For the past several weeks China has been hoping to divide the trade dispute into two tracks thereby separating trade issues related to U.S. national security.  Beijing wants, heck needs, the simple agricultural trade because they are food dependent and need that uninterrupted.  However, they are strongly opposed to a comprehensive trade reset.
Beijing wants to wait-out President Trump on the more substantive issues surrounding: intellectual property rights; forced transfer of IP and manufacturing secrets; non tariff barriers including limited access to China’s controlled markets; and state run company subsidies that lead to market dumping and saturation.
Along with avoiding legal compliance issues, China wants to carve-out the complex stuff from a simple trade agreement.
However, when asked today about the possibility of carving out a partial deal President Trump emphatically said: “NO”.  During a press conference with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, President Trump said:

“We’re looking for a complete deal, I’m not looking for a partial deal.  China has been starting to buy our agricultural product; if you noticed over the last week, and actually some very big purchases. But that’s not what I’m looking for, we’re looking for the big deal.

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Earlier today President Trump and First Lady Melania welcomed Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Mrs. Jenny Morrison to the White House.  Prior to delegation meetings the President and Prime Minister held a press availability in the oval office.
As part of the breaking news discussion, President Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced new sanctions on Iran.  [Video and FULL Transcript Below]

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[Transcript] PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much everybody. It’s a great honor to have the Prime Minister of Australia. And congratulations and thank you very much, Mrs. Morrison. Thank you very much for being here. We appreciate it. This was a lovely ceremony. I hope you liked it.
PRIME MINISTER MORRISON: Absolutely.
MRS. MORRISON: We absolutely loved it.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: It was in honor of you and Australia.
MRS. MORRISON: Thank you.
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President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison will be holding a joint press conference from the East Room at approximately Noon ET.
[UPDATE: Video Added, Transcript will follow]

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President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump participate in the arrival ceremony for a state visit by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Lady Jenny Morrison. [Video and Transcript Below]

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[Transcript] PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you. Prime Minister Morrison, Mrs. Morrison, members of the Australian delegation, and distinguished guests: Today we celebrate the long, cherished, and unwavering friendship between the United States and Australia.
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Today the President and First Lady will welcome Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Lady Jenny Morrison for an official state visit to the United States.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie – Oi, Oi, Oi

After a day of formal and semi-formal activity, the Morrisons’ will be guests of honor at a White House state dinner in the Rose Garden.   Schedule:
♦ 9:00am ET THE PRESIDENT and THE FIRST LADY participate in the arrival ceremony of the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Mrs. Jenny Morrison of Australia – South Lawn
♦ 9:30am ET THE PRESIDENT and THE FIRST LADY participate in the official guest book signing and leader gift exchange – Blue Room
♦ 9:40am ET THE PRESIDENT and THE FIRST LADY participate in a receiving line with the official Australian Delegation – Cross Hall
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The White House will become a sea of yellow roses and good cheer over the next few days as US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania prepare to honor Prime Minister Scott Morrison from Australia.
Yes, today begins a series of Aussie Days throughout the U.S. as Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Lady Jenny Morrison arrive as guests of U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump for an official state visit.
Last night the red carpet was rolled out at the US military’s Joint Base Andrews when the new Australian prime ministerial plane touched down. Mr Morrison and wife Jenny were greeted by US Chief of Protocol Cam Henderson with an Air Force guard of honor and band playing the national anthems Advance Australia Fair and the Star-Spangled Banner.

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Michael Pillsbury traveled to Hong Kong recently to help explain the goals and objectives of President Trump’s U.S-China trade position.  During an interview, Mr. Pillsbury warns Beijing interests not to interpret the current U.S. position as aggressive, because the dragon has yet to see the severe side to Trump’s position.

During an interview with the South China Morning Post, Pillsbury points out there are a great many more ways that President Trump is prepared to respond if the combative trade position from China remains hostile to any concessions.  This first option was their best option.  However, should they choose further trade conflict, President Trump will happily oblige.
CTH research on Trump’s outlook, vis-a-vis China, has led us to believe there is no upper limit to the economic weapons President Trump is willing to deploy; and considering that Pillsbury can be relied upon to deliver honest, accurate and deliberate remarks about the White House position, these warnings from a close advisor to the President should be weighted accordingly.

(South China Morning Post) – The United States is set to ramp up the pressure on China if a trade deal is not agreed soon, a key White House adviser said, adding that Washington has so far imposed only “low level tariffs” on the Asian giant.

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Fox News host Maria Bartiromo had Kevin McCarthy and Larry Kudlow on Fox Business to discuss the status of ratification for the USMCA agreement.   After McCarthy outlines the politics of Nancy Pelosi intentionally holding back the ratification vote, and states if the agreement is not passed prior to Thanksgiving it will not be done, Larry Kudlow follows up with a more optimistic outlook.

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Keep in mind, Speaker Pelosi doesn’t know that close trade followers are aware of her deal with Justin Trudeau to hold back on ratification in an blatantly political effort. Here’s Kevin McCarthy’s full interview.
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Chopper pressers are the best pressers; even when they are from the tarmac at LAX in California.  Moments ago President Donald Trump talked to the press pool with his newly named national security adviser, Robert O’Brien.  [Video below Transcript ADDED]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. We’re with Robert O’Brien, who, as you know, is the new National Security Advisor. He’s worked with me for quite a while now on hostages, and we’ve had a tremendous track record with respect to hostages. Robert can tell you about it.
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Housing starts (and permits) have been a long-term key performance indicator for the economic stability and strength of Main Street USA for generations. Across all key metrics, the economics of middle-class America is defined by confidence in housing. A strong housing market reflects worker/purchaser confidence in their economic position.

The U.S. Commerce Department reports today that U.S. housing starts and permits has reached a 12-year-high. [data here] This is a key point because it cuts to the heart of the difference between a thriving Main Street economy and the disconnect surrounding issues with Wall Street (multinational) financial markets.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. homebuilding surged to more than a 12-year high in August as both single- and multi-family housing construction accelerated, suggesting that lower mortgage rates were finally providing a boost to the struggling housing market.

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