Trump goes nuclear amid Asia tour, ongoing government shutdown

Donald Trump, who prides himself on being a peacemaker, is turning to nuclear.

For more than 30 years, the Americans and Russians—and before that the Soviets—negotiated nuclear weapons limitations. The theory was simple: Both countries had the power to destroy the world multiple times over, so why spend countless billions on an endless arms race?

Trump made this announcement just before his meeting with the president of China, which ranks third as a nuclear power but is rapidly catching up.

“Due to the testing programs of other countries, I have directed the War Department to begin testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis,” the President wrote. Although he said of the tests, “We have more nuclear weapons than anyone else,” he added, “I think it’s appropriate for us to have nuclear weapons, too.”

TRUMP BREAKED 33-YEAR-OLD NUCLEAR TEST SILENCE AS THE WORLD PREPARES FOR A DANGEROUS NEW ARMS RACE

This comes as Vladimir Putin is flexing his military muscles by saying he is developing a “Poseidon” nuclear-powered torpedo that could bury a country like the United Kingdom under a tsunami of radioactive water, rendering the country uninhabitable.

I leave it to experts to discuss whether it makes sense for Trump to stockpile costly weapons in a rapidly changing nuclear environment.

But that could be a politically tough sell at a time when the White House says it can’t find the money to keep the SNAP program from shutting down Saturday because of a government shutdown that has reached the one-month mark.

The contrast led to a bitter exchange with Chuck Schumer, who said Trump was “wandering around Asia, dancing in Malaysia” instead of meeting with Democrats to end the shutdown. The president, who said he worked really hard, described Schumer’s words as “almost a betrayal!!!” He described it as.

It is true that Trump has little interest in shutting down, hoping that the other side will be pressured by the growing pain.

Now that the dust has settled, Trump appears to have left little out of his 90-minute call with Xi Jinping other than glossing over their differences.

Both sides agreed to postpone higher tariffs for one year; Although this reduces tensions, it actually just means a return to the status quo. This is a classic Trump tactic of making threats and then softening his stance. Maybe he’ll even agree to talk to Canada again after the outrage over Reagan’s ad about tariffs.

There was not a word about TikTok, which is thought to be one of the easier problems to solve. Trump rallied some wealthy allies to buy the hugely popular app, but he needed Xi’s approval and didn’t get it.

TRUMP HAD FOUR MAJOR WINS WITH THE XI BUT MISSED ONE MAJOR

During his talks in South Korea, Xi also agreed to postpone restrictions on rare earth minerals that are vital in making today’s ultra-fast computer chips.

Beijing also agreed to restore American soybean purchases to previous levels over the next three years. This is good news for our farmers, but there is still basically a return to previous levels. Treasury Secretary Howard Bessent says this level could rise even higher, but that’s just an optimistic forecast.

Xi, by contrast, cares about one issue above all else, and Trump says it doesn’t come up (unless it’s kept secret).

Taiwan.

President Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping met in South Korea, but the former doesn’t appear to have strayed very far from the meeting. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

Some reports say Xi hopes Trump will soften his language on the region, which China considers a breakaway province. The United States has always promised to defend the island if attacked. Xi wasn’t expecting it, but Trump’s statement that the United States does not support Taiwan independence — other presidents, including Bill Clinton, have also said this — would help the Chinese dictator gauge the climate if (as we see it) he decides to move against the country 100 miles from the coast.

Trump claimed that China did not want to invade Taiwan and did not say much to reporters other than “Taiwan is Taiwan.”

All of this represents a welcome reset in US relations with China, easing months of harsh rhetoric. But Trump, who now plans to visit China, has essentially brought things back to normal.

Trump said, “Taiwan is Taiwan.” (Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo/Reuters)

Footnote: I have been saying for months that Trump will not run for a third term and that he is trolling the press by playing with this idea.

It turns out I was right.

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“I guess I’m not allowed to run,” which “is too bad,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One. He’s right. It is expressly prohibited by the Constitution.

For all the speculation in the media, some of it fueled by Steve Bannon, some of it triggered by his grand ballroom plan; Why build it if he’s not going to use it? – Trump has never been serious about this.

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No president wants to be seen as a lame duck prematurely. By leaving the door ajar, Trump anticipated the idea that the press, politicians and the public might have to deal with him after 2028. But now the door is closed.