‘Worst nightmare’: Trump shares Xi’s cold response to efforts to release Chinese critic Jimmy Lai

Chinese President Xi Jinping did not respond positively this week when U.S. President Donald Trump broached the case of imprisoned pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai.

Lai, 78, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in February as per his alleged culpability for antigovernment protests that erupted in Beijing seven years earlier.

“In December, Mr. Lai was found guilty of ‘conspiracy to collude with foreign forces’ that stemmed from meetings he had held with politicians in the United States,” according to The New York Times.

“He was also convicted of conspiracy to publish seditious material in Apple Daily, the now-shuttered Chinese-language pro-democracy newspaper he founded in 1995,” the reporting continued.

Following his sentencing, his daughter began petitioning President Donald Trump to intervene in the case:

Last week, Claire Lai attended the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C.

In a moving speech, she shared her hope that—with God’s help and continued support from @POTUS and the U.S. government—her father, #JimmyLai, will be freed.#FreeJimmyLai pic.twitter.com/RuyGB9yqG2

— #FreeJimmyLai (@SupportJimmyLai) March 23, 2026

The Times notes that the president “has long vowed to press Mr. Lai’s case” and that this continued apace on Monday, with him saying that Lai had “tried to do the right thing” and promising that “I’ll bring him up again” when he speaks with Xi.

However, he warned that it wouldn’t be easy to convince Xi, given how the Chinese president feels about Lai’s actions.

“It’s like saying to me, ‘If Comey ever went to jail, would you let him out?’” the president explained. “Might be a hard one for me.”

His prediction turned out to be extraordinarily accurate. When the president pressed Xi about Lai this week, the Chinese leader signaled that Lai’s release would be a nightmare for him.

“I brought up Jimmy Lai. I would say the response to that was not positive,” Trump told Fox News host Bret Baier on Friday. “He said that he’s been, you know, he said it’s been sort of his worst nightmare.”

“I said, well, I would appreciate it if you would release him. He’s gotten old and he’s probably not feeling too well. It would be nice. I did not feel optimistic. I have to be honest with you about that one,” he added.

Listen via Fox News’ “Special Report“:

.@POTUS on his meeting with President Xi: “I brought up Jimmy Lai, and I would say the response to that was not positive… I did I feel optimistic about the second one that’s now under consideration—the pastor. Very optimistic, actually.” pic.twitter.com/Y3fxWlilCN

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 15, 2026

Trump said something similar earlier this week while on board Air Force One en route back home from China, according to The Guardian.

“I did bring it up, but it’s a tougher one for [Xi],” the president revealed. “He said Jimmy Lai is a ‘tough one’ for him.”

Despite the president’s failed effort, Lai’s daughter remains deeply thankful to him.

“I just want to stress how grateful I am and we are to President Trump and his administration,” Clair Lai told NewsNation host Elizabeth Vargas on Friday.

“He truly is a man of his word. This is the second time that he has brought up my father directly with President Xi. He has shown a continuous commitment to freeing my father, and we are just so endlessly grateful,” she added.

NEW: Jimmy Lai’s Daughter Claire

“I just want to stress how grateful I am — and we are — to President Trump and his administration. He truly is a man of his word.”

“This is the second time that he has brought up my father directly with President Xi. And he has shown a… pic.twitter.com/dxDV1KJbt2

— Jason Cohen (@JasonJournoDC) May 16, 2026

During an earlier appearance on Fox News’ “The Will Cain Show” on Thursday, she called the president the “liberator-in-chief.”

“I’m more hopeful than I’ve ever been that he is the president and this is the administration that will free my father, and we are just so extremely grateful,” she said before the president had spoken with Xi.

A DAUGHTER’S HOPE: “PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS A REPUTATION OF BEING A LIBERATOR-IN-CHIEF”

Claire Lai, daughter of imprisoned Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai, joins @willcain to discuss her father’s imprisonment — and whether President Trump could press President Xi on his release. pic.twitter.com/emsXdjyqUr

— The Will Cain Show (@WillCainShow) May 14, 2026

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