Trump Jr. says US should avoid ‘poking the dragon' in China-focused commentary
Khushboo Razdan in Washington Published: 8:19am, 19 Feb 2025 Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of US President Donald Trump , called for 'avoiding poking the dragon in the eye unnecessarily' as he outlined on Tuesday how China fits in his father's 'America First' foreign policy and why lawmakers should unite behind the president's nominee for Pentagon policy chief.
In an opinion piece for Human Events , a conservative US news outlet, the younger Trump urged Republican lawmakers to back long-time China hawk, Elbridge Colby.
Colby served in the Pentagon for about a year during Trump's first administration, where he advocated for strengthening military deterrence to prevent future conflicts – especially with Beijing. In December, Trump nominated him for the position of under secretary of defence for policy.
While other Trump nominees have been confirmed or are in the process of getting green lights from the US Senate, a confirmation hearing has not yet been scheduled for Colby. Some Republican lawmakers are opposed to Colby's push for reduced involvement in the Middle East to focus on the threat that China poses.
Trump Jr. argued in his piece that those opposing Colby were 'hostage to an ideological approach to foreign policy'. Elbridge Coby, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Strategy and Force Development, Department of Defense, poses for his official portrait in the Army portrait studio at the Pentagon in 2017. Photo: US Army
'When you consider that the American people would benefit most from a balance of power with China that avoids war, it makes perfect sense,' added Trump Jr., who has reportedly replaced the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in building support for some foreign policy figures in the new administration.
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