China expert Gordon Chang sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s declaration this week that he would let 600,000 Chinese students attend American universities, warning that such a move would jeopardize U.S. security and limit opportunities for American students.
In a Wednesday appearance on Newsmax, Chang said admitting such a large number of Chinese is “totally wrong” and would hurt American students competing for limited university spots, especially in key disciplines.
“Every slot for a Chinese student is one fewer for an American,” Chang said on “Finnerty.” “And let’s remember, the Chinese are taking slots for STEM topics — science, technology, engineering, mathematics. That’s exactly where we want American students to study.”
Chang argued that the mission of U.S. universities must be to prepare Americans, not citizens of a regime that has “declared us to be its enemy.”
Beyond education, Chang stressed that the proposal would create major security risks. He pointed to weaknesses in the current vetting system, noting that members of the Chinese Communist Party and even the People’s Liberation Army have already gained access to U.S. universities.
“If you’re going to overload the system, then obviously more and more people are going to get through who shouldn’t be here,” Chang said. “And remember, every place that you’ve got Chinese students, you have Chinese consular officials and Ministry of State Security agents to monitor, coerce, and surveil them.”
The presence of Chinese intelligence operatives on U.S. soil would only multiply, Chang warned, further straining an FBI that he said is already “overwhelmed” trying to monitor Chinese espionage activity.
Chang acknowledged the economic benefits Chinese students bring to higher education. In the last school year, roughly 277,000 Chinese studied at U.S. institutions, contributing an estimated $43.8 billion. But he dismissed the financial argument, saying that no amount of tuition can make up for the risks to U.S. security and the opportunities denied to Americans.
“That money doesn’t compensate us for all the data that they steal and all the American lives that are going to be denied the hope for the future,” Chang said.
Framing his criticism in personal terms, Chang recalled his own family’s history. “I’m saying that as the son of a Chinese student who came to this country. My dad told me, ‘Look, put America first.’ That’s absolutely the right approach.”
Chang concluded with a direct appeal to the president: “We’ve got to defend our country, Rob. And I hope the president changes his mind because this is wrong on every single level.”
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