President Donald Trump left political observers scratching their heads Thursday after declaring that Chinese President Xi Jinping is “an expert on stone” who “loves good granite.”
“We had a great meeting, and he has great interest in granite,” Trump told reporters after showing Xi the new White House helipad. “He likes granite. He's an expert on stone. And he loves good granite.”
Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul turned to social media for help understanding Trump’s unexpected revelation.
“To the China experts out there, is it well known that Xi ‘loves good granite?’” McFaul wrote. “That was news to me.”
“Lord help us,” Andy Ostroy, a political commentator and writer, posted on X.
Foreign policy reporter Laura Rozen relayed an observation from a White House foreign press pool reporter, who said Trump had shown Xi the helipad and ballroom construction before he addressed the Chinese president’s apparent love of granite.
“Xi just stood without changing his expression,” the reporter observed. “He [said] nothing.”
“Granite—definitely a top issue for Americans,” one critic on X wrote, while the political commentary account Spiro's Ghost referred to the president as "Dementia J. Trump."
Journalist Robert Lesetich was equally as blunt: “Xi loves granite! The idiocy of this buffoon we elected king knows no bounds.”
Trump: "We had a great meeting and he has great interest in granite. He likes granite. He's an expert on stone. And he loves good granite. Thank you very much." pic.twitter.com/iTYWgePzTi
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 24, 2026