{"id":153457,"date":"2026-06-01T13:38:47","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T21:38:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/06\/01\/the-value-of-trumps-personal-relationship-with-xi-jinping\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T13:38:47","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T21:38:47","slug":"the-value-of-trumps-personal-relationship-with-xi-jinping","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/06\/01\/the-value-of-trumps-personal-relationship-with-xi-jinping\/","title":{"rendered":"The Value Of Trump\u2019s Personal Relationship With Xi Jinping"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
(Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

President Donald Trump insists that personal relationships make all the difference in the world.<\/p>\n

For example, Trump insisted that Roy Cohn was his \u201cclosest friend.\u201d\u00a0Until Cohn was diagnosed with AIDS.\u00a0Then, Trump\u00a0cut Cohn off<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Trump\u00a0defended<\/a>\u00a0former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn as a \u201cgood guy\u201d and a \u201cwonderful man.\u201d\u00a0Until Trump demanded Flynn\u2019s resignation.<\/p>\n

Trump described former Attorney General Jeff Sessions as a loyal ally.\u00a0Until Trump\u00a0pushed him<\/a>\u00a0out of favor.<\/p>\n

In 2017,\u00a0Trump said<\/a>\u00a0that he had \u201ca very good relationship \u2026 with Steve Bannon,\u201d adding that Bannon had been \u201ca friend of mine for a long time\u201d and that he \u201clike[d] Steve a lot.\u201d\u00a0That was before Trump fired Sloppy Steve.<\/p>\n

Trump also sai<\/a>d<\/a>\u00a0he had \u201ca very good relationship\u201d with former Defense Secretary Jim \u201cMad Dog\u201d Mattis and called him \u201ca good guy.\u201d Trump added that \u201cwe get along very well.\u201d\u00a0Trump was \u201cwith [Mattis] 100 percent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump effectively forced Mattis out of office a few weeks later.<\/p>\n

Come to think of it, this went around during Trump\u2019s first term in office.\u00a0There were many people who were great and talented and whom Trump liked and respected.\u00a0Right up until he fired them.\u00a0Those were folks like Rex Tillerson, John Bolton, John Kelly, James Comey, and \u2026\u00a0 well, I\u2019m getting bored.<\/p>\n

But it wasn\u2019t just members of the Cabinet. Think about Trump\u2019s relationships with foreign leaders.\u00a0During his first term in office, Trump and North Korea\u2019s Kim Jong-un had a summit during which they \u201cfell in love<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0They later sent love notes to each other.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Kim Jong-un did not give up North Korea\u2019s nuclear weapons.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In fact, Kim didn\u2019t give up anything.<\/p>\n

Bupkis.<\/p>\n

Trump famously has a wonderful relationship with Vladimir Putin.\u00a0 On one notable occasion, Trump said that he trusted Putin\u2019s word more than that of the American intelligence community.\u00a0 So naturally, when Trump tried to end Russia\u2019s war with Ukraine early in Trump\u2019s second term, Trump merely had to tweet, \u201cVladimir, STOP!<\/a>,\u201d roll out the red carpet for a personal meeting with Putin, and \u2026\u00a0 you know the rest.<\/p>\n

Bupkis.<\/p>\n

So I was certainly relieved to hear that the most important outcome of Trump\u2019s recent visit to China was that Trump and Xi developed a strong\u00a0personal relationship<\/a>.\u00a0In Trump\u2019s words:\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think the most important thing is relationship. It\u2019s all about relationship. Have a very good relationship with President Xi and with China, and it sounds like something that doesn\u2019t mean anything, but it\u2019s everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m sure that the United States will benefit from Trump\u2019s great relationship with Xi as dramatically as the country, and Trump himself, have benefited from all of the great relationships that Trump has had in the past.<\/p>\n

Come to think of it, maybe we should see what Ivana or Marla Maples (or Stormy Daniels or E. Jean Carroll) have to say about the value of Trump\u2019s deep and meaningful relationships.<\/p>\n

Or maybe we can find someone\u00a0about whom Trump said<\/a>,\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy. He\u2019s a lot of fun to be with.\u201d<\/p>\n

I guess Trump\u2019s not having fun with that guy or Ghislaine any more.<\/p>\n

Perhaps Trump\u2019s bloviations about his personal relationships are worth as much as his bloviations on other topics.<\/p>\n

Nothing beneficial came out of the summit with China, and nothing\u2019s likely to occur in the future as a result of Trump\u2019s great relationship with Xi.<\/p>\n

But maybe, when Trump\u2019s out of office, Xi will invest a few million bucks in one of Trump\u2019s real estate projects.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s better than bupkis.<\/p>\n

\n

Mark\u00a0Herrmann\u00a0spent 17 years as a partner at a leading international law firm and later oversaw litigation, compliance and employment matters at a large international company. He is the author of\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>The Curmudgeon\u2019s Guide to Practicing Law<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Drug and Device Product Liability Litigation Strategy<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(affiliate links). You can reach him by email at\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>inhouse@abovethelaw.com<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post The Value Of Trump\u2019s Personal Relationship With Xi Jinping<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"
(Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

President Donald Trump insists that personal relationships make all the difference in the world.<\/p>\n

For example, Trump insisted that Roy Cohn was his \u201cclosest friend.\u201d\u00a0Until Cohn was diagnosed with AIDS.\u00a0Then, Trump\u00a0cut Cohn off<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Trump\u00a0defended<\/a>\u00a0former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn as a \u201cgood guy\u201d and a \u201cwonderful man.\u201d\u00a0Until Trump demanded Flynn\u2019s resignation.<\/p>\n

Trump described former Attorney General Jeff Sessions as a loyal ally.\u00a0Until Trump\u00a0pushed him<\/a>\u00a0out of favor.<\/p>\n

In 2017,\u00a0Trump said<\/a>\u00a0that he had \u201ca very good relationship \u2026 with Steve Bannon,\u201d adding that Bannon had been \u201ca friend of mine for a long time\u201d and that he \u201clike[d] Steve a lot.\u201d\u00a0That was before Trump fired Sloppy Steve.<\/p>\n

Trump also sai<\/a>d<\/a>\u00a0he had \u201ca very good relationship\u201d with former Defense Secretary Jim \u201cMad Dog\u201d Mattis and called him \u201ca good guy.\u201d Trump added that \u201cwe get along very well.\u201d\u00a0Trump was \u201cwith [Mattis] 100 percent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump effectively forced Mattis out of office a few weeks later.<\/p>\n

Come to think of it, this went around during Trump\u2019s first term in office.\u00a0There were many people who were great and talented and whom Trump liked and respected.\u00a0Right up until he fired them.\u00a0Those were folks like Rex Tillerson, John Bolton, John Kelly, James Comey, and \u2026\u00a0 well, I\u2019m getting bored.<\/p>\n

But it wasn\u2019t just members of the Cabinet. Think about Trump\u2019s relationships with foreign leaders.\u00a0During his first term in office, Trump and North Korea\u2019s Kim Jong-un had a summit during which they \u201cfell in love<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0They later sent love notes to each other.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Kim Jong-un did not give up North Korea\u2019s nuclear weapons.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In fact, Kim didn\u2019t give up anything.<\/p>\n

Bupkis.<\/p>\n

Trump famously has a wonderful relationship with Vladimir Putin.\u00a0 On one notable occasion, Trump said that he trusted Putin\u2019s word more than that of the American intelligence community.\u00a0 So naturally, when Trump tried to end Russia\u2019s war with Ukraine early in Trump\u2019s second term, Trump merely had to tweet, \u201cVladimir, STOP!<\/a>,\u201d roll out the red carpet for a personal meeting with Putin, and \u2026\u00a0 you know the rest.<\/p>\n

Bupkis.<\/p>\n

So I was certainly relieved to hear that the most important outcome of Trump\u2019s recent visit to China was that Trump and Xi developed a strong\u00a0personal relationship<\/a>.\u00a0In Trump\u2019s words:\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think the most important thing is relationship. It\u2019s all about relationship. Have a very good relationship with President Xi and with China, and it sounds like something that doesn\u2019t mean anything, but it\u2019s everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m sure that the United States will benefit from Trump\u2019s great relationship with Xi as dramatically as the country, and Trump himself, have benefited from all of the great relationships that Trump has had in the past.<\/p>\n

Come to think of it, maybe we should see what Ivana or Marla Maples (or Stormy Daniels or E. Jean Carroll) have to say about the value of Trump\u2019s deep and meaningful relationships.<\/p>\n

Or maybe we can find someone\u00a0about whom Trump said<\/a>,\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy. He\u2019s a lot of fun to be with.\u201d<\/p>\n

I guess Trump\u2019s not having fun with that guy or Ghislaine any more.<\/p>\n

Perhaps Trump\u2019s bloviations about his personal relationships are worth as much as his bloviations on other topics.<\/p>\n

Nothing beneficial came out of the summit with China, and nothing\u2019s likely to occur in the future as a result of Trump\u2019s great relationship with Xi.<\/p>\n

But maybe, when Trump\u2019s out of office, Xi will invest a few million bucks in one of Trump\u2019s real estate projects.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s better than bupkis.<\/p>\n

\n

Mark\u00a0Herrmann\u00a0spent 17 years as a partner at a leading international law firm and later oversaw litigation, compliance and employment matters at a large international company. He is the author of\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>The Curmudgeon\u2019s Guide to Practicing Law<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Drug and Device Product Liability Litigation Strategy<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(affiliate links). You can reach him by email at\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>[email\u00a0protected]<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images) President Donald Trump insists that personal relationships make all the difference in the world. For example, Trump insisted that Roy Cohn was his \u201cclosest friend.\u201d\u00a0Until Cohn was diagnosed with AIDS.\u00a0Then, Trump\u00a0cut Cohn off. Trump\u00a0defended\u00a0former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn as a \u201cgood guy\u201d and a \u201cwonderful man.\u201d\u00a0Until Trump demanded Flynn\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":153458,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-153457","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/donald-trump-GettyImages-1152627372-zdBf6V.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153457","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=153457"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153457\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/153458"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=153457"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=153457"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=153457"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}