There are some real grievances where China is not playing fair - forced partnerships, cheap loans for state-backed companies, etc. Lots of empty promises each year with no change to the rules and approaches. So while I think trump is insane and his policies are mostly harmful to both his country and the remainder of the world, pointing out the false pretences and pretend-market-economy of China is definitely not the worst thing he has done. It will certainly cause harm, but if it gets China to actually stick to its commitments everyone might be better off long term. That might be a long shot though, as Trump is crazy and the Chinese leader currently transforming himself into a dictator. For both of them the main way to stay in power is to pretend they are the only ones that will guarantee their country's standing and respect in the world (even as in realpolitik terms they do the opposite) - fueling nationalism and us vs them thinking.
I wouldn't say the US is strictly playing fair in the economic game either though, even before trump US economic power was a major weapon. The only ones that really seem committed to fait trade are the EU and maybe Canada, Japan, Korea.
Believe me, Trump doesn't want "Fair trade" when your slogan is "Make America Great Again".
Corporate America's welfare is around 100 billion as said by many rather partisan think tanks... but in reality, its trillions of dollars when you figure in realized costs such as below poverty level minimum wages, the collapse of pension and retirement programs, the exploding costs of for-profit healthcare.
> but in reality, its trillions of dollars when you figure in realized costs such as below poverty level minimum wages
Trillions of dollars? You're inventing that claim.
Less than 1% of the US population earns the minimum wage for starters.
There isn't a single developed nation that doesn't massively subsidize its poorest workers via a welfare state. Every country with universal healthcare does for example, without exception.
> the exploding costs of for-profit healthcare.
Private corporations are heavily footing the bill for that healthcare cost increase, as roughly half of the US healthcare system is employer coverage. Which is why companies as diverse as Amazon, JP Morgan and Berkshire Hathaway are desperate to work together to reduce the problem.
> the collapse of pension and retirement programs
Which is occurring in just about every major economy at the moment, thanks to rapidly aging demographics. China has a very bad pension problem for example, and that's on pensions that typically only pay about $100 per month. Simultaneously their economy is already seeing a decline in workers (which means less workers to pay into propping up the eroding pension context).
I wouldn't say the US is strictly playing fair in the economic game either though, even before trump US economic power was a major weapon. The only ones that really seem committed to fait trade are the EU and maybe Canada, Japan, Korea.