Trump Ignorant of China’s Resolve

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Trump is an artful dealmaker in his own mind, his mastery more myth than reality.

Former Trump Organization executive Barbara Res earlier said he wasn’t a great dealmaker. 

“In terms of taking the responsibility for the buck, he just would never do it,” she said, adding: “It’s not in his DNA. He’s never responsible. It is always someone else’s fault.”

According to Trump’s 1987 “Art of the Deal” ghostwriter Tony Schwartz, “most of the deals in the book were failures,” adding:

“And the number of deals he’s made over the years since then have overwhelmingly been failures.” He was “really one of the worst” dealmakers he’s come across.

Expressing “deep remorse” for writing the book, Schwartz said “I put lipstick on a pig…I contributed to presenting Trump in a way that brought him wider attention and made him more appealing than he is.”

“I genuinely believe(d) that if Trump w(on) and g(ot) the nuclear codes…it (could) lead to the end.” If he wrote the book today, he’d title it “The Sociopath.”

Former New York magazine publisher and editor Edward Kosner, where Schwartz worked as a writer in the 1980s, said “Tony created Trump. He’s Dr. Frankenstein” — creating the monster occupying the White House.

In writing the book, he spent 18 months with Trump in his office, at meetings, on weekends in New York and Florida. He got to know him better than anyone other than family members at the time, he said.

As a public figure, especially a political one, he acted like he wrote the book, Schwartz said, adding:

“If he could lie about that on day one (as candidate Trump)— when it was so easily refuted — he is likely to lie about anything.”

After announcing his candidacy in June 2015, the prospect of Trump becoming president horrified Schwartz — because of his self-centered, impulsive personality, not his ideological ideas, whatever they might be.

Through his team involved in trade talks with China, did the mythical dealmaker meet his match?

After 11 negotiating sessions in Beijing and Washington, along with other bilateral communications for over a year, talks remain at impasse because of unacceptable, one-sided Trump regime demands.

China clearly is unwilling to compromise its sovereign rights and principles. Nor will Beijing sacrifice its ambitious longterm economic, financial, industrial, and technological aims — wanting the country developed into a global powerhouse.

It’s heading toward eventually surpassing the US as the world’s largest economy. It already reached that plateau on a purchase price basis, what a basket of goods costs in both countries.

Nearly three weeks after Trump and Chineses President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the late June G20 Osaka, Japan summit, agreeing to resume trade talks, all that took place were telephone communications between both sides.

No date for a face-to-face meeting was scheduled in either country. Things are no closer to resolving major differences than earlier.

Both nations are world’s apart on major structural issues. The US side appears unwilling to soften its unacceptable demands, China not about to accept them.

The last time bilateral talks were held in May, they broke down. Both sides remain firm. China insists that further talks take place “on a basis of equality and mutual respect” — what the US affords no other countries, notably not sovereign independent ones.

For progress to be made in talks, China demands what the Trump regime won’t agree to — lifting unacceptable tariffs, removing Chinese enterprises from its blacklist, notably tech giant Huawei and its affiliates, along with calling off its dogs against the company’s chief financial officer Sabrina Meng Wanzhou, ordering Canada to release her from house arrest.

The US must also end its unacceptable one-sided demands, be willing to compromise on key issues, and respect China’s sovereign developmental rights.

There’s no sign whatever of the Trump regime’s willingness to negotiate on this basis, differences between both sides remaining at impasse.

China’s Commerce Minister Zhong Shan was involved in last week’s phone conversation between both sides.

He blamed the Trump regime’s obstinacy for the current impasse, separately saying Beijing must uphold “the spirit of struggle” in defending its sovereign rights.

He indicated that China will increase efforts to advance its belt and road initiative for greater regional integration, involving over $1 trillion in investments.

Chairman of China’s largest construction machinery manufacturer XCMG earlier said “One Belt, One Road makes our internationalization strategy like a tiger with wings added.”

According to Beijing-based commentator Zhang Lifan, Zhong’s remarks and involvement in Sino/US talks “shows China is in no hurry to reach a deal, (is) ready for protracted talks, (and appears to be) waiting to see what happens after the 2020 election.”

As long as the US remains hardline and unwilling to compromise, resolving major bilateral differences may be unattainable no matter who serves as US president.

Protracted stalemate looks set to continue longer-term, resolution perhaps out of reach altogether because of unacceptable US demands.

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Award-winning author Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected]. He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG)

His new book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.”

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.


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Articles by: Stephen Lendman

About the author:

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected]. His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network. It airs three times weekly: live on Sundays at 1PM Central time plus two prerecorded archived programs.

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