US Democrats criticize lavish Trump-Xi summit as lacking sub

US Senate Democrats criticized President Donald Trump's summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, saying it prioritized pageantry over substance on issues such as artificial intelligence, trade, critical minerals and weapons for Taiwan.



Trump welcomed Xi to the White House for a state summit heavy on diplomatic honors, but with no sign that closed-door talks yielded breakthroughs on the issues dividing them.



In a statement signed by at least 19 of the 47 members of the Democratic caucus and seen by Reuters, the Democrats called on Trump to immediately deliver more than $15 billion in security assistance — $1.3 billion in funds and a $14 billion arms sale package — that Congress has approved for Taiwan and to push for human rights and the release of wrongfully detained Americans.



Some of Trump's fellow Republicans also marked the summit by calling on Trump to release the funds for Taiwan.