Machiavelli famously observed that for any ruler, it is better to be feared than to be loved, if one cannot be both. If that’s the case, people should be becoming more sympathetic to Trump’s America. Why, then, is Trump’s constant demonstration of US power not paying dividends?

Idk, maybe stop taking 15th century advice for how to conduct 21st century politics?

The US president fantasises about the scope of China’s industrial power, so much that he now practices state capitalism Chinese-style. It is as if Trump has lost trust in his country’s political and economic system. As the saying goes, imitation is the highest form of flattery, and now it is Washington imitating Beijing.

What absolute horseshit. Nothing about what the US is doing right now bears any resemblance to China’s industrial policies.