The domestic impacts of China’s rise as a global economic power are some of the most complex foreign policy issues of our time.
As one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies, increased trade and investment with China has surely spurred economic growth and job creation here in the United States.
But at the same time, the Chinese Communist Party consistently flaunts or outright ignores globally accepted norms and brazenly engages in malicious actions to gain a competitive advantage. The CCP has been caught violating trade agreements, systematically stealing American intellectual property, and discriminating against foreign companies under Chinese law.
Perhaps most importantly, the CCP is also one of the most egregious violators of human rights anywhere in the world as it pursues economic supremacy.
If you ask a room full of conservatives who is America’s greatest foreign adversary, they would likely all agree — it’s China. The nation’s unfair trade practices have caused significant harm to American businesses and workers.
The threat posed by the Chinese is not lost on our elected officials, either. If there is one thing that Republicans in Congress can agree on, it’s their well-grounded, shared distrust of the CCP.
This is also a rare point of agreement among Republicans and Democrats. America must make it clear that China’s unfair practices will no longer be tolerated. As a nation, we must take action to hold the CCP accountable for its actions and protect our economic interests.
In Congress, the new House Select Committee on China — established to investigate the full range of the CCP’s economic, military, cyber, and human rights abuses — is a step in the right direction. This committee will play an important role in examining the actions of the Chinese government and making recommendations as to how the United States should respond.
The committee is strengthened by the backing of business organizations such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which supports the committee’s efforts. Any hope of restraining China’s global expansion via its corrupt actions will require more than just government figures beating the drum to hold China accountable.
From restoring supply chains to ending our economic dependence on China’s stockpile of rare earth minerals, nobody knows more intimately the threat currently facing America than our business community. Now is the time for government leaders and the private sector to work together in advocating for solutions that can level the playing field for American companies and provide them with a chance to remain competitive on a global scale.
Never in our country’s modern history have we faced such threats — economically, technologically, and militarily — from a near-peer competitor such as China. As China grows increasingly aggressive toward the United States as well as many of our allies in the Far East and elsewhere, the international norms and geopolitical alliances on which so many of our businesses rely for their goods, shipping, and markets will be disrupted.
American businesses have a great deal at stake in this fight, and their supportive efforts will go a long way in determining our success or failure at combating this imminent threat.
As a nation, it should be non-negotiable that we take a strong stance against China’s unfair trade practices and reprehensible human rights violations. Our economic and national security, as well as our continued leadership role around the world, depend on our strength in these matters.
By leveraging the power of the business community and support from pro-business organizations like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Republicans in Congress can deliver on their campaign promise to hold China accountable, protect our economic interests, and preserve American greatness for generations to come.
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