Summits, Skeptics and Rankings: Week in Review | U.S. News Decision Points

President Donald Trump touched down in Beijing this week, lawmakers at home are considering a federal gas tax holiday and U.S. News released its Best Countries rankings. Start at the top for the week in news, or skip to the end to learn more about this year’s country rankings.

To start the week, Olivier considered some potential outcomes from Trump’s Thursday visit to Beijing.

It was the first visit by a U.S. president to America’s main economic and strategic rival since Trump’s first term in 2017. Amid the Strait of Hormuz closure and high U.S. tariffs on China, what could this summit mean for Iran, trade and tech? Not much immediately, it turns out.

Reuters reported Trump left China today “with no major breakthroughs ⁠on trade ⁠or tangible help from Beijing to end the Iran war, despite two days ⁠spent heaping praise on his host, Xi Jinping.”

After that, Olivier reviewed Americans’ skepticism of Trump’s past assassination attempts, less than a month after the most recent attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

According to a new survey, nearly 1 in 4 Americans think the Correspondents’ Dinner incident was staged. If you add those who think at least one assassination attempt was staged with those who are “not sure” they were all real, the skeptics outnumber those who think all were real attempts on Trump’s life.

These views do follow a partisan split: 21% of Democrats believe all three incidents were staged, but only 3% of Republicans.

Trump recently changed his tune to support a suspension of the federal gas tax, as gas prices continue to weigh on Americans’ wallets. Olivier explained why Trump’s stance doesn’t mean an immediate break for drivers.

Congress ultimately has the power to suspend or impose the tax, and lawmakers seem divided.

Gas prices will likely only fall a few cents if the tax is suspended, and the Highway Trust Fund, which invests in the nation’s highways and mass transit systems, could lose about $17 billion in revenue – about half its projected budget.

U.S. News’ annual Best Countries rankings were released Thursday. Olivier caught up with Managing Editor for News Eric Litke to hear more about the project.

This year’s release uses a different methodology, compiling 100 different datasets from more than 30 organizations, including the U.N. and World Health Organization. That data informs countries’ rankings in eight categories – including Governance, Economic Development and Health – that are then weighted based on a survey of international experts. The new approach is a “more rigorous, honest way to look at the world,” Litke said.

Switzerland ranks No. 1 thanks to its “world-leading economic and political stability” and picturesque natural settings, Litke said. The United States found itself at No. 18 on the list – top-tier in Culture & Tourism and Economic Development but lower in Infrastructure, Health and Civic Health.