dckingsfan wrote:I can't tell if the tone of this article is to tip their hat to this administration:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/18/business/china-trade-war-retaliate.html
I don't think the "trade wars" have played out very well with NAFTA and Europe - but this one seems to be doing surprisingly well.
The weird thing is that I feel China is the one case where Trump might not actually want anything. I mean, I get it - it's the place where the US really should be focusing on in terms of setting trade practices straight, and I'm sure there are plenty in government, both elected officials and public servants, as well as private sector lobbying for certain changes if possible, but Trump himself? He might have started out wanting something, but I sort of get the impression that he's to the point where the political points he scores from all of this are something he's very interested in, and it really doesn't matter to him where his attacks are made, so if China is that place, he's going to make it. And interestingly enough, the place where he's more interested in the attacks than the concessions is the place where he might actually make the most substantial of changes.
This can still play out in a lot of ways, but I'm curious. Trump seems to have backed off the EU for a little more of a neutral stance on their part with respect to China, and Canada seems to be angling for something similar, much to administration frustration, because they really aren't wanting to try to vilify Canada but absolutely do want to renegotiate with Mexico for reasons that go beyond economic ones and can't do that without renegotiating with Canada, too. If there were a singular focus on China, as the direction seems to be headed, that might actually be something that could work to Americas favor.















