China and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) have long had one simple goal and that is to tear down the United States from within itself. They do that by spying, invading out crops with foreign parasites, and a variety of other methods. All of it to weaken out country with hopes they can assume status as the world's dominant superpower. It is not a secret; it is just openly known this is what the Chinese want.
One of their methods, as mentioned, has been infiltrating American educational institutions with Chinese students. Through that, they have been able to get students to engage in espionage and spy on anything they might need. Considering many of the student go into Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) studies, it gives the CCP a firsthand look into potential secret projects.
Not to mention, Chinese citizens are required by CCP law to engage in espionage when they travel abroad. All of this is a major red flag to stop giving Chinese students visas. Yet, President Trump has made a befuddling move recently saying he might do the opposite. Trump said to Fox News recently he does not want to deny over 500,000 Chinese student visas because he does not want to "insult" China.
That is a far cry from an America First initiative, especially as American college students feel increasingly alienated in the workforce by H1B visa holders and foreign students.
China expert and author Gordon Chang says this is a perplexing stance for Trump to take, especially considering the Chinese methods.
"Chinese consular officials and Chinese ministry of state security agents monitor, coerce and surveil Chinese students, and often get them to commit acts of espionage" he says.
This is not a new threat; it has been going on for some time. Just last May, a Chinese national grad student at the University of Minnesota was deported after he was convicted for taking pictures of “military installations” in Virginia with a drone. That is one of countless examples.
Beyond that, there is a resource issue. Tracking the activities of 500,000 foreign visa holders, that come from a foreign adversary, is challenging to say the least.
"We would need a far greater number of FBI agents chasing down those officials pushing this...that is not in the cards right now. So, we need no more Chinese students in the United States," Chang says.
There is also the fact that Americans are just fed up with this in general. People want out schools and country back, and that means not allowing 500,000 foreigners to come in and take spots that belong to Americans. Which is what makes Trump's stance on this all the more perplexing.
"Americans, and especially his MAGA base, do not like this," Chang says. "This is not America First by any means."
Chang adds that these spots, especially in the STEM fields, need to be going to American students.
It could be gamesmanship by President Trump, or it could be a serious thing. Either way, the optics are not very good.
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