President Donald Trump will greet Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday — a rare honor for a foreign leader — while a Pentagon blacklist of nearly 200 Chinese firms provides political cover for a Washington establishment that still profits handsomely from trade with a regime that steals American intellectual property and enslaves its workers.
The once-obscure 1260H list, mandated by Congress, has become the Trump administration's favorite tool for looking tough on Beijing. The latest update in June added Chinese AI giants Alibaba and Baidu, plus BYD, the world's largest electric vehicle maker. Chinese officials retaliated with export and procurement restrictions targeting U.S. businesses, and blacklisted companies like Alibaba have sued the Pentagon to get off the roster, according to Arkansas Online. But the list's actual bite remains limited — it restricts government contracting and discourages lobbyists from representing designees. The firms still operate, still trade, and still find American partners.
Craig Singleton of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies told Arkansas Online he wouldn't be surprised if Beijing raises 1260H at the summit, particularly because several blacklisted companies — including BYD, Zhongji Innolight, and CATL — may join Xi's business delegation. Singleton added:
