as of now there is no independent, verifiable information available that confirms either Karoline Leavitt [View all]

or Kevin Hassett’s statement about an imminent Trump-Xi call; the only public evidence is the White House’s own expectation, not confirmation from China or third-party sources.

So we should approach this with the skepticism and analytical rigor that the situation demands. Hassett’s statement—“President Trump, we expect, is going to have a wonderful conversation about the trade negotiations this week with President Xi”—is, at best, an expression of hope or a public relations maneuver, not a statement of fact grounded in observable reality.

from economist Brad DeLong's substack
https://open.substack.com/pub/braddelong/p/what-have-we-here-a-headline-toning