Donald Trump doesn't enter the White House until Jan. 20, but China's leaders are already dancing in their Beijing offices.
That's not the official line. On the surface, Chinese President Xi Jinping's government is aghast at the protectionist U-turn in Washington, Trump's fiery China-bashing and pledges to shock international trade dynamics. Below it, Xi's Communist Party has big plans for making China great again these next four years — with the unwitting help of America's next leader.
Trump's haste to pull out of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change is a preview of how it will work. When Xie Zhenhua, China's veteran climate chief, says, "I believe a wise political leader should take policy stances that conform with global trends," he trolled Trump on three levels. One, his grasp of basic science (Trump says climate change is a hoax created by China). Two, his role as global spoiler. Three, the irony of a businessman missing the biggest business opportunity of our day: replacing fossil fuels.