When the big boys meet, everyone watches to see who comes out on top

For Donald Trump, burdened with a sluggish economy, an unpopular war, and polling numbers lower than the morale at the Pentagon, the goal is trade deals that will ease his problems back home. That’s why he took every billionaire business dude he could find along on the trip. For Xi Jinping, the calculus is different.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump. The consequences for the U.S. addiction to debt go far beyond domestic implications, which brings us back to the super-power summit in China. Trump goes into this meeting diminished. He may not be hat in hand, but it’s close, writes Michael Harris. Photographs courtesy of Commons Wikimedia and Flickr

Opinion

BY MICHAEL HARRIS

May 18, 2026

HALIFAX—When the big boys meet, everyone watches to see who comes out on top.

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