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WASHINGTON — <\/span>Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit<\/a> to Washington is getting a much chillier reception on Capitol Hill than at the White House as lawmakers from both parties use the visit to denounce China’s actions on the world stage. <\/p>\n Lawmakers have long found little downside to taking a hawkish tone on China, but the U.S.’s war with Iran<\/a> has inflamed tensions as U.S. officials accuse China of propping up Iran’s economy and supplying its military with components and intelligence, endangering U.S. service members in the Middle East.<\/p>\n In speeches, letters, press conferences and hearings, lawmakers from both parties aired criticism of Xi’s visit. Their actions and events stand in stark contrast to the warm welcome that Trump gave Xi on Wednesday as he arrived in Washington for a lavish state visit.<\/p>\n Sen. Roger Wicker, the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, took to the Senate floor Tuesday night, offering a list of issues for Trump to raise with Xi, but not before suggesting that Xi shouldn’t have been asked to visit Washington at all.<\/p>\n \u201cQuite frankly, had the White House asked me for advice, I would have suggested the president not invite Xi Jinping to Washington for such a lavish welcome here in the United States of America based on all of the troubling issues we have with President Xi and the Chinese Communist Party,\u201d Wicker said.<\/p>\n Wicker seemed particularly taken aback by the honor of a state dinner. Over the salad course, Wicker said the president could ask Xi about the Chinese Navy’s harassment<\/a> of Filipino fishermen and sailors. Then, while the servers are \u201cswitching from chardonnay to cabernet at the fancy state dinner,\u201d perhaps the president could turn to the issue of Taiwan<\/a>, he said.<\/p>\n He went on to say he hopes some progress will be made when the president discussed trade<\/a> and artificial intelligence<\/a> with Xi. But concluded with this: \u201cDuring every minute of dialogue, our commander in chief should keep in mind that his guest is a brutal, unelected, and oppressive dictator who seeks to dominate his neighbors and whose massive military arsenal is aimed directly at the United States of America.\u201d<\/p>\n Ahead of Xi’s visit, the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party released a highly critical video that had been viewed more than 245,000 times on X. In the video, the committee details Xi’s rise to power starting in 1974 and ends by labeling him “the biggest opponent of freedom and liberty in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n The House created the panel in 2023. It’s held several hearings on human rights issues in China and advocates for legislation on an array of economic and military issues. For example, the committee’s chairman, Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., recently introduced a bill that would prohibit the manufacture or sale of Chinese cars in the U.S.<\/p>\n Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and three other Republican senators used the Xi visit to press the Trump administration to move ahead with aid and arms sales to Taiwan. <\/p>\n In a letter, they reminded Secretary of State Marco Rubio<\/a> that he had previously stated that \u201cdeterring an invasion of Taiwan must be our top priority.\u201d And they noted Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth<\/a> had once declared that the U.S. \u201dwill not let our allies and partners be subordinated and intimidated.”<\/p>\n China has pressed Washington to halt the arms sales<\/a>, most prominently during a summit in May between Trump and Xi in Beijing. After that meeting, the United States paused the sale of a record-breaking $14 billion package \u2014 and Trump described arms sales to Taiwan as a \u201cvery good negotiating chip\u201d<\/a> with China.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is difficult to imagine how the United States might credibly project influence deterrence in the Indo-Pacific,\u201d the senators wrote, \u201cif the price of keeping up diplomatic appearances is denying our partners key deterrent capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and three other Democratic senators held a press conference to warn against the U.S. weakening export controls for advanced semiconductor chips and equipment. They’re concerned that such exports could erase the U.S.’s lead in artificial intelligence over China.<\/p>\n They touched on voter concerns about the safety of artificial intelligence and contrasted Democrats\u2019 call for greater regulation with the president\u2019s call to \u201cencourage it, not rein it in.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe must reject the false choice Trump keeps making,\u201d Schumer told reporters. \u201cWe can and must both maintain our lead on AI by restricting China\u2019s access to our technology and put up guardrails to mitigate AI\u2019s risk.” <\/p>\n Meanwhile, on the Senate floor, Democratic senators urged Trump to confront Xi directly about the support his country is providing Iran.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we want to bring this war to an end, we need to cut off the outside support that allows Iran to keep fighting, and that starts with China,\u201d said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the ranking Democratic lawmaker on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n