Trump Meets With China's Xi, Asia's View Of Summit, Trump Targets Law Firms

[00:02] China's president used a summit with President Trump to repeat a warning about Taiwan. President Trump called his visit the biggest summit ever, but aides negotiated until the last moment over what to announce, if anything. I'm Michelle Martin in Washington, D.C. Steve Inskeep is in Beijing, and this is Up First from NPR News. [00:22] What does China mean when it talks about constructive strategic stability? NPR China correspondent Jennifer Pack explains. And back in this country, an appeals court considers the president's effort to punish law firms he doesn't like. The president targeted lawyers for representing his political opponents. Lower courts sided with attorneys, but the president has not given up. Stay with us. We'll give you news you need to start your day. [00:46] Bye. [00:51] This message is from AT&T with your summer essential, the iPhone 17 Pro. Its center stage front camera auto adjusts the frame to fit everyone into group selfies. Right now at AT&T, ask how you can get iPhone 17 Pro on them with eligible trade-in. Requires eligible plan. Terms and restrictions apply subject to change. Visit att.com slash iPhone for details. [01:17] This message comes from Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it at Progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.

[01:36] This message comes from Grainger. This is the story of the one. As a procurement manager for a hospital system, she keeps every facility in her network stocked and ready. That's why she counts on Grainger to be her single source for thousands of products, from disinfectants to lighting, air filters, and more. And with fast, dependable delivery, Grainger helps her keep every facility stocked, safe, and running smoothly. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com, [02:06] For the ones who get it done. [02:09] Two presidents have been talking here in China's capital. President Trump met with China's President Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People. Each side has released an account of their conversation. And each account suggests the leaders repeated familiar themes rather than breaking new ground. The U.S. version of the talk says they discussed getting American products into China. China says Xi repeated a familiar warning to the U.S. over Taiwan. The American version never mentions Taiwan. [02:39] And there are those that say this is maybe the biggest summit ever. [02:43] They can never remember anything like it. I can say in the United States, it's [02:48] People aren't talking about anything else. [02:50] NPR senior political correspondent Tamara Keith has been traveling with the president. She's with us here in Beijing. Hi, Tam. It's great to see you. So give me the big picture. What does Trump want out of this summit? True to his brand, wherever Trump goes, he is looking to make deals. And it's not just the president himself. More than a dozen top corporate leaders from the U.S. are part of the delegation here. Tesla's Elon Musk and Jensen Huang of NVIDIA, which makes chips that are powering the AI boom,

[03:20] On Air Force One, I saw Tim Cook of Apple earlier today as well. And Trump highlighted their presence in his remarks at the start of his first meeting with Xi. And they're here today to pay respects to you and to China. And they look forward to trade and doing business. And it's going to be totally reciprocal on our behalf. Of course, the reality of doing business in China is vastly more complicated than Trump makes it sound. [03:50] struck back. And both countries are now looking to put the trade relationship on at least a little bit more of a stable footing. Okay. This summit began with a ceremony this morning, Beijing time at the Great Hall of the People. And you got to be there. What was it like? There were red carpets for miles. There was a military demonstration with soldiers marching in perfect synchrony. A military band played the U.S. national anthem as cannons were fired from Tiananmen Square. [04:20] be standing next to you. So let's just linger in the sound that you recorded at that moment. [04:28] Dozens of children welcoming President Trump, chanting a welcome while holding artificial flowers and American and Chinese flags. They're jumping up and down, waving the flags. President Trump is clearly charmed by all of these

[04:50] So these kids were [04:55] perfectly well behaved, perfectly lined up. And then once the leaders were out of view, they became real kids. And they were super wiggly and relieved, I think, to be able to stop performing. But Trump later remarked on the kids as well. That was an honor like few have ever seen before. And I think I was particularly impressed by those children. They were happy. They were beautiful. [05:20] Earlier this year, Trump said that he told Xi that they should put on the biggest display in the history of China. But I have to say that although this was impressive, this welcome ceremony really didn't seem all that different from how Trump was received in 2017 when he first visited as president. Is there real substance in this meeting? Yes, absolutely. [05:39] Okay. All right. Go on. You know, it's also a show, but at this moment in history, Trump and Xi are the decision makers. They are the negotiators. And so the state of the relationship between these two nations competing for global dominance comes down to the relationship between two men. Yeah, I got an impression from that communique that the Chinese put out that they were continuing to negotiate right up to the last moment to try to find something to announce, but... Indeed they were. NPR's Tamara Keith, it's a pleasure to see you. Thank you so much. You're welcome. [06:09] about what was said and also how it was communicated. Each government released what's called a readout, a summary of that private meeting of the presidents. China says that its president issued a warning on Taiwan. The U.S. says that its president talked about trade and Iran.

[06:25] NPR's China correspondent Jennifer Pack is here in Beijing. Hey there, Jennifer. Hey, Steve. Okay, first, what does the Chinese version, the Chinese account of this meeting say? Well, it doesn't give a lot of specifics on what was agreed upon, just what Xi wanted or said. And he said that he wants to work with President Trump to steer the two countries towards a landmark year, making 2026 a landmark year, [06:55] that if the two countries join hands, they can do great things. As you mentioned, he also stated that Taiwan is a very important issue. It cannot be mishandled because it will disrupt U.S.-China relations if it is not handled properly. Okay, so that's the Chinese version of what the president said. The U.S. has this statement that emphasizes other issues like trade and the Strait of Hormuz, saying the two sides agreed the Strait of Hormuz must, quote, remain open, [07:25] seems currently to be closed. So what do you make of that? [07:27] I mean, these are the issues that President Trump has been hammering on and on. He said that, you know, China needs to expand its markets for American businesses. This is an issue that goes back to Trump 1.0. He said they want Chinese investment into their industries. China would say we have tried, but you're blocking us.

[07:57] government didn't do enough to stop fentanyl precursors from flowing into the U.S. And also, you have purchases for agricultural goods that, of course, is very important. And also American oil. This is something new that apparently China had agreed to buy more American oil, so it's less dependent on oil in the Middle East. Okay, so that's the Chinese statement, the U.S. statement. Jennifer, you've read them both. Is there anything else that stands out to you about either of them? [08:27] on stability. This encapsulates a lot. Stability could mean stability in trade. You know, the tariffs going up and down. It's been a roller coaster ride for manufacturers, also American importers. Stability could also refer to the Iran war. And so it could also refer to the Taiwan issue because that's what Beijing sees as a red line. I guess it might also refer to the idea that China wants to see itself as the world stabilizer as the U.S. seems less stable. [08:55] Yes. Well, it's easy when China is saying that we didn't start a war. NPS Jennifer Pack, thanks so much. Thank you. [09:01] Music. [09:09] President Trump's campaign to punish big law firms will get a hearing before an appeals court today. The White House has tried to yank security clearances and ban attorneys from federal buildings because the firms... [09:20] Hired people are represented clients the president does not like. [09:23] NPR's Kerry Johnson has been following this legal drama, and she's here now to tell us more about it. Good morning, Kerry. Good morning, Michelle. First, would you describe these White House orders and explain what the president was trying to do? Yeah, President Trump's orders targeted several major law firms. He went about that several ways using security clearances and access to government buildings. And he tried to prevent the firms from winning federal contracts with the government, too.

[09:53] Russia probe, or they had represented causes or clients like the Democratic National Committee. Here's what the president had to say when he signed one of those orders last year. This is an absolute honor to sign. What they've done is... [10:07] It's just terrible. [10:09] It's weaponization. [10:11] You could say weaponization against a political opponent. [10:15] And it should never be allowed to happen again. Now, four of those law firms fought back in court, Wilmer Hale, Jenner & Block, Perkins Coy, and Sussman Godfrey. And they all won before judges who were appointed by Democratic and Republican presidents. But this administration says courts cannot tell the president how to handle national security clearances, and they cannot interfere with directives about building access or government contracts. Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit is going to hear the case. [10:45] How are the law firms preparing to make their case? The firms are looking to Supreme Court precedent that says our justice system depends on an informed and independent bar. They're going to argue these orders violate the First Amendment and pose a severe threat to the legal profession and the rule of law. [11:02] And they say in court papers, the adversarial system depends on courts hearing views from both sides. Lawyers need to be able to represent unpopular causes. They also say it's not just these law firms. Their clients have a right to a lawyer of their choice under the Sixth Amendment. Now, many nonprofit legal groups have filed friend of the court briefs to support the law firms. But people who tried to organize opposition to the Trump order say there's really been a lack of courage by other law firms and partners.

[11:32] served as a prosecutor in the Watergate scandal. [11:34] We encountered very widespread and very frustrating reluctance on the part of partners in major law firms to sign on to anything because they were concerned or their firm management was concerned about anything that involved getting crosswise with the president. [11:55] Lacovara told me firms and partners were hiding in the weeds last year when Trump signed those orders. And it's still true since he couldn't get some big name lawyers and firms to sign briefs this year either. What do you expect will happen in court today? [12:09] It's really odd that we are here. Only a couple of months ago, the Justice Department filed papers to withdraw this appeal and just take the loss. But DOJ quickly reversed course in a sign that President Trump wants to have this fight. [12:39] He's a conservative who's been taking on tough assignments against the administration in Donald Trump's second term. That is. And P.S. Kerry Johnson. Kerry, thank you. Thanks for having me. [12:52] And that's Up First for this Thursday, May 14th. I'm Steve Inskeep. And I'm Michelle Martin. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Miguel Macias, Tina Kraja, Anna Yukonanoff, Mohammed Elbardisi and John Stolnes.

[13:09] We get engineering support from Nisha Hines. Our technical director is Carly Strange, and our deputy executive producer is Kelly Dickens. We hope you'll join us again tomorrow. [13:18] Thank you. [13:22] *music* [13:34] This message comes from Integrative Therapeutics, makers of Cortisol Manager, named Best Overall Ashwagandha Supplement by Vogue. Use code STRESS2026 for 20% off of Cortisol Manager on Amazon.com. [13:48] Thank you. [13:49] Support for NPR comes from IBM. On Smart Talks with IBM, Malcolm Gladwell explores how organizations are using technology to solve complex challenges. I spoke with Sergi Ghosh, Heineken's chief AI officer. If you can connect all the different applications, all the platforms, remove fragmentation, scale very quick, that's what we call the best connected drawer. That's where IBM is really partnering with us. [14:19] podcasts.