Summary: There isn’t going to be a trade war with China. The risks of a real war with North Korea are now simply too high. General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, has said—and I quote—“It is not unimaginable to have a military option to respond to the North Korean nuclear capability. What’s unimaginable to me is allowing a capability that will allow a nuclear weapon to land in Denver, Colorado.” Hisense Electric, a Chinese state-owned tech manufacturer, is now being sued in California courts by Sharp, a Japanese company now owned by Taiwanese company Foxconn. Sharp claims shoddy workmanship by Hisense has done deep damage to the Sharp brand. Even though President Trump campaigned on an aggressive trade agenda with China, the reality is that the United States needs China right now more than we need fair trade. Sharp and the state of California might have to fight for their own interests any legal way they can. But the federal cavalry isn’t coming over the hill in the China trade battle anytime soon. The Trump administration needs to tell its grass-roots supporters why.
