China’s Global Times government propaganda newspaper illustrated an article on Monday about President Joe Biden considering lifting tariffs on Chinese products with a photo of Biden falling off of a bicycle this weekend — an embarrassing image that went unmentioned in the article and had nothing to do with its contents.
Biden alarmed observers this weekend during a bicycle ride in Delaware on a family vacation when he stopped to speak to reporters and abruptly fell over.
Biden later claimed he was “feeling great” and that he had not suffered any health episode but had gotten his foot stuck in the pedal. The president did not appear to sustain any significant injury.
“What happened was — any of you guys ride bikes?” he explained. “Well, some of them have this thing you put your toe in, constrains your foot so it doesn’t fall off the pedals. I was getting off the bike and it got stuck on the right side.”
The Global Times, an official Chinese Communist Party outlet, did not address the situation in Delaware. In an article titled, “US seeks dialogue with China to ease inflation pressure, ‘lifting additional tariffs is not a gift for bargaining,'” it instead claimed that the Biden administration is attempting to use lifting tariffs imposed under former President Donald Trump to negotiate with Beijing — and that the communist regime did not consider him to be in any state to be negotiating.
The photo choice was apparently an attempt to illustrate America’s weakness, generally, in the hands of a fallen elderly man.
Trump imposed tariffs on upwards of $100 billion in Chinese goods — including items like textiles and clothing that will be subject to slave goods restrictions as of Tuesday — to help American industries compete in the face of a wave of Chinese government intellectual property theft, outrageously low prices made possible by slavery, and belligerent, colonialist behavior by the Chinese government abroad. Biden has been facing pressure from his cabinet, particularly Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, to roll back those tariffs to make Chinese goods cheaper, allegedly aiding Americans struggling with surging inflation prices, though at the expense of American businesses and its geopolitical interests.
The Global Times, a Chinese government mouthpiece, rejected any attempts at negotiation by Biden.
“Chinese experts said on Sunday that the US decision-makers have finally admitted the additional tariffs on Chinese goods have harmed US consumers and its economy badly, but they should not see correcting the mistake as a gift to China and trade it for other interests,” the propaganda outlet claimed. In reality, tariffs on Chinese goods have not harmed the United States economy and have nothing to do with the current inflation spike.
The Global Times admitted as much: “While US inflation is not all about tariffs but involves many other issues, removal of all punitive tariffs on Chinese goods could deliver a one-time reduction in CPI inflation of around 1.3 percentage points … Chinese experts estimated.”
The state newspaper nonetheless insisted that the Communist Party should not engage in talks with Biden and, if it does, should somehow tie the issue of support for the sovereign state of Taiwan to negotiations on tariffs.
“At the same time as asking for help from China, the US continues to play the Taiwan card to keep its provocation against China’s core interests and sovereignty,” the Global Times insisted, “so this proves the US is very clear on the matter and it will not stop its illegal exchanges with the island to support Taiwan separatists whether it needs China’s help or not, said Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert and TV commentator.”
Song was quoted as stating that the response to any potential tariff negotiations on China should be that China “increase its military advantages against the island and US forces in the region and enhance its preparation for reunification by force.”
China defines “reunification” as the full colonization of Taiwan by the Communist Party. Taiwan has never in its history been governed by a regime headquartered in Beijing, so colonizing it would not “re”-unify the two states. China incorrectly considers Taiwan a rogue province and insists that all countries that establish diplomatic ties with Beijing, including America, not recognize Taiwan’s sovereignty. The United States nonetheless sells Taiwan weapons and other material support while not recognizing its status as a country. Biden has complicated these ties by repeatedly stating that America has a “sacred” commitment to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, which is not true.
The Global Times framed Biden’s reported mulling of repealing tariffs as a form of groveling to China in the face of soaring inflation.
“The US will change and soften its attitude and tone toward China when it really needs help, and China fully realizes that it is never realistic to expect Washington to keep promises,” the propaganda outlet asserted, “and only strength and capabilities are useful when dealing with the US.”
Elsewhere in the article, the Global Times insisted that China “needs to seize the chance and push the US to correct more of the mistakes it made,” meaning things like ceasing support for the free nation of Taiwan in addition to removing tariffs.
“Canceling tariffs is a move that will be welcomed by not only China but also the rest of the world. However, while it may be the right choice, it comes too late, so the Biden administration needs to do more to bring bilateral ties back on track,” it concluded.