Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie criticized President Donald Trump’s warm welcome for Chinese President Xi Jinping during his state visit. He called the treatment a “mixed message” alongside Trump’s anti-communist rhetoric. Massie also contrasted Trump’s diplomacy with what he described as retribution against Republican critics.
The remarks came during an interview on CNN about Trump’s reception of Xi. Massie pointed to his own exclusion from the White House Christmas party while Xi received an invitation.
“He will invite a communist to the White House, but I can’t even go there for the Christmas party,” Massie said. He argued that Trump’s treatment of Republican critics “stands in stark contrast” to his approach toward Xi.
The Kentucky Republican then questioned Trump’s political convictions. “He’s not an ideologue. He doesn’t have a true north or, honestly, any kind of beliefs,” Massie said. He described Trump as “just kind of going with the flow here.”
Massie later turned to China’s economic relationship with the United States. He said China was buying gold instead of U.S. Treasury notes. He linked that shift to the cost of American borrowing.
The CNN host closed by joking that Massie should not expect a White House Christmas party invitation soon.
Thomas Massie Faces Backlash Over Trump-Xi Criticism
The discussion split between critics who defended Trump’s diplomacy and others who agreed with Massie’s charge of mixed messaging.
“You think the opinions of a jilted loser posing as a Republican means anything? to anyone?” one user wrote. Another response mocked the criticism more directly: “How dare American presidents conduct diplomacy!”
Others defended Trump’s engagement with Xi on diplomatic grounds. One user wrote, “playing nice with the other global power in the world, is just good statesmanship.” Another argued, “Trump can denounce Communism & still work with Xi just like Democrats have.”
Some responses sided with Massie’s criticism. “Massie is right. You can’t run anti communism ads paid for by taxpayers while literally rolling out the red carpet,” one user wrote. Another stated, “massie is right pointing out the double standard between how trump treats political rivals versus xi is fair criticism.”
The dispute remains over whether Trump’s treatment of Xi conflicts with his broader anti-communist message. Massie’s criticism continues to divide responses.
