Trump Could Be Ready To U-Turn On Chinese EVs, One Senator Claims

One U.S. Senator claims that rumors are swirling around Washington an upcoming meeting with China may open the door to Chinese EVs.

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Rob Stumpf

By: Rob Stumpf

Sep 10, at 2:07pm ET

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One U.S. Senator claims that the Trump Administration could soon let Chinese automakers sell cars in America.
The unverified rumor cites Trump's upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
However, the Administration hasn't exactly been welcoming the idea with open arms so far.

U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin claims that President Trump is preparing to open the American market to Chinese EVs. It'd be a major reversal for a President that has heavily restricted trade with China, but it's far from a sure thing. Slotkin's claim is based on rumors from unspecified sources, and there's been no official policy change yet.

The Senator slipped the rumor to the public via a post on X on Wednesday in which she linked the potential decision to open America's borders to Chinese imports with an upcoming meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.

"We hear rumors that Trump is planning to allow Chinese cars to be sold in the U.S., as part of a larger deal he’s putting together," wrote the Senator. "That would be a strategic mistake."

Before we go any further, it's important to point out that these are unsubstantiated rumors. Slotkin didn't provide any sources for the claims, nor has the White House so much as hinted that this would be a topic of discussion at the summit between the two leaders.

We also need to note that there's a giant flashing political-interest sign attached to this post. Slotkin is one of the two names behind the Connected Vehicle Security Act. The act, which passed the Senate unanimously earlier this year, looks to prohibit vehicles designed in China, made in China, or built by companies with ties to any "covered entity"(China, Iran, North Korea, or Russia) from being imported or sold in the U.S. beginning in 2027. It also looks to ban any connected vehicle software or hardware under the same umbrella by the top of the decade.

Where Slotkin's claim potentially has at least a shred of merit is Trump's previous support of Chinese EVs on American soil—as long as they were also built in the U.S. Here's an excerpt from a speech that Trump made at the Detroit Economic Club earlier this year:

“If they want to come in and build a plant and hire you and hire your friends and your neighbors, that’s great, I love that. Let China come in, let Japan come in.”

Meanwhile, the administration as a whole has been fairly aggressive against Chinese automakers over the last few months. In fact, Polestar (whose parent company, Geely, is based in China) was effectively forced out of the country by the administration earlier this year.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also slammed Ford just this week for its tie-ups with China. The U.S. Department of Transportation published a brief on Tuesday specifically calling out Ford for embracing Chinese technology (such as its CATL-licensed battery tech built in Michigan) and manufacturing (like its recent partnership with Geely in Spain), citing national security concerns. Ford CEO Jim Farley is quite public about his love of certain Chinese EVs, but also about the need to remain competitive on the global stage and "not let them into our country."

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Trump is scheduled to meet with Jinping at the White House on September 24th. It's expected that energy and trade will be two large topics of conversation, and with the Chinese auto market's rapid growth in Canada, Mexico, and Europe, it's hard to imagine that the topic of cars won't come up, too.

We don't know what the result of those conversations will be. The U.S. could take an even tougher approach to Chinese cars or it could crack open the door. If it does the latter, sign me up for an SU7 Ultra.

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