The essence of mercantilism is that it views the state, not the individual, as the focus of economic activity. No one doubts that Trump is a mercantilist. How would this operate in practice relative to China?
It makes perfect sense to view the Chinese state, not individuals and corporations, as the party on the other side; after all, the “Chinese dream” is for China as a whole to become strong and prosperous, and individuals to own a microscopic piece of the pie. The CCP is so entwined with the Chinese economy that it can plausibly direct its individual actors to buy, or refuse to buy, American products, for example. On the American side, however, this approach won’t work; Trump can’t order you or me to buy x number of Chinese products, because our system subordinates the state to individual economic actors. That means any attempt at managed trade, which is clearly Trump’s objective, is going to be completely one-sided.