Trump now tied with Clition nationally according to Real Clear Poltics average

[Aractus]

We won't go into the instability China is creating in the South China Sea with its random claims which happen to sit astride sea lanes used by all countries, your own included.

Your short-sightedness is amusing.

The disputed territories in the south china sea a. have not resulted in the kind of action the USA would take (trade embargos, war, or secret CIA operations), and b. were not created by China any more than by the Philippines, Malaysia, or Vietnam. You are clearly clueless on world affairs. China - being the wealthiest nation in the dispute - could in fact build their military presence in the region up well beyond that of the other nations - but it hasn't. Yes it has the strongest military base, but no large than one would expect them to have, and it's largely in response to the other nations building up their military presence to defend claim of ownership over the region. The south china sea is kind of like the Mediterranean Sea - it's surrounded by a whole bunch of different nation-states, but those nations are for the most part peaceful towards each other. The only thing that would start a war in that region is the USA who have no business in it, just like they would have no business in a dispute in the Mediterranean. Taiwan (which is actually China FYI and the country we usually mean when we say "China" is the "People's Republic of China") has a whole bunch of territorial claims there too. To try and pick one country and put the blame on them for the disputed territories is completely disingenuous. Even if PRC decided tomorrow they were going to width-draw all territorial claims in the region, it would still be disputed with military bases by five other nations. Plus if they did that it would make them look weak, and the PRC citizens wouldn't like it either.