Amid the US-China trade war, Donald Trump’s White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is being branded as a “hypocrite” for her fashion choice. Since the trade war escalated, the 27-year-old has been boldly defending the US President in front of the international media. However, she is facing some outrages now. A Chinese diplomat has slammed her with a shocking accusation that even her followers were not prepared for.
Accusing China is business.
Buying China is life.
The beautiful lace on the dress was recognized by an employee of a Chinese company as its product. pic.twitter.com/SfPyM4M02Z
— Zhang Zhisheng 张志昇 (@salahzhang) April 14, 2025
On his X (formerly Twitter), Zhang Zhisheng, who serves as the Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in Denpasar, Indonesia, shared an image of Leavitt from a press conference earlier this year. In the photo, she is seen wearing a red dress with black accents, which, according to the diplomat, is “made in China.” To back up his claims, he provides a few screenshots from Weibo, a popular online forum in China, where some users claimed that Leavitt’s dress was made in a factory in Mabu.
Zhang Zhisheng slammed Karoline, saying, “Accusing China is business. Buying China is life. The beautiful lace on the dress was recognized by an employee of a Chinese company as its product.”
Under his post, one user commented, “lol, hypocrites exposed,” referring to Leavitt’s recent China-bashing. Another wrote, “Let us not forget all those billionaires’ wives carrying around Hermes bags are made in China and Label in one Europe countries.”
Lol. Hypocrites exposed.
— Crypto1975 (@Crypto19755810) April 14, 2025
However, MAGA supporters quickly came to Leavitt’s defense, counter-claiming that the Chinese factory had probably manufactured a replica. “Don’t worry, what she’s wearing is the real deal, not that cheap “Made In China” knockoff you’re talking about. Shady fake stuff,” wrote one user. Another commented, “You mean stolen by China i think.”
Amid the debates and discussions, Zhisheng stood firm by his claims, further providing more screenshots to show that Leavitt’s dress was originally made in China. He pointed out that the brand she was wearing was named Self Portrait. “Brand registered in UK, created by a Malaysian Chinese designer, made in China,” he replied to those claiming that China copied the design.
Self Portrait, brand registered in UK, created by a Malaysian Chinese designer, made in China. pic.twitter.com/t5L18KM3Rl
— Zhang Zhisheng 张志昇 (@salahzhang) April 15, 2025
The social media came amid a heated trade war between the US and China. On Monday, Xi Jinping kicked off a diplomatic Southeast Asia tour after declaring, “There are no winners in a trade war or a tariff war.”
Although Donald Trump has backed out of some tariffs, he still kept the 145% duties in place for the world’s second-largest economy. The Republican leader noted during an Oval Office press conference that China and Vietnam were trying “to figure out how do we screw the United States of America.”
Meanwhile, Xi, while writing in an editorial for a jointly published Vietnamese and Chinese media, said, “Our two countries should resolutely safeguard the multilateral trading system, stable global industrial and supply chains, and open and cooperative international environment.”
