A rousing White House social media clip casts Donald Trump as national savior, heroically installing his “Liberation Day” tariffs to overcome the “foreign scavengers” who’ve torn apart the American dream. Cheered on by devotees in hard hats and blue-collar uniforms, all to a soundtrack befitting the latest action movie, the message is blunt: America is blowing up the rules.

An equally slick production from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs starts with tense music as America’s hegemonism, greed, exploitation, tariffs and other evils are recounted. Then, halfway through, John Lennon’s “Imagine” kicks in with serene images of a Chinese-led world of security, equality, justice and “barriers transformed into bridges.” “What kind of world do you want to live in?” it asks.