China, in his words · First term · № 78

On China

Accused China of 'rampant theft of Michigan jobs' and said Biden would let it 'resume its pillaging'

“I also took the toughest ever action to stand up to China's rampant theft of Michigan jobs. Biden has vowed to remove these tariffs and allow China to resume its pillaging.”
Said
, Rally in Freeland, Michigan
Subject
Michigan jobs and tariffs
Threat
Economic threat
Topic
Trade & tariffs
Era
First term

What the record showed

At the same rally he said 'If Biden wins, China wins' and 'If Biden's elected, China will own America,' lines he repeated in tweets into November 2020. As president, Biden did not remove the tariffs: on May 14, 2024 he directed increases in Section 301 tariffs on $18 billion of Chinese imports, raising the rate on electric vehicles from 25% to 100% and on certain steel and aluminum products to 25%. In Trump's second term, a May 12, 2025 agreement had the United States and China 'each lower tariffs by 115%,' and a deal announced November 1, 2025 cut U.S. fentanyl-related tariffs on Chinese goods by 10 percentage points.

Sources

  1. Remarks at a "Make America Great Again" Rally in Freeland, Michigan The American Presidency Project, Sep 10, 2020
  2. FACT SHEET: President Biden Takes Action to Protect American Workers and Businesses from China's Unfair Trade Practices The White House (Biden administration archive), May 14, 2024
  3. White House Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Secures a Historic Trade Win for the United States The American Presidency Project, May 12, 2025
  4. White House Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Strikes Deal on Economic and Trade Relations with China The American Presidency Project, Nov 1, 2025
  5. Tweet by @realDonaldTrump, November 2, 2020 Twitter, Nov 2, 2020