US House of Representatives: Take Action Against China
The newly established special committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the House of Representatives, the lower house of the US Congress, held its first session, which began at 7:00 pm local time last night and lasted for a few three hours. .
In the session, which was broadcast live on some televisions, the legislators discussed the “threats posed by the Chinese administration to US national security” and called for urgent action against these steps by China.
At the session, former US President Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser, Lt. Gen. HR McMaster and Deputy National Security Adviser Matthew Pottinger, and American Manufacturing Association (AAM) President Scott Paul and activist Tong Yi shared their views with the committee and answered questions from legislators
THE “EXISTENTIAL” FIGHT AGAINST CHINA
Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher said the fight against China’s ideological, technological, economic and military threats against the United States is an “existential fight.”
Emphasizing that Democratic and Republican members must work together on this issue, Gallagher argued that the policies that will be implemented in the next 10 years will shape the next 100 years.
Gallagher said they believe China will make reforms, especially thanks to economic commitment, but they should learn from these mistakes.
Democratic lawmaker Raja Krishnamoorthi said that over the past 30 years, both Democrats and Republicans underestimated the CCP and thought that business investment could bring democracy to the Indo-Pacific, but the opposite was true.
In that context, Krishnamoorthi said that the US should invest especially in technology and manufacturing and, on the other hand, does not want a new hot or cold war with China.
TICKTOK IS AGAIN
Emphasizing the importance of getting ahead in the economic and military competition with China, the deputies also drew attention to the technological steps of the Chinese administration.
Noting that the Chinese social media platform TikTok poses a threat to national security, Pottinger argued that the CCP can manipulate the American agenda as long as TikTok is allowed to be used in the US.
The session also discussed China’s growing role in the world economy with the Belt and Road Project.
Noting that tech products account for a third of trade with China, Scott also asserted that American workers have been negatively affected by cheap Chinese products.
Republican lawmaker Rob Wittman argued that Beijing seeks to create a military that threatens not just the Indo-Pacific, but the entire world. Wittman also said that the CCP is trying to “sneak” use social media to shape the thought world of American children.
McMaster also defended the view that China is a bigger threat than the Soviet Union, especially in terms of its relationship to the global economy and its intelligence activities. (AA)