Trump hosts Xi for state dinner with tech titans and sea bass
President Donald Trump is hosting Chinese leader Xi Jinping for a state dinner on Thursday, featuring a menu of sea bass and a guest list heavy with technology industry titans, as the event is scrutinized for signals on US-China relations. The dinner follows Trump's unusual personal greeting of Xi at Joint Base Andrews and includes tech leaders like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai, and Greg Brockman. The menu features yellow squash velouté, sesame-crusted sea bass, and vanilla crémeux with White House honey. Trump has sought to rival Xi's earlier Beijing state dinner, even naming his new White House ballroom the "Great Hall of the United States." This contrasts with his 2015 criticism of such pomp, when he suggested taking Xi to McDonald's.