WASHINGTON—Ahead of China President Xi Jinping's visit to San Francisco, California, The Floridian caught up with Representatives Cory Mills (R-FL) and Ronny Jackson (R-TX) ahead of the 2023 APEC meeting with President Biden. Neither congressman had high hopes for the President, with Rep. Mills saying he is "bought and paid for."
Despite this, Rep. Mills said he at least understood why the Biden Administration is seeking "diplomatic efforts to see if they can ease tensions."
"We've got the Taiwan Strait issue, we've got the knowledge of [China] working with Russia, Iran, and North Korea and their political alignments," Mills continued, adding that the Chinese are "advancing BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa)," which he said is "A really big thing people need to start paying more attention to."
Moreover, Mills compared the Biden Administration's attempts at diplomacy with China to those held with Venezuela, which he had previously spoken with The Floridian in October.
"It is like the discussion you and I had on whether or not we should sit at the table of Venezuela. Of course, we should, right? We have to make sure that we are, at least, in the game, or at least in the room, where we can actually understand what is happening and how to negotiate these relationships or these tensions," the Florida Congressman said.
Nevertheless, he contended that neither Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, or Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin were not the right people to negotiate "because they are all bought and paid for."
Rep. Jackson expressed a similar sentiment to The Floridian, saying the APEC meeting ultimately "doesn't matter."
"Xi Jinping thinks that Biden is just a joke, just like most other world leaders do. They have no respect for the man, and they have no respect for his administration," said Rep. Jackson, adding that other countries view the President as "weak" and "malleable."
As a result, Jackson continued, "They are all going to get everything they can out of him and out of our country while he is in office, and that is why we are where we are today."
