The real number is probably a great deal higher due to (1) inflation, since the trade deficit's dollar value from 20-40 years ago may have been significantly smaller, but the value of those dollars was itself higher; and (2) the fact that you can't really put a price on technology. China went from rickshaws to rockets in 50 years.
In the process, we created a rival superpower. For what? "Cheap" goods. Well, cheap goods aren't so cheap when you don't have a job, and when you eventually have to pay for them with blood.