The Week: Trump, Xi, and the Art of the Deal

• In honor of his aunt’s sacrifice, Zohran Mamdani wants to make subways unsafe for everyone.

• President Trump told the reporters on Air Force One that his high-stakes meeting with Xi Jinping in South Korea was a “great success.” Trump said that he had reached a “consensus” with his Chinese counterpart on the issues that sparked a trade war between the world’s two largest economies. Xi would work “very hard” to prevent the production of fentanyl and its precursors, Trump promised. In exchange, the U.S. would reduce fentanyl-related tariffs from 20 to 10 percent and lower the overall tariff burden on Chinese exports from 57 to 47 percent. Xi, in turn, pledged to buy an additional 12 million metric tons of American soybeans this year, as well as 25 million tons annually for the next three years. Following the meeting, China suspended some of its export controls on vital rare earth minerals. Xi has more to boast about from this meeting than Trump. China secured not only reduced tariffs on its exports but the suspension of port fees for Chinese ships and a U.S. promise to delay export controls on sophisticated American technology with civilian and military applications. In other words, in exchange for a likely temporary truce in the trade war, the U.S. will allow China access to some of its most sensitive technology in exchange for—quite literally—beans.

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• In honor of his aunt’s sacrifice, Zohran Mamdani wants to make subways unsafe for everyone.

• President Trump told the reporters on Air Force One that his high-stakes meeting with Xi Jinping in South Korea was a “great success.” Trump said that he had reached a “consensus” with his Chinese counterpart on the issues that sparked a trade war between the world’s two largest economies. Xi would work “very hard” to prevent the production of fentanyl and its precursors, Trump promised. In exchange, the U.S. would reduce fentanyl-related tariffs from 20 to 10 percent and lower the overall tariff burden on Chinese exports from 57 to 47 percent. Xi, in turn, pledged to buy an additional 12 million metric tons of American soybeans this year, as well as 25 million tons annually for the next three years. Following the meeting, China suspended some of its export controls on vital rare earth minerals. Xi has more to boast about from this meeting than Trump. China secured not only reduced tariffs on its exports but the suspension of port fees for Chinese ships and a U.S. promise to delay export controls on sophisticated American technology with civilian and military applications. In other words, in exchange for a likely temporary truce in the trade war, the U.S. will allow China access to some of its most sensitive technology in exchange for—quite literally—beans.