India, Sept. 21 -- When President Donald Trump first ran for office, he called out China as a menace to the US economy, saying it had gutted America's factories and eroded the middle class.

That tough talk helped Trump get to the White House a decade ago, but since then, he increasingly speaks in glowing terms about Chinese President Xi Jinping, the geopolitical rival Trump will fete on Thursday with a state dinner.

"He's a great gentleman; we get along great," Trump said this month. "We have a very good trading relationship and, you know, they're a competitor and all of that, but we have a very good relationship with President Xi."

On issue after issue, the Republican president has given Xi a pass.

Trump shrugged off reports that Chi...