The White House provided a clarification regarding President Donald Trump’s remarks concerning Chinese students in the United States. According to the White House, Trump’s statements did not indicate an intention to permit 600,000 new Chinese students to enter the country. Instead, the number was related to the roughly 300,000 Chinese students who have been admitted to American universities over the preceding two years.
Trump had previously said, “I’ve heard many stories that we will not allow Chinese students to come here. We will allow them to come. 600,000 students are very important to us, we will work together with China.” His plan to issue visas to Chinese students faced criticism. The current number of Chinese students in the US exceeds 270,000, a drop from the over 372,000 in the 2019-2020 academic year. By 2023, this number decreased to 277,000.
A White House official clarified that Trump is not suggesting an increase in student visas for Chinese students. The mentioned 600,000 students pertain to visas issued over a two-year period, representing an extension of current policy. Furthermore, Trump warned that he may impose 200% tariffs if China does not supply the US with magnets, which are crucial in the automotive, electronics, and defense sectors. He also assured that Chinese students would continue to be allowed to study in the US.
Trump’s remarks have received pushback within the United States. Laura Loomer, a right-wing political activist, criticized Trump on social media, labeling Chinese students as communist party spies. She accused him of undermining his America First agenda. Loomer wrote on social media, “I didn’t vote to invite more Muslims and Chinese people into my country… Please don’t make America China. We don’t want more immigrants.” In another post, Loomer tagged White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, stating, “I don’t want 600,000 communist spies in America. China killed 1.2 million Americans. Now they are taking our place? That cannot happen.”