The messy truth about US politics

If I were Chinese, I might not be amused by the raucous circus of presidential politics in the US. I might be alarmed.

The surprising success of Donald Trump, an entertaining but dangerous demagogue out of Mussolini's fascist mold, is enough to send shivers down the spine of the whole civilized world.

This is a guy who has said that he gathers his foreign policy advice from TV news shows. He claims he will impose 45 percent penalties on Chinese imports. He'll "bomb the hell" out of enemies, invoking nuclear weapons. He'll make Mexico pay for a border wall. And this barely scratches the surface.