Trumpled (Alternative Leading)

[Mav]

So important to give credit where it is due.

On a positive for the Orange One, he achieved two notable things.

1. He achieved necessary adjustments in trade with China, the US was on the wrong end of a few important trade deals. 2. His most incredible achievement, an amazing achievement, was to make George W look like a Rhode Scholar.

Not sure he should be given credit for addressing the China problem. Obama’s strategy was to implement the Trans-Pacific Partnership to solidify an alliance to counter China. Trump scrapped that and made no attempt to come up with an alternative way of building an alliance. In fact, he went the other way by stressing his America First strategy. He made it clear there’d be no inducements or protection offered and understandably Pacific nations felt it was in their best interests to accept aid through China’s Belt & Road program. China was able to peel away US allies and the most visible consequence was that those nations withdrew recognition of Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Trump tried to forge a US-China deal which would freeze out other countries (including Australia) while lavishing praise on Xi. It’s only when he couldn’t get enough concessions from the Chinese that he resorted to tariffs and rhetoric. Only in the last couple of days of his administration was there any condemnation over the genocide of the Uyghurs (after Trump had earlier assured Xi that he had no problems with it). And there was never any support given to pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.