'WISHFUL THINKING'

Chinese State Media Ridicules Trump’s ‘Street Fighter-Style Drama’

Unusually direct attack on the president.

Chinese state media has unleashed an unusually brutal and personal attack on Donald Trump, accusing him of “starring in his own carefully orchestrated street fighter-style deceitful drama.” Beijing’s mouthpieces have frequently criticized the Trump administration’s burgeoning trade war, but normally refrain from attacking Trump directly. The editorial in the People’s Daily said Trump’s own actions risk undermining the international credibility of the U.S., adding: “Governing a country is not like doing business.” Trump’s desire for others to play along with his “street-fighter style” drama is “wishful thinking,” the front-page piece states, arguing that the U.S. had escalated trade friction with China and turned international trade into a “zero-sum game.” The U.S. and China implemented tariffs on $34 billion worth of each other’s goods last month, and Washington is expected to soon implement tariffs on an additional $16 billion of Chinese goods.