Trump: America's Gulliver Being Nipped At The Ankles

One of the major problems facing America has been a growing and malignint Chinese influence.  From turning rock piles sticking out of the ocean into military fortresses designed to influence shipping and air traffic through and over the China sea, the Chinese are now shinning laser beams into the eyes of our pilots, Chinese aggression is manifest.

China has become comfortable with a parasitic relationship with the U.S.   China has a strong and clever culture.  Great scientific achievements lie ahead for them.  But, if they can get others to do the ground-breaking work, why not let them and then simply scoop up the benefits without having to invest anything of their own?  Want to build an airplane factory in China, so as to get closer to the Chinese market?  No problem; however, China must have 51% ownership of any such factory, any trade secrets developed by the outsider plane maker must be shared with the Chinese.  These trade secrets can then be used by the Chinese to start their own plane building facility.  The research has cost them nothing.

One other thing:  A small trade imbalance here, a small trade imbalance there and it's no real problem.  However the size of our imbalance in trade with China has become enormous.

How this behavior on the part of the Chinese impacts other nations is not being much discussed.  CEO's tend to take a short term view of most situations.  Okay, they think, we're getting robbed, but the depredations take place over an extended period of time.  All I have to do to make my bloated salary is to bring in a good profit over the next 3 years.

As Trump tries to correct this unfair Chinese trade, the Chinese are playing their other card -- North Korea.  Be nice to us Pres. Trump, say the Chinese,  and we'll help you bring peace to the Korean peninsula.  Fight us on trade and you'll get nowhere with our North Korean rocket man.

How Pres. Trump addresses this formidable challenge, I have no idea.  I wish him all the luck.  He'll need it.  In the meantime the Democrats howl for their open borders.  A sense of priority has never been their long suite.