Commerce President Defends Trump’s Stance on Chinese Students

During a recent episode of Fox News Channel’s “Ingraham Angle,” Commerce President Howard Lutnick offered a defense of President Donald Trump regarding the influx of Chinese students into the U.S. Lutnick argued that having 600,000 Chinese students study in America would lead to better educational opportunities for all students, suggesting that the lower-performing universities would ultimately be forced to close.

Host Laura Ingraham, in her typical pointed style, raised the issue of how these students might fill gaps in popular institutions, stating, “Isn’t it true that these students are essentially taking spots that could be available for American students?”

She then aired a clip of Trump discussing relations with China, emphasizing the importance of allowing students to enter the U.S. “We’re going to get along with China. We hear a lot about not letting students in, but we’re not going to prevent students from coming.”

Ingraham pressed further on the implications of this decision, asking Lutnick how he justified admitting so many students from a country with a communist regime. Lutnick replied, highlighting that Trump’s position revolves around the idea that if you take these students out of the equation, better schools would emerge, while the bottom universities would face closure.

Ingraham interjected her concerns about prominent institutions like Harvard and UCLA, questioning their roles in promoting viewpoints that she considered anti-American. “Are we really benefiting these schools that have become propaganda factories?” she asked.

Lutnick shifted the focus slightly, discussing his involvement in reforming the H-1B visa program and related immigration policies, suggesting that changes there could also affect the broader university landscape.