Pennsylvania Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Dave McCormick on Thursday proposed a massive overhaul of the U.S.-China relationship that included six bans he proposed that would “thwart China’s aggressive ambitions and protect our homeland.”
“To put it bluntly, China poses the gravest threat to our security and well-being since the end of World War II, and our nation’s leaders, including career politicians like Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey, have gotten China wrong for more than two decades,” he said.
“We are in a contest for our prosperity, our security, our values—our very way of life. If we lose, we sacrifice the future long-promised to my daughters and their children. The Biden Administration is taking us on a dangerous path. Today, I am proposing a new one,” said McCormick, a businessman and Army veteran.
He blasted President Joe Biden’s photo-op with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in San Francisco last month, as well as American business leaders paying $40,000 a plate to sit at a table with Xi and giving him a standing ovation. McCormick said:
In true Biden fashion, he bent over backward to appease Xi—and all he got for it was empty promises and a photo op. Instead of sending a clear message that U.S.-China relations need to be overhauled, President Biden, and our nation’s business leaders, effectively told Xi that all is well. This was a terrible mistake.
China’s rise, he said, was “fueled by the loss of millions of American jobs,” including more than 220,0000 manufacturing jobs in Pennsylvania, due to unfair trade since China was allowed to join the World Trade Organization. McCormick went on:
For two decades, under the leadership of people like Presidents Obama and Biden and Senator Casey, communities across the Commonwealth, including my hometown of Bloomsburg, have been hollowed out. Many of our communities are flooded with fentanyl, sourced primarily from China, which kills more than 4,000 Pennsylvanians each year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6DaloWLcy8
He also blasted China for hiding the origins of COVID-19, leading to the deaths of 53,000 Pennsylvanians and wreaking havoc on America.
“Leaders in Washington and in business must finally face up to the fact that China is an adversary that must be checked, not a partner who can be accommodated,” he said.
Rather, he called for a “clean and decisive departure from America’s failed engagement with the CCP.” To do this, he proposed six bans “for ending China’s free ride.”
First, he said, the U.S. must stop the flow of Chinese fentanyl ingredients and drug money into the Western Hemisphere.
“If the Chinese will not do their part, we must use sanctions, intelligence resources, military interdictions at sea, and all other tools at our disposal to make it as difficult as possible for drug cartels to produce fentanyl with ingredients originating in China,” he said.
CBP officers in Nogales seized more than 670K fentanyl pills in two shipments. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection/Nogales Port of Entry)
“I can hear the critics now, saying, ‘This is too extreme.’ Good. Because I think this fentanyl epidemic is extreme, and it’s time for serious measures to stop it. The Biden Administration wants to keep talking about this problem. I want to crush it,” he said.
Second, he called for revoking the benefits of permanent normal trade relations for China at the WTO. McCormick said:
The decision by President Clinton to invite China into the World Trade Organization (WTO) gave China preferential access to the U.S. market. But instead of following the rules and meeting its free trade obligations like other responsible nations, what did China do? They cheated, stole, and took advantage of weak American leaders. It’s time to get tough.
He also called for charting a new path on trade that shifts critical supply chains to more reliable trading partners or to bring them back home. “This is a massive project, and it will require leaders in Washington who understand this challenge,” he said.
Third, he called for ending America’s dependence on lithium batteries and solar panels imported from China.
“It is absurd that the Biden Administration’s green climate crusade is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into things like electric vehicles and solar panels that make the U.S. even more dependent on China. It might as well be a direct transfer from Pennsylvanians’ bank accounts to the CCP,” he said.
“Being dependent on China for advanced energy technology repeats the same mistake we made with semiconductors and pharmaceuticals,” he added.
Fourth, he called for the end of any U.S. investment or trade that supports the CCP’s national security state.
“American innovation, money, and hard work must no longer underwrite the CCP’s efforts to become the world’s leading superpower,” he said. “It’s unconscionable to consider the possibility that U.S. dollars would fund a military buildup that could one day be deployed against Pennsylvania’s sons and daughters.” McCormick added:
That’s why I’ve called for Congress to establish a clear outbound investment regime that cuts off U.S. investment in all technologies in China critical to national security and in those companies that work with the People’s Liberation Army. All publicly traded companies and investment funds should also disclose their investments and exposure in China in public filings. I will lead on this issue.
Fifth, he called to remove China from the World Health Organization. According to McCormick:
The recklessness of the Chinese Communist Party and its Wuhan Institute of Virology unleashed COVID-19 on the world. They then deprived the United States and our public health institutions of crucial warning to prepare for the pandemic, refused to provide transparency on its potential origin, and co-opted international organizations like the WHO to spread their COVID propaganda.
“Every community in America was affected, from those we lost to those who lost their jobs and years of education to lockdowns. Even today, China’s leaders continue to ignore their WHO obligations. I won’t stop until China is removed from the World Health Organization,” he added.
Sixth, called on banning strategic purchases of American land by the CCP — a growing problem in the U.S.
“The pandemic and the ongoing war in Ukraine have made clear the importance of food security to our economy. Our nation’s farmers and ranchers give us the ability to feed ourselves and many countries around the world. That is a strategic asset and source of independence. We cannot ever allow that to change,” he said.
“All significant purchases of American land by Chinese nationals or companies, as well as purchases near military bases, and critical infrastructure should undergo a national security review. I will defend our agriculture industry and our homeland from the CCP,” he said.
He also called for reversing the erosion of American military strength, arming Taiwan to defend against a potential Chinese invasion, deploying more forces to the Indo-Pacific to deter Xi from attacking allies, and investing in weapons production and shipbuilding.
Members of Taiwan’s military reserve force march during a training exercise in Taoyuan, Taiwan, on Tuesday, May 9, 2023. Taiwan has found itself under increasing pressure from Beijing, which views the self-governing island as part of its territory. Photographer: I-Hwa Cheng/Bloomberg via Getty Images
He slammed Biden and Casey for thinking talking with China would solve the aforementioned problems and that the CCP could be trusted on “shared interests” like public health and climate change.
He called it the equivalent of “sitting down with an arsonist right after they threw more gasoline on the fire.”
He said Casey would argue that he has done business in China, which he said was predictable. But, he said, “The real question is who has the will and the strength to act?”
Sen. Bob Casey (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“Senator Casey will not respond because he is more focused on rhetoric than concrete results. In recent months with his re-election looming, he has started to talk tough on China. But as I’ve learned on the wrestling mat, on the battlefield, and in business, talking tough and being tough are different things,” he said.
“The Senator has proven for two decades he won’t stand firm against the CCP or stand up for a stronger and more resilient America. He has dithered while China moved aggressively. He has failed and should be replaced,” he added.
He argued his experience in China would make him a better fighter against it, adding:
It will take someone who has seen and experienced the way the Chinese operate to get this done. Someone who knows exactly the mistakes that American businesses and American government officials have made in China, and who has learned from those mistakes. I know exactly how hard this is going to be. I am uniquely qualified to meet this challenge.
“If I’m given the opportunity and the honor to serve, I won’t wait. I will get to work on day one to confront the CCP, to enact these six bans, and to fight for America’s future.”
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