Trump’s China Trip: Five Things You Didn’t Know

Chinese have a word – Jingju.

• 京 (Jing) means “capital” or “Beijing.”
• 剧 (Ju) means “drama” or “play.”

Translated, the term Jingju refers to a performance called “Peking Opera,” a traditional form of Chinese theater characterized by elaborate costumes and makeup, with loud singing, spectacular acrobatics, and grand gestures.

But it’s all just an act. And frankly, this is exactly how to process President Trump’s visit to China last week.

Presidents Xi and Trump walk past ceremonial honor guard. Credit White House Press Office.

From beginning to end (well, almost to the end; see below) the visit was one spectacle after another, replete with bands, ruffles, flourishes, honor guards and parades; a state visit to match all state visits. Or was it?

Because looking back, it’s apparent that the trip was cordial but cold; flashy but inconclusive; visually impressive, but mostly ineffective.

All in all, Trump’s recent trip to China was three days of Peking Opera; but in fairness, it did have something of a surprise ending… and for that please keep reading!

So, with this in mind let’s look behind the curtain at five things you probably didn’t see or know.

“My Friend Xi.”

“This has been an incredible visit,” said President Trump to China’s Xi Jinping during a visit to the elegant Zhongnanhai Garden, on his final day in Beijing. “I think a lot of good has come of it.”

Then there was this: “He’s a man I respect greatly. Become really a friend,” Trump said of Xi.

And more: “We’ve known each other now eleven years, almost 12 years. That’s a long time, and we’ve settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn’t have been able to settle, and the relationship is a very strong one.”

Wow. So much bonhomie on display, right?

Presidents Xi and Trump, putting on the “Bro”-act. Credit Xinhua News Agency.

Not so fast, though, because much is missing from that brotherly narrative. Begin with the fact that even President Trump, like all official U.S. government travelers to China, was told not to bring any personal electronic devices with him, in order to protect his data from intercepts and hacks.

Okay, sure… At one point President Xi showed off a grove of old trees in Beijing’s Garden of Heaven. How touching! But of course, America has old trees too.

Presidents Xi and Trump admire old trees. Credit China XYZ Press.

What matters more than old trees, however, is a nation’s people and government. And Americans have lived as free citizens since 1776 (and okay, we can argue over details but not the Really Big Picture). While China is run by a hardline Communist government that blasted its way to power in 1949, and the country’s resurgent Maosim speaks for itself.

Trees or not, the fact is that before heading off to China, the President and every member of his official delegation was briefed and given strict protocols on what not to take along, which was everything and anything electronic.

No cell phones, iPads, laptops, thumb-drives; not even medical monitoring devices that people use for health reasons, if not routine metabolism checks like blood pressure or heartrate.

Nothing. Zero. Zilch. Leave it all at home. Because Chinese intelligence is just THAT good! And U.S. visitors have been badly burned in the past.

But yes, we’re “friends.” And we both have great old trees.

What’s for Lunch?

Meanwhile, at another point Trump and Xi had a nice sit-down for a chat, accompanied by lunch.

Chinese President Xi Jinping gestures during a meeting with President Trump. Credit New York Post.

And wow… it was quite a menu according to press reports:

• minced codfish in seafood soup
• crispy and stir-fried lobster balls
• pan-seared beef fillet stuffed with morel mushrooms
• kung pao chicken and scallops
• braised seasonal greens
• bamboo shoots, mushrooms and beans
• stewed beef in a bun
• steamed pork and shrimp dumplings
• chocolate brownies
• fruits
• ice cream
• coffee and tea

Yum-yum-yum… And Trump ate none of it. Not one bite.

Every morsel of the president’s food, plus water, his famous Diet Coca Colas – and even the ice cubes for the water and colas – was flown into Beijing either in advance on C-17s, or onboard Air Force One. Plus, every meal consumed by Trump in China was prepared in a U.S. mobile kitchen by an American chef, served on U.S.-supplied plates along with U.S. cutlery.

And just outside the dining area, a mobile U.S. hospital awaited any emergency, fully staffed by U.S. Navy and Air Force medical personnel. Just… in… case… something… happened.

All this was because of U.S. security concerns over Trump either being poisoned or otherwise ingesting some bizarre form of Chinese sci-fi nanotechnology embedded in the food. (Hey, that C0v!d bug of a few years back left an impression.)

Meanwhile, as Trump dined at the fancy luncheon with Xi (or did not dine, so to speak), other top U.S. officials and press received impromptu takeout bags from randomly selected McDonald franchises around Beijing.

No pan-seared beef & morels for the staff and press. Just McDs because that’s how worried U.S. intelligence and security services were about the Chinese government’s food.

Spies, Spies Everywhere

On the second day of the visit, President Xi threw an elaborate state dinner to honor Trump, and the spies were everywhere. Of course, it (almost) goes without saying that invited Chinese guests were all there to gather whatever intelligence they could pick up from the American side. That’s their job.

Meanwhile, Chinese serving staff were also in on the caper, such as this woman army officer who trailed White House adviser Stephen Miller:

How much should you tip the server when she’s a spy? Just curious.

According to Chinese commentator Bin Xie, this woman speaks perfect English. “That’s a must.” And undoubtedly, according to Mr. Bin, this woman and her associates at the fancy dinner are all intelligence agents. “Every one of them graduated either from the Beijing University of International Relations (UIR — 北京国际关系学院) or PLA Foreign Language Institute (解放军外国语学院) — both are China’s top spy schools.”

That’s just how it rolls at these big, elaborate state-sponsored feasts. And it’s just another act in the Peking Opera.

Speaking of Rolling…

Speaking of “rolling,” here’s the Presidential Limo, an armored car that tips the scale at over eight tons. It comes with bulletproof glass, an air filtration system, roll-flat tires, defensive armaments (can’t say much on that), and even a supply of fresh blood to match that of the Commander in Chief.

Fancy Presidential steel on wheels. Credit South China Morning Post.

This gleaming mini-tank, along with dozens of other vehicles for Trump’s Beijing motorcades, all arrived in China via a squadron of C-17 transport planes a few days ahead of Air Force One.

The president’s mechanized entourage included specially outfitted personnel carriers for armed security agents, plus redundant medical vans, communication vans, the above-mentioned mobile kitchen, and several trucks filled with supplies of presidential food, water, Diet Coke, ice cubes and much more.

Oh, and the U.S. even brought its own gasoline and diesel fuel for the vehicles. Because security dictates that the president cannot risk driving down the road and the engine conks out, a development which would definitely spoil his night at the opera.

Exit, Stage Right

Finally, we come to the last moments of Trump’s state visit, in which the Peking Opera displayed a dramatic, if not thrilling denouement. Some might even say that it was a shocking way for Trump and the U.S. entourage to exit the stage.

Per White House directive all American officials, delegates, staff and reporters on Air Force One were required – openly and notoriously – to trash ALL Chinese goods or items before boarding the airplane. Indeed, the Secret Service and U.S. Air Force obtained and displayed a dumpster for just that purpose, conspicuously labeled “Airport Waste.”

American officials and Air Force One passengers dump out all Chinese items. Credit New York Post.

Everyone on the U.S. side tossed every Chinese item straight into trash cans next to American airplanes. No exceptions. Nothing permitted. U.S. security protocols were airtight.

Not a single thing from China was permitted onboard the presidential jet. This included credential badges, lapel pins, souvenirs, gifts, and all burner phones that any of the U.S. group used during their stay in the country. It all went to trash, and in an astonishing photo, even President Trump himself was seen tossing Chinese items into a bin.

Nice visit, eh? Trump tosses his Chinese stuff. Credit Times of India.

In its own way this was an ultimate geopolitical power move by the Trump administration; truly a public slap in the face to the Chinese Communist hosts.

Based on (mostly) foreign press accounts – cuz almost all U.S. press carefully curated this very dramatic aspect – the astonished looks on the faces of Chinese officials said everything. That is, China invests enormous cultural and diplomatic thought and credibility on the kinds of gifts it presents to foreign leaders and emissaries. As a rule, every item is deliberately selected and thoroughly screened. And returning, let alone trashing, an item is a countermove that lands like a punch in the nose.

In essence, the Trump administration publicly signaled to China that American officials, and all others associated with the visit, would not take a single thing back from Beijing to U.S. soil. And in this respect, it reflects much about the overall outcome of the state visit.

Thank you, but no thank you. Chinese gifts in trash. Credit Times of India.

Indeed, this gift-dump was far more than a security measure. The optics were like a laser beam burning holes in Chinese drones above the oceans. Chinese officials, who no doubt had spent weeks preparing presentations, watched it all get left behind on the runway. All this, while Trump proceeded to his airplane, boarded, flew away and left it all behind without looking back.

President Trump walks towards Air Force One at Beijing Capital International Airport. Credit White House Press Office.

And as the spectacle and Peking Opera of his state visit faded in the rearview mirror, so to speak, Trump headed home, played golf the next day, and – from what we hear – worked on plans to bomb Iran into powder.

I hope you enjoyed the show… And that’s all for now.

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