During the last week of August, I traveled to Taiwan as part of a US Congressional Delegation. Taiwan has been a separate government from mainland China since 1949, when the leaders of the Republic of China fled to the island after losing a civil war to the Chinese Communist Party. Taiwan is now facing renewed aggression from mainland China and fears of a military invasion. With China emerging as America’s biggest geopolitical enemy and aligning itself with violent autocratic regimes like Russia and North Korea, America must continue to stand with and defend our democratic allies like Taiwan.
During my recent visit, I had the pleasure to meet with Taiwan’s government leaders, including the President of the National legislature. I also met with business leaders, some of which own businesses right here in West Virginia. The overriding concern I heard from everyone is the threatening and aggressive behavior by the Chinese communist government. The delegation heard stories about how Chinese vessels continually sever underwater communication lines to the islands and fly warplanes into Taiwan’s airspace. When it comes to the threat that Taiwan faces, we need to simply take Chinese President Xi at his word. In a speech to the Chinese Communist Party in May of 2022, Xi said, “The historical wheels of national reunification and national rejuvenation are rolling forward, and complete reunification of the motherland must be achieved, and it must be achieved.”
China like Russia has become much more aggressive and defiant of international norms following Biden’s disastrous and ill-conceived withdrawal from Afghanistan, which made our country look weak around the world.
Americans should be concerned about the future of Taiwan. Over 60 percent of the semiconductors in the world are manufactured by Taiwanese companies. These semi-conductors’ power everything from our smart phones to the cars we drive. By taking over Taiwan, China could harm America’s economy and jeopardize international security. China would also secure a valuable base from which to dominate the Pacific region.
For both economic and security reasons, America and our allies should stand by fellow democracies who are facing aggression from dictatorships. Marxism remains one of mankind’s most evil inventions and has led to the death of millions of innocent people. I know from personal experience as my mother was imprisoned by Fidel Castro and ultimately fled Cuba for America after the communist took over. My father is a Vietnam veteran who fought communist aggression. Just as America stood up to and ultimately defeated the Soviet Union with our economic strength, we must be prepared to stand up to our next Marxist opponent who is bent on world domination and conquering democratic governments like Taiwan.
The United States must be strong in the face of Chinese aggression. We can no longer sit back idly while they steal our technology, flood our streets with fentanyl and fly spy balloons over our country. America doesn’t go looking for conflict, be we must be prepared in the event one comes our way. This means funding a strong national defense, setting up a domestic chips manufacturing base and making America energy secure.
The best path to preventing war with China is to project American strength. Under the Obama-Biden Administration, our Navy, which would be on the front lines of a conflict with China, was depleted to the lowest level in over a century. When President Trump came into office, he called on Congress to increase defense spending to rebuild our military. I proudly answered the call by voting in favor of the 2017 and 2018 National Defense Authorization Acts, which increased defense spending by $200 billion. In June, the House passed the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, which makes defeating China in a potential conflict the military’s top priority.
While President Biden has traveled the country promoting the establishment of a domestic semi-conductor base his rhetoric has failed to match reality. President Biden’s own Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is delaying the permits necessary to support manufacturing of semiconducters in the United States.
Chemours, based in Parkersburg, WV, is stepping up to provide the components necessary to manufacture semi-conductors in America. The Biden Administration should have celebrated their proposed expansion, which will create 200 new West Virginia jobs, instead they faced bureaucratic hurdle after hurdle from the Biden EPA. Thankfully, I was able to help convince the EPA to work with Chemours to reach an agreement that will allow them to set up their operation. Federal government policies must not allow ridiculous environmental policies to handcuff America’s national security interests. If we don’t support Taiwan, and America has no domestic semi-conductor manufactures, communist China will be in a dominating position.
Finally, we must create energy security. President Biden’s push for green energy subsides is a giveaway to China. It is China that is providing the solar panels and components to make electric vehicles, not American companies. We have abundant energy resources right here in West Virginia. Let’s use them. Domestic production of energy not only lowers energy costs for Americans, it protects us from being extorted by China and Russia.
We defeated the Soviet Union by pursuing peace through strength and we must do it again. Strength is the only thing communist’s respect. Under President Trump, China respected us. Under Biden, authoritarian states have become emboldened belligerents again. Taiwan is the lynchpin in the Pacific. Now more than ever, the United States must be unequivocable in our support for a free and democratic Taiwan in the face of Chinese aggression.
(Mooney, of Charles Town, is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing West Virginia’s northern Second District)
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