John Bickley

Thank you so much for joining us.

In what's being seen as a major blow to the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, British media tycoon Jimmy Lai was sentenced to 20 years in Chinese prison yesterday.

Lai's newspaper, Apple Daily, was widely seen as the last free press outlet in China.

Here to discuss Lai's sentence is Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce.

So, Tim, Lai is 78 years old.

A 20-year sentence could mean he spends the rest of his life in prison.

What are his chances of getting out?

Yeah, it seems like it's going to come down to President Trump and whether he can negotiate a deal with President Xi for Lai's release.

Trump has previously pushed for Lai's release, and he has another meeting scheduled with Xi in April, and that could be where a deal for Lai is negotiated.

According to Father Robert Sirico, he's the founder of the free market think tank the Acton Institute and a longtime friend of Lai.

That's really Lai's best bet.

Sirico spoke to the Daily Wire in December after Lai was sentenced, and he said that Lai should be a top priority despite the

complexity that bargaining overlies life would cause in international relations.

Here's a bit more from Sirico.

Now, Lai was convicted of violating Hong Kong's new national security law, but a lot of people thought that was just a contrived offense that came from the CCP because they didn't like what Jimmy Lai was doing with his newspaper.

Can you describe why they were so upset with him?

Yeah, Lai's case is really about free speech and the consequences of standing up to a dictatorial regime.

Lai was a very successful entrepreneur before he decided to take on the Chinese government, and afterward, he made the decision to stay in Hong Kong, essentially ensuring he would be arrested for his outspoken stance against the communist Chinese.

Here's Sirico again.

Sirico is also a Catholic priest, and he encouraged people to remember and pray that Lai will be returned to his family soon.