Former Vice President Joe Biden plans to take a more aggressive tone on China after President Donald Trump ridiculed him for saying that the country was not a threat.
“China is going to eat our lunch?” Biden asked in a May campaign event. “Come on, man … they can’t figure out how they’re going to deal with the corruption that exists within the system.”
Biden even said at the time that the Chinese were not bad.
“They’re not bad folks, folks … They’re not competition for us,” he said dismissively.
Trump and the Republican party immediately seized on Biden’s remarks to show that the former vice president was out of touch about the threat that China poses to the world.
But in Iowa on Tuesday, Biden plans to reverse his tone to sound the alarm on China.
“You bet I’m worried about China—if we keep following Trump’s path,” he plans to say. “While Trump is tweeting, China is making massive investments in technologies of the future.”
Biden will criticize Trump for “name calling” and engaging in a “damaging and erratic trade war.”
He will also warn that China may overtake America in infrastructure, high-speed rail, and clean renewable energy.
“While Trump is attacking our friends, China is pressing its advantage all over the world,” he plans to say.