As Republicans increasingly look to highlight China’s role in the coronavirus outbreak, President Trump is mystifying allies by being unusually reluctant to point fingers at Beijing.
“The relationship with China is a good one, and my relationship with [Chinese President Xi Jinping] is really good,” Trump told reporters at a White House briefing on the coronavirus. Trump has been a frequent critic of Chinese trade practices and labeled the country's government a currency manipulator and an intellectual property thief. He campaigned against the American job losses that ensued after opening trade with China in the 1990s, and as president has used tariffs as leverage to secure what he sees as a fairer deal.
Yet even as allies on Capitol Hill push for more scrutiny of the Chinese government’s underreporting of the coronavirus, Trump has been muted in his criticism. Asked about the veracity of Beijing’s coronavirus numbers, Trump allowed they were “a little bit on the light side,” but said, “As to whether or not their numbers are accurate, I'm not an accountant from China.” When asked on Fox and Friends about Chinese misinformation about the coronavirus, he replied that “every country does it.”
“I think the president has been soft on China. I wonder if there’s a reason, as he’s usually not a soft guy,” said Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary under George W. Bush. “I suspect he’s doing it because he wants to win the trade war when he’s done.”
Trump supporters and administration alumni have no illusions about the Chinese Communist Party. “The CCP is solely responsible for allowing this plague to engulf the world, including the innocent Chinese citizens of Wuhan,” said former counselor to the president and White House chief strategist Steve Bannon. “The CCP has proven they are a danger to America, the world, and the Chinese people."
The president and some aides did initially use phrases such as the “Chinese virus” and the “Wuhan flu” to emphasize the national origins of the coronavirus. He sparred with a reporter who claimed she heard an unnamed White House employee refer to the virus as the “kung flu.” But Trump insisted that he only said “Chinese virus” to counter China’s attempts to blame the United States for the outbreak.
“I don’t regret it, but they accused us of having done it through o... (Read more)
Tweets mentioned:
Submitted 1453 days ago
Latest News