US Military Making Plans in Case Pelosi Travels to Taiwan
SnopesAPR 2022
Report: Trump Invites Xi Jinping to Inauguration
Above: Donald Trump and Xi Jinping outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Nov. 9, 2017. Image copyright: Qilai Shen/Contributor/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-Trump narrative
Trump's invitation to Xi hints at a complex diplomatic dance. Despite surrounding himself with China hawks, Trump offers a paradoxical approach — aggressive yet willing to negotiate. His unique foreign policy style suggests an opportunity for engagement, potentially disrupting the Cold War narrative and offering a nuanced path forward in US-China relations that defies conventional diplomatic expectations.
Pro-establishment narrative
Xi is unlikely to attend Trump's inauguration. Historically, no Chinese head of state has personally graced a US presidential transition, instead sending representatives. The intricate diplomatic choreography and Trump's transitional uncertainties make Xi's attendance improbable, and reflect ongoing, unresolved complexities in US-China relations.