Facing Chinese threats to disrupt the Wall Street Journal’s operations, the Trump administration should warn that it will retaliate against any Chinese action directed toward the publication.

The Chinese Communist Party is upset over Walter Russell Mead’s recent Wall Street Journal column “China is the real sick man of Asia.” China says that the column is racist and “against professional ethics.” Its foreign ministry spokesman, Geng Shuang, is demanding that the newspaper “make a public apology [and] hold the persons involved accountable.” If not, he says, “We reserve the right to take further measures.”