Has the United States, in the era of Trump, lost its global moral leadership? President Donald Trump levies tariffs on China and talks tough about a new trade deal, but says little about the very public crackdown on protestors in Hong Kong. While he’s been bold on trade, this week he caved on his threat to invoke higher tariffs in September. Critics say the timing makes him look meek on human rights.
After this video was recorded, Trump repositioned, appearing to link human rights to a trade deal, by Tweeting: “Of course China wants to make a deal. Let them work humanely with Hong Kong first!”
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Trump vs. China: Bold on Trade, Meek on Hong Kong Human Rights?
Has the United States, in the era of Trump, lost its global moral leadership? President Donald Trump levies tariffs on China and talks tough about a new trade deal, but says little about the very public crackdown on protestors in Hong Kong. While he’s been bold on trade, this week he caved on his threat to invoke higher tariffs in September. Critics say the timing makes him look meek on human rights.
9 replies on “Trump vs. China: Bold on Trade, Meek on Hong Kong Human Rights?”
The Narrator: You walk into this room at your own risk, because it leads to the future; not a future that will be, but one that might be. (Camera pans to Narrator) This is not a new world: It is simply an extension of what began in the old one. It has patterned itself after every dictator who has ever planted the ripping imprint of a boot on the pages of history since the beginning of time. It has refinements, technological advancements, and a more sophisticated approach to the destruction of human freedom. But like every one of the super states that preceded it, it has one iron rule: Logic is an enemy, and truth is a menace. (Camera switches to the convicted man) This is Mr. Romney Wordsworth, in his last forty-eight hours on Earth. He’s a citizen of the State, but will soon have to be eliminated, because he’s built out of flesh and because he has a mind. Mr. Romney Wordsworth, who will draw his last breaths in the Twilight Zone.
This episode of Twilight Zone has application to China. China has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that totalitarianism and capitalism are NOT mutually exclusive propositions. The Chicoms have successfully integrated capitalist improvements under the boot of a totalitarian dictatorship. Communism has proven that people can be controlled like cattle with a modicum of controlled liberty. The problem first started when Nixon visited China and opened the doors for globalists to make deals with the communist dictator to enrich said globalists using the slavish labor force of a domesticated, docile population. Hong Kong has a puppet governor in power who endorses the new extradition laws. My prediction is that Hong Kong will become Tiananmen Square II. It’s only a question of how much blood will flow in the streets before the Chicoms get their way.
The reason China could sell their products to America so low is because labor costs in China undercut American labor costs tenfold. It’s impossible to compete against this kind of economic advantage. Ross Perot’s “giant sucking sound” wasn’t just about Mexico. China sucked out America’s infrastructure much more than Mexico ever did.
Bill calls himself the day walker. The liberal turned conservative. What do we call those of us that have been life long conservatives? Who know the Hong Kong treaty off by heart and a totally unsurprised at either the events in China or the tweets on @Potus.
Trump knows how to use carrots and sticks. Someone that knows only carrots sees Trump as a warmonger. Those who know only sticks sees Trump as a sell out. Sometimes strong action can get the people your trying to save killed. Trump tried something. It did not work but it was worth a try.
All trade with China will end soon. That will seriously mess up Australia because we got locked into long term contracts with china for our resources. India, etc can’t pay for Australian Ores. America does not even have west coast import facilities that can handle ores and coal from the pacific rim.
Bill, Scott
I am linking a Youtube video here. The creator is a young liberal progresive named Tim Pool. You may know of him?? I watch his content for the alternative perspective. But the last several months, he finds himself defending conservatives and the President due to the absurd level of madness on the left. The video I link talks about this Hong Kong situation. It’s worth your time.
https://youtu.be/lho8ApIrj8Y
I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to visit Hong Kong and Guangzhou along with Shenzhen on business three times in succession in ’99, ’00 & ’01. That was just after the ’97 British hand-over to the PRC and the general feeling among my contacts was one of great concern and some mild worry but hopeful optimism for the future. However, more than a few of my contacts privately expressed great concern that their way of life was in jeopardy and the general consensus was, “we doubt anything will turn sour on us in the immediate future but our feeling is that perhaps 15 to 20 years down the road there may be some serious trouble coming down from Beijing based on our democratic ideals instilled by the British.”
How prophetic this seems to me now!
PS. They “borrowed” our intellectual property and I haven’t seen dollar one from that region since about 2007.
The core issue is that they were supposed to be “one country, two systems” until the year 2045 under the agreement with the UK. That includes the courts.
Due to fiat from the Chinese communist party, whoever is not Chinese (or Chinese enough, in this case) automatically loses in the courts. So anyone lobbying or protesting for China to live by the agreement under which they got HK in the first place could disappear into mainland China’s “court” system. The rule of law within HK, and the trust in true law that empowers commerce, would collapse Hong Kong economically even without this abuse.
Third, the leadership in PRC who came to power with students brutally murdering anyone the students judged to not be “woke” enough (to paraphrase) and encouraged to do so with complete immunity in the cultural revolution are now labeling people “terrorists” whose only crime is marching peacefully and joining in “Sing Hallelujah to the Lord”.
In theory, the newly-conservative leadership in the UK could inform the PRC that they are in violation of the treaty that gave them Hong Kong in the first place, thus making the treaty null and void and permitting the UK to consider Chinese passports with Hong Kong as the city of residence to be de facto UK passports and allow mass emigration of people who actually value the rule of law and working for a living. I’d happily trade US flag waving Hong Kong residents for those in the US who would never do so. Let THAT sit in the immigration debate while the Democrats fight that.
Outstanding sir!!
Yes those in Hong Kong at the time of handover received automatic visa entry to Britain (and other commonwealth countries) but the generation born since are trapped. That’s who’s protesting. A British visa is no help if China restricts the number of flights out to the free world. It was doing that. A visa fix is possible but the Airport and port sit-ins were as much about the young protesting that the old were able to leave while they were not and a restricted number of flights.
There is no such thing as a right to violate rights no matter who claims sovereignty. A nation that violates the individual rights of its citizens is a morally criminal nation. Keep in mind, individual rights preexist any government and may not be morally violated by anyone no matter how much the need nor how numerous the claimants.
Simply because a nation passes a law, by their self defined due process, does not mean that the law is morally just. It must actually be morally just to be morally just. If that is not held to be true, you truly have the law of the jungle by which might makes right and actual justice has nothing to do with it.
Mankind spent almost all of its hundreds of thousands of years living and mostly dying by might makes right. Then, at long last, it was discovered that individual rights matter and must be respected is a much better way to do things.