President Donald Trump on Monday defended his administration’s plan to offer 600,000 visas to Chinese students — a move that has drawn criticism from within conservative circles. (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)
"I actually think it's good to have outside, countries. Look, I want to be able to get along with the world, not the French, though," he added.
"The Chinese, they spy on us, they steal our intellectual property," Ingraham shot back.
"Do you think the French are better?" Trump said.
"Yeah," Ingraham replied.
"I’m not so sure," Trump said, citing French tariffs.
Trump continued to frame the issue in economic terms, saying Chinese students pay far more in tuition than Americans and help sustain the system.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked 80,000 non-immigrant visas, including 8,000 student visas. (Getty Images)
Former national security advisor Michael Flynn criticized Trump’s comments on X, writing: "Sorry Mr. @POTUS if we didn’t allow 600K Chinese spies to steal even more intellectual property and other ideas about how to dominate are our way of life, it wouldn’t make a dent in U.S. colleges and universities."
"We simply don’t need to help the Chinese anymore with their plans to be the sole superpower this century," Flynn added. "They’ve been ripping us off for years. Because of that they have significant advantages over us now—and they have zero desire nor intent to make America great again."
China’s 2017 National Intelligence Law requires all citizens to cooperate with Chinese Communist Party intelligence efforts in the name of national security.
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China expert Gordon Chang, whose father fled Mao Zedong’s communist government after earning a master’s degree in the U.S., called the visa proposal "wrong-headed."
"Taking away spots in schools from Americans and giving them to future Chinese Communists is wrong, and admitting students who have been weaponized by the CCP to commit acts of espionage is extraordinarily dangerous," Chang told Fox News Digital. "American presidents for decades have allowed China’s regime to maintain in our country organizations and extensive networks of agents and diplomats that surveil, intimidate, and coerce Chinese and other students."
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-doubles-down-plan-600000-chinese-student-visas-despite-maga-backlash