The national flags of the United States and China flutter at the Fairmont Peace Hotel on April 25, 2024 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Wang Gang/VCG via Getty Images)
"They do this by re-appropriating basic and applied research in American universities, taking it over to China, and stealing American innovations, essentially," he said. "And they also will conduct espionage. They will silence Chinese students on American campuses and force them to either advance the CCP propaganda line or silence them. And that's just unacceptable."
Sobolik continued by pointing out the history of the trade agreements between Trump and Xi Jinping.
"I think it's partially a function of the fact that [Trump's] trying to get to a trade deal with Xi Jinping and he wants to smooth that road, make sure there aren't any bumps along the way, much like he did in his first term when he was trying to get his phase one trade agreement with China negotiated," he said.
REP. GREENE RAISES RED FLAG AFTER TRUMP INDICATES US WILL ACCEPT 600,000 CHINESE STUDENTS
People hold up signs during the Harvard Students for Freedom rally in support of international students at the Harvard University campus in Boston, Massachusetts, on May 27, 2025. (Photo by RICK FRIEDMAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Sobolik said universities will ultimately go along with the "repressive tactics of China," as he says students are willing to attend American institutions for their full price.
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"It’s not just STEM programs and security risks. It is not just what China's government is doing on these campuses. It’s how universities are complicit in it because they need that money. It's all about the bottom line for them, and American values suffer in the process," Sobolik added.
Cameron Arcand is a politics writer at Fox News Digital in Washington D.C. Story tips can be sent to Cameron.Arcand@Fox.com and on Twitter: @cameron_arcand
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trumps-chinese-student-visa-push-sets-off-alarm-bells-rising-ccp-influence-us