Also, your point about the capital owning elite is well taken. Overall, almost no country as a WHOLE has benefited from Chinese development, because every country essentially runs massive deficits with China due to China’s internal industrial and income distribution policies (the surpluses are by design). But those who own the companies which export to China, or which handle the massive outflows of Chinese capital, have benefited enormously (in American-speak, we could call these large corporations and Wall Street).

Germany is a glaring exception to this rule as they more or less run an even trade balance with China since Germany also massively suppresses wages to decrease export prices and boost unemployment at home (in fairness, the original intent of Hartz 2 seems to have been fixing the inflated East German exchange rate, but the current consequence is to suppress imports and increase exports). From this perspective, we have far more leverage over Germany than China does—VW may make 50% of its revenue in China, but Germany just takes for granted USA market access, and after they just announced they are no longer a USA ally (and are a de facto China one since China actively punished you for not toeing the like, unlike the USA), I don’t see why we should automatically not play hardball back when the Germans are playing it with us.

That’s an angry, emotional response o realize and I don’t want to drive Germany away, but the facts of their policy dictate some kind of USA change of approach whatever it may be.