Source: The American Prospect
by Robert Kuttner
“In classic form, Trump concluded his hollow trade deal with Xi Jinping Thursday, and then changed the subject and the headlines. With no clear plan or rationale, he announced that the U.S. could resume nuclear testing. And, of course, the Asia trip itself was planned as a diversion from the government shutdown. Trump’s method is to drive us to distraction. A close examination of the agreement with Xi suggests that Trump got rolled; or more precisely, he rolled himself. Coherence and preparation matters. Xi and his advisers had plenty of it. Trump had mainly his own impulsivity. The latest sequence began when China denied the U.S. access to rare earth minerals whose production China dominates, as a response to earlier U.S. tariff increases. Then in early October, Trump raised tariffs on China’s exports to 100 percent. Both of these were rolled back in the deal.” (10/31/25)