Categories
Donald Trump on Tuesday said China’s government was trying to take advantage of the U.S. government’s access to its foreign policy to gain leverage against it.
In a wide-ranging interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Trump said he believes China was seeking to take control of U.K. elections and take advantage by using social media to influence voters.
He said that when the U-K.
was going to vote in June, it was “supposed to be a closed system.
We’re not supposed to be able to talk to each other because it’s supposed to all be closed, except for a small group of people.”
But, he added, “They’re trying to use the Internet to influence our elections.”
When asked if China was using its influence over U.k. elections to try to influence the outcome of the vote, Trump responded, “It’s pretty obvious.”
He said he was told by the U,K.
Foreign Office that “it was going for the United States to get control of the election, and it’s not a coincidence.
It’s really not.”
When pressed by Hannity if the U.,K.
government had been “doing this in secret,” Trump said, “Yes, it is.
They know what’s going on.”
He then went on to say that he was also told that China was “trying to take the vote from us.”
When Hannity pressed Trump about the claim that the U.’s election was “closed,” Trump again insisted it was a “closed system.”
“No, it’s a closed thing.
It has to be,” he said.
“They know that, they know that it’s closed.
We have to go in there and talk to them, but I mean, it has to happen.
And if it doesn’t happen, I mean it’s just not going to happen.”
The interview was the latest salvo in a series of exchanges with Trump, which have been a key element of his campaign rhetoric and has raised questions about his temperament and the legitimacy of his presidency.
Trump on Tuesday accused China of being “totally” behind the hacking of the Democratic National Committee.
He also said he would not consider lifting a trade embargo with China that has been in place for more than a decade.
“We will not give in to blackmail,” Trump told Hannity.
“We have to stand up to bullies, and China is a bully.
And we will fight them and we will win.
China will not be a member of the club of countries that bully other countries.”
Trump has made the case for lifting the trade embargo and called China’s actions “ridiculous” and “outrageous.”
The Republican nominee said he has “great respect” for China, which he said has “done an unbelievable job” in combating global warming and is “a very important trading partner.”
“It’s going to be tough to get it lifted.
It will be very difficult,” he told Hannity of lifting the economic embargo.”
It is the first time in many years that we’ve gotten this close to lifting an economic embargo,” he added.”
I would certainly hope that we would get the trade agreement signed.
But it’s going into the WTO.
So we have to be very careful and watch what’s happening.”
Trump’s criticism of China has been a frequent feature of his stump speeches.
The former reality TV star has also called China “the most evil nation on earth” and has called it a “rogue state.”
He has also said that China’s foreign policy has been “very, very, very wrong.”
