Last week during the G7 summit, President Trump claimed that he was in ongoing calls with China to resolve the trade-war.

He told reporters:

“China called last night our top trade people and said, ‘Let’s get back to the table.’ So we will be getting back to the table and I think they want to do something.”

“They have been hurt very badly but they understand this is the right thing to do and I have great respect for it. This is a very positive development for the world. I think we are going to have a deal.”

That confused the Chinese. When asked by a reporter to respond, a spokesperson said:

“Regarding the phone call in the weekend, I am not aware of that. I can tell you clearly that I haven’t heard of such a thing.”

Turns out the President was lying to everyone.

Though Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin insisted there had been “communication,” aides privately conceded the phone calls Trump described didn’t happen they way he said they did.

Instead, two officials said Trump was eager to project optimism that might boost markets, and conflated comments from China’s vice premier with direct communication from the Chinese.

It’s hard to trust a leader who lies so egregiously.