US: Republican senator rejects China ‘sellout’ charge
Washington: US Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso has pushed back against suggestions that President Donald Trump might concede too much to China, arguing that the United States was entering Trump’s meeting with President Xi Jinping from a position of strength.
The Wyoming Republican responded to criticism from Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, who has urged Trump to block China’s access to advanced American AI chips and chipmaking equipment. Barrasso said he had heard Schumer suggest that Trump would sell out US interests in the talks.
“Let me set the record straight,” Barrasso said in remarks released by his office on Wednesday (local time). He described the administration’s approach to China as one of “peace through strength”.
Barrasso argued that American manufacturing, energy production and access to critical minerals were central to the country’s position in negotiations. He said the US should reduce its dependence on China for medicines, materials and minerals while protecting its technology.
“America cannot continue to lead the free world if we allow China to steal our best ideas and newest technology,” he said.
His remarks presented a broad defence of Trump’s China policy. Barrasso credited the administration with strengthening US industry and confronting what he described as Chinese efforts to gain economic and strategic power. Those are the senator’s assessments; the material provided does not include an independent accounting of the administration’s record.
Barrasso also pointed to Trump’s recently announced agreement concerning Greenland. He said it would prevent China and other US adversaries from establishing military bases or making critical investments there. His release did not provide the agreement’s text or explain how those restrictions would operate.
On energy, Barrasso said measures taken by the administration had made it harder for China to obtain discounted oil from Venezuela and Iran. He also referred to penalties on imports of energy from Russia or Iran and said China, as a major buyer of Russian energy, would face them. The supplied remarks do not set out the penalties’ terms or their effect on Chinese purchases.
Barrasso framed these steps as part of a wider effort to counter China, Russia and Iran. “Weakness invites. Strength deters,” he said.
The senator’s response came as lawmakers from both parties sought to influence the Trump-Xi agenda. Schumer called on Trump not to weaken export controls on advanced AI technology and urged Senate action on three bipartisan bills. Barrasso did not address the bills individually in his released remarks.
Their statements show agreement that China’s access to American technology matters, but a dispute over how Trump has handled it. Schumer accused the administration of allowing chip sales that could help China advance in AI. Barrasso rejected the suggestion that Trump would compromise US interests and said the president understood the stakes