President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed has China backpedaled in trade talks with the United States because Beijing is hoping for more favorable negotiations with one of the Democratic primary candidates vying for the White House in 2020.
“The reason for the China pullback & attempted renegotiation of the Trade Deal is the sincere HOPE that they will be able to ‘negotiate’ with Joe Biden or one of the very weak Democrats, and thereby continue to ripoff the United States (($500 Billion a year)) for years to come,” the president said in a
Trump’s comments came ahead of Chinese Vice Premier Liu He’s expected visit to Washington this week with a Chinese delegation to discuss trade, talks that had reportedly been progressing but have become uncertain after the president pledged to slap higher tariffs on China over the weekend.
“China has just informed us that they (Vice-Premier) are now coming to the U.S. to make a deal,” Trump said in another
On Friday, the U.S. will raise tariffs on roughly $200 billion worth of Chinese goods from 10 percent to 25 percent. The decision for the hike followed “an erosion in commitments by China” after a year of trade talks, U.
S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told reporters Monday.Trump views Biden as the biggest threat to his reelection chances, the president’s advisers have said. Both men are targeting working class and Rust Belt voters, many of whom believe trade with China has damaged U.S. businesses.
But Biden’s Democratic opponents also see the former vice president’s trade record as a vulnerability. He voted for permanent normal trade relations with China in the Senate and has so far remained mostly mum on trade in his early stops on the campaign trail.
Trump, in his 2016 campaign, pledged to level the playing field with China, the world's second-largest economy. He has imposed tariffs on Chinese imports — and threatened more — if China refuses to end practices seen by the U.S. as unfair, including intellectual property theft, currency manipulation and forced technology transfers. China has reciprocated by imposing tariffs of its own, targeting the U.S. agricultural industry in particular.
The issue is poised to play out over the course of the 2020 campaign. U.S. companies are bracing for huge jumps in costs should tariffs increase, and global stocks have tumbled as trade tensions between the two countries continue.
An administration official not authorized to speak publicly on the matter told POLITICO earlier this week that China paid close attention to special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation and the effect it would have on Trump’s presidency. However, the official said Beijing should realize there is a chance Trump could remain in office until 2024.
Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine