At the outset, he was said to have three objectives, according to General HR McMaster, the US National Security Adviser. First was the promotion of democratic freedom and openness; second was to press for 'fair' trade to boost America's prosperity; third was to deal with North Korea. [...]
Of course, Trump can point to a few macho statements – mostly made about China when he wasn't in the country – which might convince his fans at home that he's still fighting the good fight on behalf of US workers. But the evidence that he has come anywhere near achieving something concrete in the last week and a half is slim to say the least. [...]
Increasingly however it feels as if Trump – the great entertainer-President – is being played. The Chinese roll out the red carpet and thus avoid both tricky questions of the sort usually asked by Western leaders and any sort of confrontation over trade. Putin, meanwhile, appeals to Trump's own inflated notion of ego by complaining that claims of Russian meddling in America's democratic process amount to a personal slight. Trump responds by defending his fellow strongman leader and attacking the conclusions of his own intelligence agencies. [...]
But maybe that is the central problem – that to Trump, the Presidency is simply a game, in which beating losers and vying for personal glory are the key aspects. Worse still, while Trump thinks it's a game for single players, Russia, China and others understand that it's all about teams. And in the last few days they have benefitted from a series of Trump own goals.
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