In this context, President Xi’s recent visit to a rare earths plant, and a speech he made urging comrades to dig in for the long and difficult road ahead, makes perfect sense. The symbolism was clear: Even if the trade war lasts decades, the equivalent of the Long March of 1934 which preceded the emergence of the Chinese Communist Party and Mao Zedong, China will ultimately prevail. When it does, Xi will be the leader of “a new China” in much the same way as Chairman Mao. Also notable in Xi’s book is the near-complete absence of the United States. In Xi’s world, the US, writes Carlson, is neither friend nor ... (full story)