Ex-Obama ambassador to China calls Pelosi trip a ‘provocation’ that makes Biden look ‘weak’, thehill.com

Former Sen. Max Baucus, a Democrat from Montana who served as ambassador to China under former President Obama, called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) Taiwan visit Tuesday a “provocation,” adding it made President Biden look “weak.”

Baucus in an interview Tuesday evening with CNN’s Jake Tapper repeatedly warned the trip by Pelosi was edging the U.S. closer to recognizing Taiwan as an independent nation — which the longtime senator suggested would be a disaster. “This is a provocation because the Chinese government is very opposed to this,” said Baucus, who served as ambassador to China from 2014 to 2017.

He said Pelosi’s visit was much more important than a visit by a random member of the House. […]

“Don’t forget, too, Speaker Pelosi — it’s a free pass for her. She’s not the president. She doesn’t have to worry about conducting foreign policy worldwide. She’s a member of Congress. She doesn’t have to worry about it,” Baucus said. “She does a little but not much. So poor Joe Biden, he looks weak because he either told her not to go and he looks weak to the Chinese guys, or he’s weak because he told her not to go and she went anyway.” Läs artikel