Donald Trump and Xi Jinping held their first face-to-face meeting in over a decade at Joint Base Andrews, where Trump personally greeted Xi and his wife as they arrived in the United States. The state dinner followed in the White House East Room, with an American military choir singing for Xi. American business leaders, billionaires and Washington’s elite attended the event.
The two leaders traded warm words throughout the visit. Xi commented on the White House tour, saying everything was “down to the highest order of perfection” and “there is thought in every little detail.” Trump said at the end of the visit that “we’ve made tremendous strides” and “great strides, very positive for both countries.”
The Iran Question
When asked about Iran, Trump said “We did, we did” regarding discussion of the war and added “I think we’re going to do great.” He did not offer specifics beyond that.
David Perdue, the U.S. ambassador to China, said the U.S. has evidence China “directly or indirectly” supported Iran in the war. Perdue said Trump challenged Xi on the issue during the summit. Perdue insisted China made a “commitment not to engage in assistance.”
AI And The Name Game
Trump attempted to rebrand AI as “super intelligence” and wrote on social media that Xi “seemed to like calling the poorly and inaccurately named Artificial Intelligence to a far more accurate and important name, SUPER INTELLIGENCE. That would be “SUPER!”
Chinese state media Xinhau reported Xi told Trump AI must be kept under human control and that a people-centered approach should be upheld.
Truth Social
Trump posted on Truth Social that he and Xi plan to meet in person twice more before the end of the year. He suggested potential action in the agriculture industry without specifics, saying the U.S. and China would “be speaking a lot.”
Sen. John Hoeven said “we have to press them on issues whether its military, whether its trade, whether its AI or anything else.” Sen. Rick Scott said “Xi’s a despicable person that is killing us with fentanyl and building a military to try to defeat us.”
What The Administraton Actually Got
The administration’s stated victories were vague. Trump said “great strides” but gave no detail. Perdue implied a commitment from China, but did not say what it covered.
Trump traveled to Joint Base Andrews to greet Xi personally. An American military choir sang at the state dinner. American business leaders and billionaires filled the room.
The Order Of Events
| Event | Location |
|---|---|
| Trump greeted Xi | Joint Base Andrews |
| American military choir sang | White House East Room |
| State dinner held | White House East Room |
- Trump greeted Xi and his wife at Joint Base Andrews.
- The American military choir sang at the state dinner.
- Xi commented on the White House tour, calling it “down to the highest order of perfection.”
- Trump said “we’ve made tremendous strides” at the end of the visit.
- Perdue said the U.S. has evidence China supported Iran in the war and that China made a commitment not to engage in assistance.
Source material: “Trump-Xi takeaways: If there were victories, Trump's not sharing them,” ABC13 Houston.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.