Sen. Eric Schmitt says he isnât backing away from the fight. And he certainly isnât apologizing.
According to Fox News, while speaking on âThe Ingraham Angle,â the Missouri Republican pushed back hard Tuesday after learning a group of Chinese entities is seeking $50 billion in damages against him.
The case, filed years after he sued China as Missouriâs attorney general, accuses him of spreading falsehoods about the origins of Covid-19.
Schmitt dismissed the action without hesitation.
âItâs totally ridiculous. Theyâre just mad that we exposed their lies and their deceit,â he said, adding, âMissouri got a $24 billion judgment against them, and they donât like that. They unleashed COVID on the world. We sued them, and we won.â
The lawsuit was filed by the Peopleâs Government of Wuhan Municipality, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
It targets Schmitt directly, along with FBI co-deputy director Andrew Bailey and the state of Missouri.
Their complaint charges that Schmittâs earlier case caused reputational harm to China, Wuhan, and the research facilities involved in the pandemic controversy.
According to the filing, Schmitt and his co-defendants carried out âmalicious vexatious litigation, fabricating enormous disinformation, and spreading stigmatizing and discriminating slanders.â
Schmitt brushed off the language and said the Lawsuit changes nothing about his view of Chinaâs conduct.
He also described the entire ordeal as predictable. âSour grapes,â he said, while noting his legal team is still sorting through translated copies of documents delivered to him.
âI wonât be apologizing any time soon, as youâd imagine,â Schmitt added.
His original 2020 lawsuit named the Peopleâs Republic of China, several Chinese government ministries, the Communist Party of China, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
At the time, Schmitt accused Chinese officials of withholding information about Covid-19, failing to contain the outbreak, and enabling global spread.
Now, years later, he finds himself back in the legal spotlight â this time on the receiving end. But Schmitt said heâs standing firm, convinced Chinaâs case is driven by anger, not evidence.
And if Beijing expects contrition, Schmitt made clear on Tuesday, they wonât be getting it.
