Chinese exchange students are important to smaller regional colleges in America / Envato Market

by Emmitt Barry, with reporting from Washington D.C. Bureau Staff

WASHINGTON D.C. (Worthy News) – President Donald Trump said Monday that the United States is prepared to accept up to 600,000 Chinese students as part of ongoing trade negotiations with Beijing, a proposal that has sparked sharp debate among lawmakers, conservative commentators, and immigration groups.

The president made the announcement during remarks at the White House before meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. “We’re going to allow, it’s very important, 600,000 students,” Trump said, calling it an important element of fostering a new relationship with China. He added that he hopes to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year.

Trump has pursued aggressive tariffs on China, including duties as high as 145% and threats of a 200% tariff on Chinese-made magnets. But while tariffs have been used to extract leverage, the student visa proposal marks a different kind of bargaining chip. “We’re taking a lot of money in from China because of the tariffs and different things…. It’s a much better relationship economically than it was before with Biden,” Trump said.

The president later expanded on his remarks during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, arguing that U.S. colleges depend on foreign students. “Our college system would go to hell very quickly” without them, Trump said, suggesting that schools already struggling financially could collapse if student visas are restricted.

Conservative voices quickly pushed back. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) declared on X that Chinese students “may be loyal to the CCP” and accused universities of being “propped up by the CCP.” Joe Chatham of the Federation for American Immigration Reform warned that allowing hundreds of thousands of Chinese students could endanger U.S. national security and displace American graduates.

Commentators including Liz Wheeler and Marina Medvin accused the administration of effectively subsidizing academia, with Wheeler claiming Chinese students “are all spies for the Chinese Communist Party” and urging Trump to ban them outright.

Others defended the proposal. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick argued that without Chinese students, weaker colleges would collapse, forcing stronger students into better schools. Podcast host Joshua Reid suggested that attracting China’s best and brightest could actually benefit the U.S., since “American culture returns home with them,” potentially weakening Beijing’s hold over its top talent.

The debate highlights the tension between Trump’s hardline trade and immigration policies and the economic realities of higher education. While the administration views the move as both a financial necessity and a diplomatic gesture, critics frame it as a national security risk that prioritizes foreign nationals over American students.

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