It is long past time to stop pretending that Trump has coherent policy goals that he can attain. And, on trade, having conspicuously folded on NAFTRA, he has no leverage in any dispute he gins up with China: Michelle Klieger: Is Trump Playing Trade War Checkers, While Xi Plays Chess?: "Trade talks starting to look like a familiar trap.... Break it, Restore the Status Quo, Claim Victory. Looking at the last few weeks, the biggest trade headlines were about auto tariffs, soybeans, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) sales and biotechnology approvals... easy wins China was hoping to give the United States to end the trade war. These concessions make great headlines and don’t cost China much if anything. If this is all we get out of the talks in January, then Trump played right into China’s hand. Trump didn’t get stronger intellectual property protection for American companies. He did not get China to end or change its Made in China 2025 campaign. He did not reduce the trade deficit. And foreign companies are still discriminated against under Chinese law. So what was achieved?...
#noted
