Donald Trump rolled out the red carpet for Chinese President Xi Jinping this week but on Capitol Hill some lawmakers were just seeing red.
Senator John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, told reporters that Xi is a ‘reptile,’ adding that he wouldn’t turn his back on him ‘if he’s two days dead.’
‘The President wants to work things out with him, and I admire that … and wish him luck,’ Kennedy continued before adding ‘I’ve met President Xi, I’ve sat across from him, six feet away.’
‘This man thinks he’s on a mission from God, except his God is himself,’ Kennedy concluded.
Connecticut Democrat Richard Blumenthal, who was told at a classified briefing this week how China is helping Iran in its conflict with the US, said Trump should be issuing an ultimatum, not a welcome.
‘Far from rolling out the red carpet, [Trump] ought to be telling Xi knock it off, stop it, or we’re not going to talk to you about AI or anything else,’ he told the Daily Mail.
Xi is visiting the White House this week at the invitation of Trump, mere months after Trump’s own visit to China. Xi’s visit comes amid a bruising trade war, that has seen both countries impose tariffs, as well as going tit for tat on trade restrictions.
Congressional leaders have repeatedly raised concerns about Beijing’s trade practices, as well as their threats to US supply chains and even national security.
President Donald Trump, left, speaks to reporters during a tour of the South Lawn of the White House with China’s President Xi Jinping, right, Thursday, September 24, 2026, in Washington
Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana speaks with journalists at the US Capitol in Washington, DC earlier this month
Cory Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, said that he disagreed with Kennedy’s assessment of Xi comparing him to a ‘reptile,’ telling the Daily Mail that he would never ‘demean or degrade another person in that way.’
‘He’s the leader of China, and somebody that is a strategic competitor with the United States,’ Booker added.
Asked if he agreed with Trump rolling out the red carpet for Xi, both metaphorically and literally, West Virginia Republican Jim Justice told the Daily Mail that, ‘China is a superpower, we need to be getting along, and we need to be respectful of others.’
Justice also added that ‘we would absolutely expect the same out of them’ if Trump visited China, which he did earlier this year.
Trump heaped praise on Xi this week, noting it was the first time he had hosted the Chinese leader at the White House.
Connecticut Democrat Richard Blumenthal said Trump should be issuing an ultimatum, not a welcome to Xi
New Jersey Senator Cory Booker in Washington, DC in Washington, DC earlier this month
West Virginia Republican Senator Jim Justice at the US Capitol in Washington, DC this summer
Iowa Republican Senator Joni Ernst has campaigned for years to curb Chinese purchases of US farmland
‘We have spent time together all over the world,’ he said, adding that the pair had ‘forged a friendship, a truly great friendship, actually.’
He called his visit to Beijing earlier this year a ‘great privilege’ and hailed Xi’s ‘spectacular and very beautiful hospitality.’
Capitol Hill lawmakers were not as chummy about the visit as Trump has been, at least publicly.
Virginia Democrat Tim Kaine, who sits on the Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, said he would not embrace Xi as Trump has if he were president.
Republican support came with conditions. Iowa’s Joni Ernst told the Daily Mail the meeting was ‘an opportunity to make sure China follows through on its commitments.’
She said she hoped it would underline ‘the importance of keeping American farmland in American hands’ and see China ‘holding up its end of the bargain by buying American crops, including soybeans.’
Ernst has campaigned for years to curb Chinese purchases of US farmland.
