By Ray Cardello for November 15, 2023, Season 23 / Post 11

Chinese President Xi Jinping supposedly has not spoken to President Joe Biden since the Spy Balloon incident in February. This seems odd for a relationship that Biden calls one of his strongest. Maybe Joe measures the quality of relationships by the deposits to the Biden family bank accounts. That is not how Americans measure our international relations. The consensus of Americans is we have lost standing on the global front during the Biden term. There have been numerous trips by members of Biden’s Administration in 2023, but none of them got time with Xi. Gavin Newsom did spend time with Xi during his recent China trip, much to the embarrassment of the Biden Team.

Many topics should be on the agenda for Biden to address with Xi. There are so many topics that show the difference between the two countries. Let’s look at the list and then the list that the two leaders will probably touch on.

1. Threat of invasion of Taiwan
2. The Uyghur concentration camps and genocide
3. Violation of American air space for surveillance 
4. Fentanyl 
5. Purchase of American land by Chinese nationals
6. Theft of intellectual property
7. The role of China in the Ukraine and Israeli conflicts
8. The source of the COVID-19 virus
9. The manipulation of the Chinese currency
10. The Militarization of the Indo-Pacific Seas

These are some serious issues that threaten the lives and security of America as well as threats to our economy. Still, the crux of the conversations will undoubtedly be Climate Change and increased business between the United States and China. This bilateral meeting will be a wasted opportunity to address critical issues. Still, Biden and his team will bend a knee and placate the Chinese President even though his long-range goal is Global Domination and about as fake as the clean-up of San Francisco for this summit.

California, and specifically San Francisco, went into a whirlwind cleaning spree to make the City by the Bay presentable for the visit of Xi. This clean-up involved repaving some of the downtown streets, the power washing of the subway system, and, most importantly, the removal of the homeless and the tent cities throughout San Francisco. On any given day, there are nearly 4,500 homeless living in tents or sleeping directly on the sidewalk. This massive fall cleaning was accomplished in one weekend, leaving many asking why it took the top Chinese coming to town for the clean-up. Why could it not be done for the residents and taxpayers of Frisco. San Francisco is the home of the most elaborate and expensive real estate in the country. Still, there has been a massive exodus of businesses and residents from California and major cities like San Francisco in recent years. The absence of the homeless on the City’s streets does not mean the homeless tent city situation has been solved. These thousands of homeless have been moved to the streets of Oakland for the duration of the summit and President Xi’s visit. Then, they will be allowed to return “home,” and life will return to the ugly reality in San Francisco. The new look of San Francisco and the summit are a big charade, but Americans are seeing behind the curtain, and this week’s events will not favorably impact Biden.