Trump backpedals on China threats as trade deal shows signs of slipping away

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Tuesday said a new trade deal with China might not come until after the 2020 election, a significant departure from more than a year of trying to exert pressure on the world's second-largest economy.

His comments were the latest in a series of rapidly evolving, and sometime contradictory, strategic shifts. Less than two months ago, he announced that a huge crackdown against China was imminent. On Tuesday, he suggested that further action could be more than a year away, and everything could change based on whether he is reelected...