President Donald Trump forcefully rejected Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer’s criticism of his trip to Asia, calling the New York Democrat’s remarks “almost treasonous.”
“Worked really hard, 24/7, took in Trillions of Dollars and Chuck Schumer said trip was a ‘total dud,’ even though he knows it was a spectacular success. Words like that are almost treasonous!!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform Thursday, while flying back to the U.S. from South Korea.
During a heated speech on the Senate floor Wednesday, Schumer – who has led Senate Democrats into rejecting a spending bill to reopen the government after allowing it to remain closed – criticized Trump’s overseas trip, accusing him of “gallivanting in Asia” and “dancing in Malaysia” as the government shutdown reached its 29th day.
“He’s preparing now to meet with President Xi of China to strike a trade deal that will sell out the American people — giving away vital national security tools in exchange for little more than a photo op,” Schumer whined.
“President Trump is about to congratulate himself, patting himself hard on the back for cleaning up a mess he created,” Schumer said, adding that the trip was “a total dud.”
During his visit, Trump finalized an agreement with South Korea to reduce tariffs in exchange for $350 billion in new investment in the United States. He also met with Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, and held a high-level meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Regarding Schumer, Democrats appear to be getting most of the blame for keeping the government shutdown, per CNN and other media outlets.
Trump announced a trade agreement of sorts with his Chinese counterpart following a closed-door meeting in South Korea on Wednesday.
Xi described his meeting with former President Donald Trump as “warm,” saying it was good to see him again and emphasizing that the two countries should maintain a stable relationship despite their differences.
“We have a deal,” Trump said during a post-meeting question-and-answer session. “Every year we’ll renegotiate the deal, but I think it’ll go on for a long time.”
Trump announced Thursday that he will reduce tariffs on Chinese imports following the closely watched meeting in Busan.
The president cited new agreements on fentanyl enforcement, agricultural trade, and a temporary pause on China’s limits on rare-earth mineral exports as key outcomes of the talks, Fox News reported.
Ahead of Thursday’s summit, U.S. and Chinese officials indicated that the talks would focus on tariffs, advanced technology exports, and supply chain competition — longstanding points of tension between the two countries.
Trump told reporters he was optimistic that the two sides could find common ground, Fox said.
Trump announced that he would reduce the tariff rate on Chinese imports by 10 percentage points — from 20% to 10%, according to his remarks — following Xi’s pledge to take stronger action against fentanyl trafficking.
However, a Trump administration aide later clarified that the adjusted rates would remain in the range of 45% to 47%.
“I believe he’s going to work very hard to stop the death that’s coming in,” Trump said of Xi’s pledge to interdict fentanyl trafficking.
Trump said the two sides reached an agreement on rare earth exports, with China agreeing to suspend planned export controls for one year. A senior administration official later clarified that both leaders would revisit the agreement next year and consider extending it at that time, Fox noted.
The former president also said he discussed semiconductor technology with Xi, noting that China would hold talks with Nvidia about purchasing additional chips. He added that the discussions did not include Nvidia’s newest generation of advanced processors.
The meeting, which lasted about an hour and forty minutes, ended with a short photo opportunity before the two leaders departed separately.
