Trump Needs Reagan’s Human Rights Playbook for China

Faith Facts

• President Trump met with Xi Jinping in Washington to discuss trade, AI, Taiwan, and Iran.
• China’s ongoing human rights violations were absent from the conversation.
• Ronald Reagan consistently confronted Communist regimes on human rights abuses.

President Trump recently welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping to Washington for high-level talks focused on trade, artificial intelligence, Taiwan, and Iran. The meeting covered critical national interests yet left out one of the most pressing moral concerns of our time: China’s systematic persecution of Christians and other religious minorities.

Reagan never would have allowed such a glaring omission. He understood that standing for human dignity was not optional; it was central to American leadership. His administration routinely challenged the Soviet Union and other Communist governments on their treatment of believers and dissidents.

Reagan’s approach paired moral clarity with strategic strength. He did not separate economic negotiations from the defense of freedom. The former president believed that America’s economic leverage should serve the cause of liberty, not simply profit.

Today, Chinese Christians face church closures, surveillance, and imprisonment for practicing their faith. Pastors and lay believers endure forced labor camps and reeducation programs under the Chinese Communist Party. These realities demand a response rooted in truth and courage.

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