How President Xi Triggered Trump

Was it something he said?

The body language is eloquent.

Evidently, someone explained the phrase “Thucydides Trap” to Donald Trump.

In his opening remarks at this week’s summit, President Xi questioned whether the US and China could find a way to avoid the “trap” — which posits that war can result if a rising power threatens to displace an established one. The phrase refers to the Greek historian Thucydides, who explained the Peloponnesian war as a conflict between the rising city-state of Athens and the long-established power of Sparta.

But Xi’s use of the term also captured China’s own view that it is the rising power in the world today, challenging the established hegemony of the United States. Xi has been using the phrase for more than a decade and has declared that “the East is rising and the West is declining.”

We can be reasonably confident that Trump (1) has never read or heard of Thucydides, (2) couldn’t tell you a single thing about the Peloponnesian War, and (3) probably didn’t originally catch Xi’s drift.

But we also know that he is extraordinarily thin-skinned about all of the many reports that China does indeed think of the US as a waning power — and attributing that slide to many of Trump’s own erratic and self-defeating policies. (See: “China Increasingly Views Trump’s America as an Empire in Decline” - The New York Times; And this: “China Believes America Will Flame Out” - The Atlantic; And this: “China thinks America is declining but still uniquely dangerous” - The Economist; And this: “Thank Trump,” A Chinese paper which called Trump an “accelerator of American political decay,” and said: “At this turning point in history what we hear is the heavy and haunting toll of an empire’s evening bell.”)

At some point during all the pomp and praise and roses, someone explained to Trump what Xi’s phrase meant — with the hidden gibe that American was “declining”.

The result? A frantic and lengthy Truth Social post insisting that that Xi was absolutely, positively not referring to Trump in any way, and blaming Joe Biden for everything. Trump bleated:

“When President Xi very elegantly referred to the United States as perhaps being a declining nation, he was referring to the tremendous damage we suffered during the four years of Sleepy Joe Biden and the Biden Administration, and on that score, he was 100% correct.”

“Our Country suffered immeasurably with open borders, high taxes, transgender for everybody, men in women’s sports, DEI, horrible trade deals, rampant crime, and so much more!”

So, Trump contended, Xi could not possibly be referring to him:

President Xi was not referring to the incredible rise that the United States has displayed to the world during the 16 spectacular months of the Trump Administration, which includes all-time high stock markets and 401K’s, military victory and thriving relationship in Venezuela, the military decimation of Iran (to be continued!) — Strongest military on earth by far, economic powerhouse again, with a record 18 trillion dollars being invested into the United States by others, best U.S. job market in history, with more people working in the United States right now than ever before, ending country destroying DEI, and so many other things that it would be impossible to readily list.

In fact, President Xi congratulated me on so many tremendous successes in such a short period of time.

“Two years ago, we were, in fact, a Nation in decline,” Trump concluded. “On that, I fully agree with President Xi! But now, the United States is the hottest Nation anywhere in the world.…”

This, Michael McFaul, the former ambassador to Russia noted, was piffle on stilts (my phrase, not his): “You really expect us to believe that Xi thinks the US is the ‘hottest Nation anywhere in the world’? C’mon man.”

**

Meanwhile, the reaction to Trump’s hyped-up trade deals —China agreed to buy 200 Boeing planes (Boeing expected 500) and an agreement on soybeans — seems to be a collective meh. The NYT’s “DealBook” says that the summit left investors “underwhelmed” despite Trump’s $1 trillion entourage.

The TL;DR: It didn’t lead to the “grand bargain” many had anticipated.

While there were optics of cooperation between Trump and Xi Jinping, concrete deals — including on Nvidia chips or tariffs — were few. Trump just said that he rejected a proposal from Xi, China’s leader, to help broker a peace between the U.S. and Iran, leaving the critical Strait of Hormuz effectively shut.

Ultimately, the president is coming home to rising oil prices and a slumping bond market.

But, as he heads home, Trump can now turn his attention to his real passions: “Trump Touts Golden Statue of Himself, White House Ballroom, and TikTok Views in Truth Social Spree as He Leaves China”.

Happy Friday.

**

Note to readers: As you know, I’ve been locked out of Twitter (X) — and I’m actually okay with being kicked off Elon Musk’s hell-site.

But that also means that it’s harder to get the word out — and it makes independent media like Substack more important than ever. Unlike so much of the corporate media, we’re not going to be bending any knees, or showing up at fancy dinners to suck up to the folks enshittifying our culture.

That’s where you come in, because we quite literally cannot do this without you. Please consider supporting us. The dogs and I will be eternally grateful, and you’ll piss off Elon and Donald.

Catching Up on the Various Scams:

• “Trump poised to drop IRS suit, launch $1.7B ‘weaponization’ fund for allies” —ABC

  President Donald Trump is expected to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service in exchange for the creation of a $1.7 billion fund to compensate allies who claim they were wrongfully targeted by the Biden administration, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

  The commission overseeing the compensation fund would have the total authority to hand out approximately $1.7 billion in taxpayer funds to settle claims brought by anyone who alleges they were harmed by the Biden administration’s “weaponization” of the legal system, including the nearly 1,600 individuals charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol attack as well as potentially entities associated with President Trump himself.

  **

• Trump’s scammy phone deal gets even scammier. Surprise. Via Nellie Bowles:

  Apparently they sold the idea of special Trump phones, and an estimated 590,000 human beings believed in the possibility of these phones since they were announced a year ago, and paid money for them. As of this past Sunday, not a single phone had shipped.

  

  Three days after that story appeared, suddenly Trump Mobile had an announcement! The T1 Phone has arrived!! Wow! I want to know the mad scramble in those three days. It’s called the avoid-litigation dash. I would also love to know what makes the phone Trumpy; does everything you type automatically post to Truth Social?

  Wrote a guy on X…“This is an off the shelf rebrand of a device made by Wingtech called the Revvl 7Pro 5G and was available at T-Mobile for $0. The 7Pro has been replaced by the 8Pro because this thing is over 18 months old.” He added: “This is old stock that they bought to avoid a lawsuit.” A proper article backs this up.

  **

• The Age of Endless Grift. “Trump ethics filing reveals thousands of trades tied to U.S. stocks”

  President Donald Trump disclosed a flurry of at least $220 million in financial transactions earlier this year in the securities of major U.S. companies, according to two new financial disclosure forms released Thursday by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.

  The new reports cover the first three months of 2026 and reported transaction values in broad ranges rather than exact amounts, showing a cumulative value of between $220 million and around $750 million. The purchases included securities linked to companies such as Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Oracle, Broadcom, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs, as well as trades in municipal bonds.

  Examples of large purchases, valued at between $1 million and $5 million each, were an S&P 500 Index fund, Nvidia Corp. and Apple Inc. Large sales of between $5 million and $25 million each included Microsoft, Amazon and Meta. The filing does not always make explicit the type of security, such as whether it was a stock or a corporate bond.

• You say you need a ballroom? As a reader notes, we already have one. And it is spectacular: Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium | Official Website

  

  The Mellon Auditorium faces Constitution Avenue and is entered through three doorways in the deeply channeled Indiana limestone above Deere Island pink granite. Granite stairs rise to the main doors. All three entrance openings stand 20 feet tall and have gates made of gilded and burnished aluminum, topped with spearheads and tassels. Four 10-foot-high bracket lamps of gilded and burnished aluminum, with foliated volutes supporting the lamp and a pineapple finial, frame the entrances.

  Six colossal fluted Roman Doric columns rise 62 feet 6 inches above the base to create the auditorium’s portico. The columns are matched by fluted Doric pilasters set against the smooth limestone back wall. This wall has a large niche above which is a historical bas-relief. Flanking the niche are doors providing access to the portico. Crowning the portico, the auditorium’s central pediment displays Edgar Walter’s “Columbia,” a richly carved allegorical sculpture group symbolizing the country, national defense, and national resources.

  The grandeur of the building’s exterior is matched by its interior….

  At the heart of the building is the large meeting room, a spectacular auditorium four stories in height that seats 2,500. Fluted Doric columns surround the room, which is embellished with limestone pilasters, gilded relief carvings, and polished oak. The walls and columns consist mostly of acoustical stone, with the lower portions remaining relatively plain, pierced only by doors and vents with ornamental grilles. Colossal luminaries, made of brass and burnished aluminum, are suspended from the ceiling.

  Read more about the building at GSA.

  

  Exit take: Maybe some intrepid reporter could ask Trump why he couldn’t use the ballroom we already have? And save the taxpayers $1 billion????

  Seriously.

Nota bene

• Betraying allies is sort of Trump’s thing, isn’t it? “Lawmakers Worry Trump’s Chummy China Trip Puts $14B Taiwan Arms Package in Jeopardy” - NOTUS

  “It’ll be interesting to see what he gives away on Taiwan,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters Thursday. She also noted that the White House readout of the Trump-Xi meeting “didn’t mention Taiwan at all.”

  During the summit, Xi warned Trump that mishandling Taiwan could damage relations between the two countries and lead to conflict, according to Chinese state media and reports from the meeting. Beijing also described Taiwan as the “most important” issue in U.S.-China relations.

• Cuba is next on the menu. Because, of course. “U.S. moving to indict Cuba’s Raúl Castro, sources say” - CBS

• The Bigliest Bang ever. “Trump allies want D.C.’s July 4 fireworks to set world record,” - Axios

  The fireworks spectacle will run nearly twice as long as last year’s show on the National Mall.

  • Breaking the world record — set in the Philippines in 2016 — will take more than 810,904 fireworks.

  • Freedom 250, a White House-backed initiative leading the event, is tapping Pennsylvania-based Pyrotecnico, which has done events like the Super Bowl.

  • “We are shooting to break the record,” Jodi Dague, the director of marketing at Pyrotecnico, told Axios in an email.

  The feds are declaring the day a National Special Security Event, unlike previous Independence Day celebrations, activating a flood-the-zone law-enforcement response that’s implemented for presidential inaugurations.

  • The Secret Service will take the lead on coordinating security, and a spokesperson told Axios that “increased security measures” will take effect “in the days leading up to, during and immediately following the event.”

Exit take: This will definitely lower gas prices, amirite?

Friday dogs

Via my wife’s Substack. My favorite image of our old dog Pete.

Painting pf Pete by Janet’s sister, Eileen.

Pete liked it too….