While China is brazing itself to withstand Trumpian bullying on all fronts, the narrative that the United States holds all the cards against China deserves a little perspective. China has powerful cards up its sleeve.

First, according to a report in Foreign Policy, China could shut down America's defenses by denying access to China's monopoly of high-end processed rare earths. Second, as anti-China tariffs widen to catch more and more consumer products, according to the IMF, the U.S. is paying China's tariff costs .Third, China is weaponizing its position as the world's second largest economy by drawing up a retaliatory "Unreliable Entities" blacklist. 

These three alone should give pause to America First sky-is-the-limit bullying of China, not to mention an arsenal of other non-tariff measures calculated to inflict serious harm to many American businesses exposed to the China market as well as other manoeuvres designed to complicate America's diplomatic and geopolitical interests including North Korea.