[If it comes to that, cheap goods we’re getting from China will probably come from other low-wage countries that don’t mind dealing with us a bit more fairly. ]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhu_Chenghu
We wouldn’t give let the Russians run a massive trade surplus against us. Why would we let the Chinese do so?
Because, perhaps, people didn't feel as threatened by a supposedly liberalized China, not thinking that politically they're just as bad, if not worse, than Russia.