Towing the party line
Sorry Jack -- Yes we did this to ourselves, but not because we decided on a weird business strategy -- we have some pretty smart guys over here (new and old) that would have course corrected long ago.
We did this to ourselves by enforcing centrally a set of standards that China simply does not have to meet. We force companies to not pollute, and sue them into oblivion if they don't meet social standards such as osha or handicap availability or affirmative action type laws. I'm not saying its all bad, but these are costs that our companies must absorb.
Meanwhile on your side of the equation you have smog holidays, your currency manipulation bankrupts the lower and middle classes, companies that match the party direction are subsidized and may not face any kind of competition, and foreign goods are allowed in only to the extent that they further the chinese strategic interests. The last part would be fine, except that that level of competition hasn't been met by an equal force from our side.
Until now. While giving carrots to companies is something the US government avoids (minus political subsidization such as solyndra, tesla, etc), We see Trump willing to use the stick. Not my first choice (translation -- I oppose this policy..), but certainly better than the one sided handicapping the US has imposed on itself in the modern era.