The Mutual Self-Preservation Summit
CommentaryThe Biden administration hopes that this week’s meetings with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping will help “normalize” relations between the two countries.Why would this administration want to “normalize” relations with China at this point? Both Leaders Are Politically Weakened For one, President Joe Biden’s poll numbers are at historic lows. Couple that with the fact that Americans view China as one of the top threats to the nation, the Biden administration is arguably hoping that a private summit with Mr. Xi will give him the president's much-needed relevance and credibility among U.S. voters and boost his poll numbers.The purges are particularly notable because a purge is a reaction to internal threats stemming from paranoia and uncertainty: one purges enemies, not fans.Yes, Mr. Xi has had his successes in the Middle East, negotiating a dispute between Saudi Arabia and Iran and having greater influence in that region (and others). Still, at home, his "China Dream" is becoming a "China Nightmare." He knows this and knows that he could face greater intra-party headwinds in the near future if things don’t turn around.Related Stories11/17/202311/17/2023What’s more, China’s military forces are growing increasingly belligerent against the United States and U.S. allied air and naval forces, particularly in the South China Sea—in Alaskan waters, too. But international gains don’t translate well when the economy is melting down.As the meeting unfolds, much will likely be made of the Biden administration’s “normalization drive” with China. On the surface, that sounds like a good idea. In most cases, “normal” relations between two nations are desirable.But what has “normalized” relations with communist China gotten us in the past? The High Price of 'Normalization' The price list of normalization with the Chinese regime is long and largely negative. The damage to the United States is almost incalculable but perhaps could be reversible, at least to some degree. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein speaks at a press conference about Chinese hacking at the Justice Department in Washington on Dec. 20, 2018. The Justice Department announced new indictments of Chinese regime hackers who allegedly targeted scores of companies in a dozen countries, which U.S. officials said showed Beijing had not fulfilled its pledge to stop such actions. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)For example, manufacturing is returning to the United States, or at least manufacturers are leaving China for friendlier and closer locations, such as Vietnam and Mexico. Intellectual property theft is being curtailed to some extent by the U.S. crackdown on the CCP’s Thousand Talents program, which lures top scientific talent away from the United States into China to access technological secrets and breakthroughs.At the K-12 grade levels, American schools have been infiltrated by Chinese funding of Confucius Classroom programs—many strategically located around U.S. military bases—whereby curriculums are shaped by CCP propaganda and anti-American values. Thankfully, there is congressional awareness and hearings about CCP influence in our schools, and hopefully will result in reversing it by legal remedy.A bit of the same can be said for Wall Street, but not nearly enough, as it’s proven to be a mixed bag at best. Many Chinese firms have been removed from U.S. stock markets over the past few years, and U.S. investment in Chinese technology firms is prohibited. But Wall Street financial houses such as BlackRock are still investing in China, even though it often runs contrary to U.S. interests to do so. But at least they’re now under congressional scrutiny.The CCP’s influence on our political system is much deeper and more damaging. Politicians with significant financial interests in China are now being revealed to the American public. The CCP’s reach into the very heart of American politics at every level is at least now known, even if reversal or prosecutorial efforts have yet to begin.The corrosive influence of the CCP is destructive to any society because the Party demands subservience and can’t tolerate competition or criticism. As the domestic conditions continue to deteriorate in China, Mr. Xi may need a more cooperative America to justify his leadership to those potential CCP adversaries he can’t easily purge or make disappear.Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
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Commentary
The Biden administration hopes that this week’s meetings with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping will help “normalize” relations between the two countries.
Why would this administration want to “normalize” relations with China at this point?
.
Both Leaders Are Politically Weakened
For one, President Joe Biden’s poll numbers are at historic lows. Couple that with the fact that Americans view China as one of the top threats to the nation, the Biden administration is arguably hoping that a private summit with Mr. Xi will give him the president's much-needed relevance and credibility among U.S. voters and boost his poll numbers.The purges are particularly notable because a purge is a reaction to internal threats stemming from paranoia and uncertainty: one purges enemies, not fans.
Yes, Mr. Xi has had his successes in the Middle East, negotiating a dispute between Saudi Arabia and Iran and having greater influence in that region (and others). Still, at home, his "China Dream" is becoming a "China Nightmare." He knows this and knows that he could face greater intra-party headwinds in the near future if things don’t turn around.
What’s more, China’s military forces are growing increasingly belligerent against the United States and U.S. allied air and naval forces, particularly in the South China Sea—in Alaskan waters, too. But international gains don’t translate well when the economy is melting down.
As the meeting unfolds, much will likely be made of the Biden administration’s “normalization drive” with China. On the surface, that sounds like a good idea. In most cases, “normal” relations between two nations are desirable.
But what has “normalized” relations with communist China gotten us in the past?
.
The High Price of 'Normalization'
The price list of normalization with the Chinese regime is long and largely negative. The damage to the United States is almost incalculable but perhaps could be reversible, at least to some degree.
.
.
For example, manufacturing is returning to the United States, or at least manufacturers are leaving China for friendlier and closer locations, such as Vietnam and Mexico. Intellectual property theft is being curtailed to some extent by the U.S. crackdown on the CCP’s Thousand Talents program, which lures top scientific talent away from the United States into China to access technological secrets and breakthroughs.
.
At the K-12 grade levels, American schools have been infiltrated by Chinese funding of Confucius Classroom programs—many strategically located around U.S. military bases—whereby curriculums are shaped by CCP propaganda and anti-American values. Thankfully, there is congressional awareness and hearings about CCP influence in our schools, and hopefully will result in reversing it by legal remedy.
.
A bit of the same can be said for Wall Street, but not nearly enough, as it’s proven to be a mixed bag at best. Many Chinese firms have been removed from U.S. stock markets over the past few years, and U.S. investment in Chinese technology firms is prohibited. But Wall Street financial houses such as BlackRock are still investing in China, even though it often runs contrary to U.S. interests to do so. But at least they’re now under congressional scrutiny.
The CCP’s influence on our political system is much deeper and more damaging. Politicians with significant financial interests in China are now being revealed to the American public. The CCP’s reach into the very heart of American politics at every level is at least now known, even if reversal or prosecutorial efforts have yet to begin.
.
The corrosive influence of the CCP is destructive to any society because the Party demands subservience and can’t tolerate competition or criticism. As the domestic conditions continue to deteriorate in China, Mr. Xi may need a more cooperative America to justify his leadership to those potential CCP adversaries he can’t easily purge or make disappear.
.
Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
