U.S. lawmakers urge Trump to press Xi for Jimmy Lai's release during Beijing talks

More than 100 members of Congress asked President Donald Trump to raise Jimmy Lai’s case directly with Chinese leader Xi Jinping before their Beijing summit this week, adding new public pressure on the White House to make the jailed Hong Kong publisher part of the talks. The bipartisan letter was led by Representative Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican, and Senator Rick Scott, a Florida Republican, and was sent on May 7, according to Smith’s office. Trump had already said on May 11 that Lai’s imprisonment would be on his agenda in Beijing, alongside Taiwan and other issues. China’s foreign ministry said Xi and Trump opened talks at the Great Hall of the People on May 14 during a state visit scheduled to run through May 15. ### Who is asking Trump to intervene for Jimmy Lai? Representative Chris Smith and Senator Rick Scott said 105 other lawmakers joined their letter, bringing the total to 107 members of Congress. Smith’s office said the group urged Trump to seek Lai’s “humanitarian release” when meeting Xi. The letter said Lai’s age and health made the case urgent after his February sentencing in Hong Kong. (chrissmith.house.gov) The Committee to Protect Journalists made a separate public appeal on May 12. CPJ said Trump should do “everything possible” to secure Lai’s release and said more than 100 lawmakers had already written to the president on the case. ### Why has Jimmy Lai’s case become part of the Beijing summit? Donald Trump said on May 11 that Jimmy Lai’s imprisonment would be among the issues he planned to discuss with Xi in Beijing. (chrissmith.house.gov) CNBC reported Trump also said U.S. arms sales to Taiwan would be on the summit agenda, underscoring that Lai’s case was being folded into a wider set of disputes between Washington and Beijing. (cpj.org) May 14 talks in Beijing began with Taiwan and broader bilateral tensions already in focus. China’s foreign ministry said Xi and Trump met that morning at the Great Hall of the People, while state media said the visit was Trump’s first trip to China as president in nine years. ### What exactly are lawmakers and advocates saying about Lai? The May 7 congressional letter said Lai, now 78, was sentenced on February 9 to 20 years in prison under Hong Kong’s national security law and that his declining health made direct U.S. intervention necessary. (cnbc.com) Smith’s office quoted the lawmakers as saying Trump’s engagement was “critical” to securing Lai’s immediate release on humanitarian parole so he could receive medical care and reunite with his family. (mfa.gov.cn) CPJ CEO Jodie Ginsberg said on May 12 that Trump’s promise to raise the case “must be tied to concrete commitments.” CPJ said Lai had spent much of his detention in solitary confinement and that his family and lawyers had reported health problems including hypertension, diabetes and cataracts. ### What is Lai in prison for? (chrissmith.house.gov) Jimmy Lai, the founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in February. CPJ said the sentence followed convictions for collusion with foreign forces and sedition, while rights groups including Human Rights Watch said the punishment was the harshest handed down under Hong Kong’s national security law since Beijing imposed it in 2020. (cpj.org) The case has drawn criticism from press freedom groups and Western governments for months. The New York Times reported on May 13 that Lai’s supporters were also urging Trump to raise the case of Chinese journalist Dong Yuyu, showing that advocates were trying to widen the summit’s human-rights agenda beyond a single prisoner. (cpj.org) ### Has Trump raised Lai’s case before? CPJ said Trump previously raised Lai’s case during an October 2025 meeting with Xi in South Korea. The group also said Trump renewed a promise to “save” Lai during the publisher’s national security trial last year. That earlier history helps explain why lawmakers framed the Beijing meeting as another opening rather than a first attempt. (nytimes.com) Smith’s office said Trump had “again” been asked to advocate for Lai, and the letter was sent before the president left for China. ### What should readers watch next? May 15 is the next concrete date in the case’s diplomatic timeline because China’s government said Trump’s state visit continues through that day. (cpj.org) Any public readout from the White House, China’s foreign ministry or lawmakers including Chris Smith and Rick Scott will show whether Lai’s name was raised in the closed-door meetings. (mfa.gov.cn) (chrissmith.house.gov)