US President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney engaged in their favorite game of "Who's the better China-basher" during the second presidential debate in the United States on Tuesday.

But by playing this game they are endangering bilateral ties, which both sides have made painstaking efforts to nurture.

Their China-bashing theatrics are worthy of the magician David Blaine, as they have created the illusion that China is the cause of all the US' troubles and the candidate who appears to be the toughest on China has the best chance of winning.

The Obama administration recently rolled out a series of protectionist measures against Chinese products and investments as props to support this illusion.

In September, in what was perceived as the first time in 22 years that a US president has blocked such a foreign business deal, Obama banned Ralls Corp, which is owned by two executives of China's largest machinery manufacturer Sany Group, from owning four wind farms in Oregon citing national security concerns.

And earlier this month, the US House Intelligence Committee released a report, which accused two Chinese technology firms - Huawei and ZTE - of posing a national security threat to the US. However, as Reuters reported on Wednesday, a White House-ordered review found no clear evidence that Huawei poses security risks to the US, showing that national security is being employed to misdirect the public in the US.

It is high time the US presidential candidates stopped scapegoating, isolating and vilifying China in their attempts to create the illusion that US politicians are not responsible for the difficulties their country is facing.

It is worth noting that instead of stealing US jobs as the two candidates like to claim, a recent study by the Rhodium Group, a New York-based organization that analyzes global trends, found that the 600 Chinese direct investment transactions made in the US between 2000 and 2012 support 27,000 jobs in the US today.

The two candidates should present a true picture of China to the American people. This picture should acknowledge that the economic interests of the world's top two economies are so intertwined that engaging China is the only way to achieve win-win results.

(China Daily 10/19/2012 page8)