more. >> president trump has struck a deal with chinese president that eases sanctions on chinese telecom giant. she reached out to president trump directly pleading for relief on behalf of the chinese company. zte had been penalized by the u.s. commerce department for doing business with both iran and north korea. a major violation of international sanctions. the president indicating two days ago he believes china's bad behavior is the united states fault. >> we had massive theft of intellectual property. i don't blame china. i blame the united states for allowing this to happen. >> now lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are slamming the move. a letter signed by 14 g.o.p. senators, calls zte quote serial and premeditated violators of u.s. law and cautions the president that fidelity to the rule of law is a key part of what distinguishes the u.s. from a country like china that's ruled by a communist dictatorship. a statement from democratic leader pelosi reads in part the president's zte deal is a