When Do We Get to See the Trade Deal, Mr. President?

It's already 2020 in Shanghai! Are they ahead of us on trade, too?SIPA Asia via ZUMA

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Our mysterious “Phase One” trade deal with China is set to be signed:

President Trump said Tuesday he will sign the first phase of a trade deal with China on Jan. 15, as the two nations move to cement a partial truce to the trade war….But even though the White House said a deal was reached more than two weeks ago, neither side has released the exact wording of their agreement. Still, the announced deal has been enough to lift financial markets because many investors feel encouraged about the direction of the talks.

President Trump keeps boasting about how this trade deal is worth $30 billion to America’s farmers. Or maybe $40 billion. Or $50 billion. It’s the greatest trade deal in history!

And yet, for some reason nobody has seen the actual text of the deal. It’s tied up in “translation.” Or “legal review.” Or something. My own guess is that it’s tied up in “this deal doesn’t really do much of anything at all.” But I’m a cynic.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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