China, in his words · 2016 campaign · № 21
Said Chinese leaders should get McDonald's, not state dinners, because 'they're ripping us'
“We give state dinners to the heads of China. I said why are you doing state dinners for them? They're ripping us left and right. Just take them to McDonald's and go back to the negotiating table.”
- Said
- , Campaign event in Bluffton, South Carolina
- Subject
- state dinners for China
- Threat
- Economic threat
- Topic
- Trade & tariffs
- Era
- 2016 campaign
What the record showed
Visiting Beijing in November 2017, he said 'I don't blame China' for the trade imbalance and faulted past U.S. administrations for allowing it. On September 24, 2026 he hosted Xi Jinping for a state visit in Washington that included a White House state dinner, after greeting Xi on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews. Al Jazeera reported it was the first state visit to the U.S. by a Chinese leader in 11 years and that the two governments extended their trade truce to January 10.