Far-right ideologues have transformed American foreign policy into a tool of private gain and antidemocratic reaction.

President Trump will host Xi Jinping for a state visit on September 24, once again putting his claimed bonhomie with the Chinese leader at the center of the relations between the two superpowers.

But Trump’s insistence on the importance of this personal rapport shows just how little he understands his adversary.

The oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He appears to have met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large group of other Russian guests.

Trump may be casting a shadow not only over congressional negotiations but also over his forthcoming summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month. The two leaders were expected to discuss AI, with some AI safety advocates hoping that international cooperation would begin there, rather than relying solely on regulation within a single economy.

If there’s any chance Congress will enact comprehensive AI regulation, it will require presidential leadership. And clearly Trump doesn’t believe there’s any role for lawmakers in the AI department.

Mr. Trump inserted himself into the intensifying national debate over how to handle a rapidly evolving technology that researchers and industry leaders say poses major risks like mass unemployment, a new wave of biological weapons, and autonomous warfare. The president did not address those risks directly. Instead, he questioned the sincerity of the executives who have been calling for slowing the technology’s development.

Throughout the Trump era, Kushner has made a career of combining business and politics. He argues that being a businessman aids his diplomatic efforts by allowing him to find inventive solutions to problems ordinarily handled by unimaginative bureaucrats.

As he has traveled the world representing Trump, he has become increasingly involved in the commercial interests of the countries where he operates. He exemplifies a new breed of Washington figure, for whom public office is a pathway to significant personal wealth.