US House leader and Taiwan president meet as China protests

By MICHAEL BLOOD, LISA MASCARO and ELLEN KNICKMEYER
Associated Press

SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (AP) — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has welcomed Taiwan’s president in a rare high-level meeting on U.S. soil. The face-to-face session with President Tsai Ing-wen risks anger from China. More than a dozen Democratic and Republican lawmakers joined Republican McCarthy for the talks at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in southern California. The meeting Wednesday underscored strong support among U.S. lawmakers for the self-ruled island as tensions rise with rival China. For Tsai it’s the most sensitive stop on a weeklong trip to shore up alliances with the U.S. and Central America. China views any interaction between U.S. and Taiwanese officials as a challenge to its claim to the island as its territory.