Let's look at this from Obama's point of view.

The Marxists already own the US university and elementary educational system, so this isn't a "ship 'em there to brainwash 'em" exercize intended to create 100,000 new Marxists. The Chinease are worse at that than the DEA.

This is a two-progned demand from the PRC:

1) 100,000 students (or more accurately, their parents and the US taxpayer) spending US dollars in China.

2) 100,000 hostages, ready to be "delayed" in their return if the US Federal regime doesn't do as it's told.