GOP Senator Wicker Slams Trump's "Lavish" State Welcome for China's Xi Ahead of Summit

Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker publicly criticized President Donald Trump's plan to host Chinese President Xi Jinping for a state visit in Washington this week, calling it an inappropriate "lavish welcome" and signaling a break within the president's own party before the high-stakes summit. Speaking on the Senate floor Tuesday, Wicker said he would have advised Trump against inviting Xi given "troubling issues" with the Chinese Communist Party. Xi's visit marks his first trip to Washington in over a decade, with trade and the US-China AI race expected to dominate talks. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon are expected to attend a state dinner on Thursday.