Schiff: Trump should worry less about Chinese jobs and more about national security

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) blasted President Trump’s decision to allow Chinese telecom giant ZTE to remain open, saying that the president should be more concerned about U.S. national security than preserving Chinese jobs.

In a statement, Schiff accused Trump of “ignoring warnings from our intelligence community that ZTE poses a national security risk because he is desperate for a deal with China.”

“ZTE violated U.S. sanctions on North Korea and Iran, and then lied to us about it,” Schiff said. “President Trump should stop worrying about Chinese jobs, and start worrying more about American national security.”

{mosads}

The comments from Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, came a day after Trump indicated that he had decided to allow ZTE to “reopen with high level security guarantees, change of management and board.”

He also said that he would impose a $1.3 billion fine on the company. 

ZTE announced earlier this month that it was ceasing operations after the U.S. banned American companies from supplying the telecom giant. The ban came because of allegations that the company had violated U.S. sanctions on North Korea and Iran. 

ZTE’s announcement prompted Chinese President Xi Jinping to lobby Trump to intervene.

Trump’s decision to allow the company to reopen defied warnings from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, who asserted that ZTE should be punished for violating U.S. law. 

Trump sought to cast his decision to intervene on behalf of ZTE as a good faith move intended to gain leverage in unrelated trade negotiations with Beijing.

But a number of lawmakers denounced the move as a major concession to China that gave the U.S. little in return.