U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) released the following statement ahead of President Biden and Chinese President Xi’s meeting in San Francisco: 

“Xi’s trip is intended to sweet-talk Biden so the administration will have an excuse to lift sanctions against Communist China. Even though the U.S. has made China aware of their complicity in the U.S. fentanyl epidemic for years, the CCP continues to play a part in the death of thousands of Americans every year. It is unconscionable that Biden is reportedly lifting sanctions on The Institute of Forensic Science, which were issued in 2020 due to the institute’s involvement in human rights violations against the Uyghur Muslims. Since then, the CCP has only continued committing crimes against humanity and genocide against the Uyghurs. Biden must also reconsider what can be accomplished by this meeting. What can the president say to Xi that the U.S. hasn’t said in the past three decades? What has the Biden administration substantively accomplished through its diplomacy with China?  Even if Xi offers small concessions, we know that Beijing’s behavior will not change. The Xi regime is in economic trouble, and it needs America to rescue it. Instead, Biden should ramp up the pressure by imposing severe sanctions on China and keep the current sanctions in place.” — Senator Blackburn