President Trump returned from his face-to-face meeting with Xi Jinping in Busan calling the talks “outstanding” and even joked they were a “12 out of 10,” a line that captured the confidence of an administration that refused to be bullied by Beijing. Americans who remember soft diplomacy know this kind of blunt praise comes from getting results, not from posing for cameras.
What came out of the summit was not empty rhetoric but a tangible, one-year trade truce that pauses the most dangerous escalations and reopens lines of commerce vital to our defense and tech industries. The agreement reportedly rolls back China’s rare-earth export restrictions, restarts big purchases of U.S. soybeans, and postpones harsher export controls — all moves that protect American factories and farmers who have been ground down by bad trade policies.
On a poison-pill issue for our communities, Beijing pledged to step up efforts to curb fentanyl precursor flows, and Washington agreed to reduce certain fentanyl-linked tariffs from 20 percent to 10 percent as part of the bargain. That’s the kind of real-world give-and-take that saves lives and keeps American households safer without surrendering our sovereignty.
Minutes before meeting Xi, President Trump made the bold decision to order the Pentagon to resume U.S. nuclear testing on an equal basis with other nations — a move he framed as restoring deterrence after years of strategic drift. For patriots who believe peace is bought by strength, that was a clear message to adversaries: America will not lie down while others test the bounds of global stability.
Critics will shriek about “appeasement,” but the adults in the room know a smart deal is better than perpetual conflict that destroys jobs and spikes prices. Markets barely moved after the announcement because savvy investors recognize a managed pause beats an uncontrolled war of tariffs; Trump negotiated from strength and secured outcomes for American workers, energy producers, and the defense industrial base.
That said, patriots should be clear-eyed: Taiwan was not discussed in public during these talks, and the island’s security remains a solemn duty that cannot be bartered away in backroom deals. If the administration is serious about protecting freedom, it must translate this moment of diplomacy into firm commitments that defend our democratic partners while keeping American forces ready.
The media and the usual chorus of globalist elites will try to turn every pragmatic step into a crisis, but hardworking Americans want leaders who deliver results — cheaper fertilizers, predictable supply chains for semiconductors, and stronger deterrence against rogue powers. President Trump showed today that America can stand tall, negotiate tough, and win tangible concessions without surrendering our national pride.
Now is the time for every patriot to stand behind diplomacy that produces results and behind a commander-in-chief who remembers that strength, not sentimentality, preserves liberty and prosperity for the next generation.
