Trump’s signature style of economic diplomacy in his second term has been aggressive, performative, and relentlessly transactional—yet ultimately hollow. He brandishes tariffs like a bludgeon, issues ultimatums that draw headlines, and then declares victory as trading partners scramble to offer up what appear to be grand concessions. But beneath the spectacle lies a recurring pattern: the deals don’t actually materialize. They are designed not to succeed, but to sound successful. Whether it’s the European Union’s grand “investment package,” Masayoshi Son’s American data center fanfare, or the promise of Taiwanese capital flooding into Intel, the common thread is that nothing real has happened—and likely never will before the next election.
Take the much-hyped EU “deal.” In exchange for reduced tariff threats, European negotiators supposedly agreed to a sweeping $750 billion energy purchase pledge and $600 billion in private investment into U.S. markets. But dig beneath the surface and you find there’s no ratified agreement, no mechanism for enforcement, and no timeline. It’s a vaporous promise made under duress, quietly set aside once the tariffs were paused. No European parliament has signed off. No corporate consortium has announced funding tranches. Brussels simply agreed to delay the pain until someone else might be in charge in Washington.
The Japanese case is no better. Trump made headlines claiming a breakthrough after Masayoshi Son of SoftBank pledged to build a $100 billion hyperscale AI data center in Texas. It sounded grand, symbolic of allied commitment, and perfect for a campaign talking point. But insiders know that Son has made similar pronouncements before—some even dating back to 2017—with little to show for them. Zoning hasn’t been approved, financing remains ambiguous, and SoftBank itself is mired in Vision Fund write-downs. The data center story plays more like political theater than economic commitment.
Taiwan, meanwhile, was threatened with punishing tariffs—except for its prized semiconductor exports. That caveat alone undermined the tariff threat’s credibility. Trump then pointed to behind-the-scenes “progress” with TSMC, suggesting the company would pour billions into Intel to forge a new U.S.-Taiwan tech alliance. But what’s actually happened? Nothing. TSMC’s executives have made no such investment. No SEC filings show any stake building. If anything, Taiwan’s leaders are working overtime to avoid escalation while stalling for the calendar to run down. Their best strategy is to keep their heads down and let the political cycle take its course.
This is not a new pattern for Trump. The Ukrainian rare earth deal announced in his first term—a joint venture to produce critical minerals from Ukrainian mines—was lauded as a geopolitical coup. It vanished almost immediately. No contracts. No funding. No production. Just photo ops and press releases. The same applies today. Trading partners have learned how to manage the storm: agree to something symbolic, buy time, and drag their feet until the next administration resets the board.
The illusion of these deals serves Trump’s short-term political needs. They let him claim that tariffs have worked, that foreign nations are paying America for the privilege of avoiding his wrath. But the facts on the ground don’t align with the headlines. The EU hasn’t spent a euro. Japan hasn’t broken ground. Taiwan hasn’t moved a cent. These phantom packages are not agreements; they are escape hatches for foreign governments caught in the blast radius of Trump’s tariff diplomacy. And more often than not, they are used only to stall, slow-walk, and stall some more—while the world watches to see who wins in November.