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We have the trade profile of a banana republic.

If you believe that then it means you haven't done even the most basic research and I concur, we have little to agree on.

According to the Office of the US Trade Representative as it relates to exports to China:

"The top export categories (2-digit HS) in 2015 were: aircraft ($15 billion), electrical machinery ($13 billion), machinery ($12 billion), miscellaneous grain, seeds, fruit (soybeans) ($11 billion), and vehicles ($11 billion)."

"The top export categories (2-digit HS) in 2015 were: aircraft ($15 billion), electrical machinery ($13 billion), machinery ($12 billion), miscellaneous grain, seeds, fruit (soybeans) ($11 billion), and vehicles ($11 billion)."

Yep - we manufacture and export weapons to everyone in the world, we just don't manufacture much that our own citizens need. I don't know too many people who have bought aircraft, electrical machinery, or machinery. Fewer Americans are eating soybeans, as they find out how destructive they can be to the body (increasing estrogen levels). There are some people out there buying vehicles, or so I hear, although I'm in a well-off college town and don't see too many of them (except stacked on dealer lots, of course).

Weaponry, including planes, guided missiles, tracking systems, military drones, etc are extremely expensive and add significant dollars to the export numbers, but not that much to actual decent paying jobs.

"Plummeting U.S. exports of recycled paper contributed to a 5.2 percent decline in overall U.S. exports during the first half of 2015, as lower-value commodities were hit by weak demand, a strong dollar and the lingering impact of West Coast port delays.

Recycled paper is the highest-volume U.S. containerized export"

http://www.joc.com/international-trade-news/trade-data/us-wastepaper-exports-plummet_20150820.html