied sanctions on certain Russian individuals and companies. This despite Julian Assange saying that Russia was not behind the hacking of Democrat Party emails and the hack showing how the Party worked against Bernie Sanders in the primaries. At home Prime Minister Modi has convinced himself of his greatness. He is portraying himself as a crusader against corruption when his actions have converted India into a nation of money launderers. You can only convince others if you believe your own lies.