President Donald Trump claimed that China has “total respect” for his “very, very large brain” during a press conference Wednesday.
CNBC reporter Eamon Javers asked Trump about the escalating trade tensions with China after the president hit out at the country during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly.
“China now put on $250 billion, and they’re paying 25 percent on that. They’ re paying billions and billions — this has never happened to China, and I like China and I like President Xi a lot,” Trump replied.
“From what I hear, if you look at Mr. Pillsbury, the leading authority on China … he was saying that China has total respect for Donald Trump and for Donald Trump’s very, very large brain. He said, Donald Trump, they don’t know what to do,” he said.
The reference was to Michael Pillsbury, director for Chinese strategy at the conservative Hudson Institute. Pillsbury told Fox News that China believed Trump was “superior” to his predecessors because he was “so smart.”
