Not sure what I would have done in Biden's spot. China has a long history of ignoring patents, doing industrial espionage, and government funding an industry to corner the market on it, shutting everyone else out. We need cheap EVs, but that cost is so high.
Then WHY in the world does the US import so much from China? Seems like a pick and choose bullshit take. The US is losing against China, they're protecting US automobile manufacturers.
Far from my area of expertise, but my guess is because people can swallow lack of forward progress way better than they swallow going backwards. The current trade with China started back under Nixon, and Americans have gotten used to so many ultra cheap Chinese goods. I try to avoid products from China, and for some things it's really hard, and it usually means paying double the price. If we cut off that trade or raised the tarrifs a lot, the price of so many things works skyrocket and people wouldn't stand for it.
The US also has a history of blocking shipments of items that are proven to be infringing of trademarks, patents, and most importantly trade secrets. I do think China has gotten away with a lot but in this specific case, the industry is using the government to get out of lowering the value of a new car.