Trump confirmed that he let China off the hook for forcing Muslim minorities into concentration camps in order to secure a trade deal he needed to boost his reelection. Trump claims to be tough on China, but he ignored its human rights abuses and ultimately got played by China on both trade and the coronavirus.

Trump admitted that he ignored China’s human rights abuses and held off on imposing Treasury sanctions in order to secure a trade deal with China.

Axios: “In an Oval Office interview on Friday afternoon, President Trump told me that he held off on imposing Treasury sanctions against Chinese officials involved with the Xinjiang mass detention camps because doing so would have interfered with his trade deal with Beijing.”

TRUMP: “Well, we were in the middle of a major trade deal.”

Trump continued to cover for China and falsely claim that it is living up to its commitments in Trump’s failed trade deal.

TRUMP: “And I made a great deal, $250 billion potentially worth of purchases. And by the way, they’re buying a lot, you probably have seen.”

China has fallen tens of billions of dollars behind on its commitments and is actually buying 25% less than it was before Trump’s failed trade war.

Politico’s Doug Palmer: “Thursday’s trade report showed U.S. goods exports to China through the first four months of 2020 only totaled $30.6 billion. That’s about 25 percent less than the $39.3 billion exported during the same period in 2017, the benchmark year for the U.S.-China trade deal.”

PIIE: “US exports of covered agricultural products were $4.2 billion, compared with a year-to date target of $11.1 billion. Through the first four months of 2020, China’s purchases were thus only at 38 percent (US exports) or 52 percent (Chinese imports) of their year-to-date targets.”

PIIE: “US exports of covered manufactured products were $15.4 billion, compared with a year-to-date target of $27.7 billion. Through the first four months of 2020, China’s purchases were thus only at 56 percent (US exports) or 53 percent (Chinese imports) of their year-to-date targets.”