Leader Schumer Floor Remarks Urging Trump Not To Capitulate To Xi Jinping And The CCP

Washington, D.C. – Today, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) spoke on the Senate floor urging Donald Trump to protect American AI chips, manufacturing, and industry from Chinese interference. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

As Donald Trump hunts for a headline and a photo-op with Xi Jinping today, he’s at risk of losing sight of what’s at stake for the American people.

Trump risks giving China a leg up on a variety of issues if he bends the knee to Xi.

As I’ve been warning not only for weeks but actually for years, Trump cannot let the Chinese Communist Party get its hands on our most advanced AI chips and manufacturing equipment.

If Trump truly wants to preserve America’s lead in the AI race, the answer is to prohibit the sale of this cutting-edge technology to China – not to let AI development continue without guardrails.

We all ought to be concerned by Trump handing over this tech to China, which is why Senator Warren and I, along with Senators Slotkin and Kim, will be holding a press conference today on the urgent need to tighten export controls and cut off the flow of our AI technology to the CCP.

AI is just one area where there’s a risk of Trump selling out America. We’ll be closely watching what Trump does across the spectrum of challenges that the U.S. faces with the PRC.

Trump has already undermined America’s competitiveness by gutting federal R&D and technical training and making it harder for American companies to recruit top talent from abroad. He also, his actions, have forced many of our best talent to flee this country and go to Europe or go to China. The best talent who have come here to work and prosper, and he cuts of their grants and they leave. What does that do for America? It certainly makes us weaker in scientific endeavors and makes our rivals, and even friendly rivals, stronger.

It’s almost like [Trump] is trying to sabotage American innovation for decades to come. He gets these stupid bugs in his head, that research is bad, that science is bad. That they’re all a big bunch of liberals or something. He is so hurting America.

Trump is strengthening China, and decades from now, historians will look back and say this may be a turning point because we had such bad, stupid, ignorant leadership.

And let’s not forget the implications Trump’s meeting with Xi could have for American autoworkers. If Trump lets China flood the market with Chinese EVs, an idea he’s flirted with before, he’ll put even more manufacturing workers out of a job than he already has.

China also needs to stem the flow of fentanyl to the United States that’s devastating our communities. I met with Xi on this very issue, face to face, three years ago. I told President Xi that he ought to stop the flow of these precursor chemicals to the United States.

Well, Trump must push the PRC to do more to crack down synthetic opioid precursors. Our discussions with Xi got some action, but not close to enough. Trump ought to take legal action against those opioid precursors that have already been scheduled to come in here, and crack down on illicit finance schemes keeping this deadly trade going. As I said, in our meeting with [Xi], China’s made some steps in the right direction, but it needs to do much more.

Trump also needs to explain why on earth he’d continue providing tariff relief to China – our main competitor – while escalating his costly trade war with Canada – one of our closest allies. Square that circle for us, Donald.

Crucially, there is a real risk that Trump could let Xi off the hook for helping Russia and Iran evade sanctions even helping Iran target American troops in the Middle East.

All of this, and Trump has the gall to call Xi Jinping “a great gentleman.” Stop, Trump. Stop fawning over foreign strongmen like Xi and put your foot down. Put your American foot down and defend our country and our workers.

Standing up for the American people means standing up to Xi.

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