Democracy Dies in Darkness
Opinion

Trump’s crackdown on foreign students is a gift to China

Xi Jinping is desperate to hold on to talented STEM graduates. His job just got much easier.

6 min
Demonstrators near Columbia University in New York on Thursday. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP)
By
and 

Angela Shen is a technology analyst for the ChinaTalk podcast and newsletter. Jordan Schneider is the founder of ChinaTalk.

As President Donald Trump is escalating the competition with China, he risks handing it a generation-defining victory by cutting off America’s ability to recruit the best talent in the industries of the future.

What readers are saying

The comments reflect a strong sentiment that the U.S. is becoming less attractive to international students due to the current administration's policies, which are perceived as unwelcoming and isolationist. Many commenters argue that this shift benefits countries like China and... Show more
This summary is AI-generated. AI can make mistakes and this summary is not a replacement for reading the comments.
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