A GOP senator used a virtual high school commencement speech to say the US will get tough on the 'thugs in China'

• Sasse delivered a speech to high school graduates that set off a round of criticism.
• "We will bring the economy back. We are going to beat the virus.. We're going to have to have a serious reckoning with the thugs in China who let this mess spiral out of control by lying about it," he said.
• His remarks mirror Trump's combative language in recent weeks blasting China's response to the pandemic.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nevada said the US would get tough on the "thugs in China" in a commencement speech for high school graduates on Saturday, sparking backlash.

In a speech for the class of 2020 at Fremont High School, Sasse infused politics into a speech that also promised a quick rebound from the pandemic's devastating effects on the American economy.

— (@haunttamale) May 17, 2020

"We will bring the economy back. We are going to beat the virus.. We're going to have to have a serious reckoning with the thugs in China who let this mess spiral out of control by lying about it," he said.

He went on: "Your generation is going to have a big calling. You're going to have to deal with the consequences of all this."

Sasse joked at one point there were no longer differences between parents and teachers, and suggested graduates should avoid majoring in psychology during college.

The Nebraska senator set off a wave of criticism after the speech, which came as he campaigns for reelection in November. His Democratic opponent, Chris Janicek, told The Omaha News-Herald in a statement that "it's hard for me to believe that a US senator would make remarks like he did in that speech."

On Monday, Janicek released his own commencement address for the high school graduates, praising their educational achievements.

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Sasse spokesperson James Wegmann said Sasse's rhetoric about China was meant as a joke.

"It's ridiculous that some politically addicted folks are complaining about Ben calling out China in a joke. He's said this for months, because it's true: the Chinese Communist party's coronavirus coverup wasted time that could have contained the spread — those lies cost innocent lives in China and around the world," the spokesperson told the News-Herald. "Pretending graduates are too fragile to hear the truth is silly," Wegmann said.

Sasse's remarks echo the combative language that President Trump adopted in recent weeks toward China, the origin point of the coronavirus pandemic and one of the nation's largest trading partners. The Nebraska senator accused China last month of reporting a lower death rate than it had as international skepticism of its data had grown.

Last week, Trump said the US "could cut off the whole relationship" with China over its handling of the pandemic as tensions increase between Washington and Beijing.

Republicans are beginning to shift their campaign message to blame China for a slow response to the outbreak as criticism of the Trump administration's crisis competence mounts, The New York Times reported. GOP Sens. Tom Cotton and Josh Hawley are two leading hawks demanding the US find ways to punish the country for the spread of the coronavirus.

Chinese President Xi Jinping backed an investigation by the World Health Organization into the origins of the pandemic, The Guardian reported on Monday.

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