The Chinese communist regime’s campaign to flatter President Donald Trump into submission continued Thursday with the publication of a column bashing the free American press for having “cheated” the Chinese public into hating the American head of state.
The column goes on to praise Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner for teaching their daughter Mandarin and praises Trump himself for not challenging Chinese President Xi Jinping for his country’s atrocious human rights record so far during his trip to Beijing.
The Global Times, which typically takes a more belligerent attitude towards the United States and has threatened war in the past, proclaims that the American president “is one of the most popular heads of state on the Chinese Internet, and generally the Chinese public holds a positive attitude toward him.”
“This doesn’t come easily, as the initial impression of Trump was completely led by US media reports,” it continues. “These absurd reports deeply influenced Chinese public opinion. It wasn’t until his election victory that the Chinese public realized they had been cheated by the American media.”
The Global Times, a media outlet fully controlled by the Chinese communist government, argues also that the Chinese public no longer trusts American media, in part because of “fake reports during the elections and subjective opposition against Trump.”
As for Trump, the outlet declares that Chinese people prefer his honesty to Hillary Clinton, “who always puts on airs,” and appreciate that he has yet to challenge Xi Jinping on his human rights record. Under Xi, the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) has enacted a sprawling crackdown on human rights attorneys, “unauthorized” Christian worship, and Muslim communities in western Xinjiang. The Global Times has previously referred to human rights advocates as “losers.”
The article does not paint a perfect picture of Trump, however, and notes that he “may at some time tweet something embarrassing about China.” It dismisses this risk, however, as a necessary shortcoming because Trump “is straightforward,” and it argues that “his attitude toward Beijing is gradually taking shape, and communication channels have been established between China and the US.”
This attitude towards Trump represents a significant shift for the Global Times, which had declared Trump’s election proved the “fragility of Western democracy,” and his “Twitter foreign policy” as “undesirable.” Shortly after his election, the publication predicted that it was “inevitable that Sino-US ties will witness more troubles in his early time in the White House than any other predecessor.”
This week, Chinese state media has, instead, consistently praised Trump, given his presence in the country. As he arrived, the Global Times praised his “little interest in empty diplomatic struggles,” apparently referring to his rejection of talks without preconditions with North Korea.
In addition to flattery, the Chinese government has adopted a strategy of awing the president with Beijing’s sights before taking on any substantive discussions. Xi, Trump, and their spouses spent much of Wednesday on a personalized tour of the capital’s Forbidden City, the former residence of China’s emperors for nearly 500 years. The Chinese government promised “special arrangements” to help familiarize Trump with the communist version of “Chinese history, culture, and people.”
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters on Wednesday the tour was a necessary part of hospitality.
“When President Xi Jinping visited Mar-a-Lago this April, President Trump and his wife offered a hospitable and considerate reception to President Xi Jinping and his wife with high-standard and thoughtful arrangements being made in all respects,” she said. “China is known as a nation of courtesy and we believe that courtesy calls for reciprocity. The Chinese side attaches great importance to President Trump’s visit to China and it is only natural for us to do the honors and receive him in a hospitable and warmly manner.”
Xi Jinping, meanwhile, told reporters Thursday that he was pleased with the trip so far and that the bilateral relationship was “at a new historic starting point.”
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