We must also have strong national security by having strong border security and also by engaging China’s economic and military ambitions. We can do this through energy independence, repatriating America’s manufacturing base, holding China accountable for their trade agreements made under the Trump administration, and forming coalitions with other freedom-loving nations to enforce trade agreements and curb aggression. 

This all happened under the ruling class in Washington’s watch, and they knew it was happening. They even used it to secure their position of power through American companies reaping enormous profits by exploiting cheap labor in China and in-turn contributing generously to the campaigns of politicians who let it happen.

In 1986, our trade deficit with China was $6 Billion. We have not had a trade surplus since. Last year it was $679 billion, an all-time high.

Today we pay the price. By some measures, China has already become the world’s largest economy. By all measures, it has the world’s largest Navy. It now occupies international shipping lanes and poses serious nuclear threats in the South China Sea. Politicians allow China to provoke our trading partners and threaten our allies.

It is hard to believe that someday we will just put aside our differences with the Communist Party of China and suddenly decide to become friends. China is a surveillance state that locks up minorities in concentration camps and commits genocide to its own people. In China, there is no such thing as free speech; in fact, criticism of the government will get you killed. The same people who enforce these policies in China also define and broker how trade is conducted with the United States.

In the face of this threat, we must maintain our military superiority and rid American soil of Chinese spies who are stealing our technology. In addition, we must form a NATO-like pact with freedom-loving nations, which regards a violation of trade rules on one country as an assault on all countries.

According to the Epoch Times, China is one of the largest producers of fertilizers in the world, producing more than both the United States and India combined. China also is the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers. The United States’ import dependency for fertilizer is akin to many third-world countries. With China once being the biggest supplier of fertilizers to the United States, curbing their exports have led to prices skyrocketing. Farmers and hard-working Americans will have to foot this bill. 

Energy independence and self-sufficiency are key to solving this problem, as well as opening up friendly markets that have been cut off by needless tariffs. The United States should never have become dependent on dictatorships like Russia, Iran, and China to supply our farmers with what they need to feed our people. The solution has been available all along; we simply need someone in Washington who will listen to farmers and fight for the right policies that will benefit our agricultural industry and our nation. 

Chinese military and economic ambitions must be authentically engaged in order to be deterred. Coalitions of nations are indispensable to that, through economic pressure and strong alliances. We have to have a national foreign policy that is forward-thinking, looks to the future, and assesses trends and threats so we are not left strategically vulnerable or unprepared. As your Senator, I will stand up to China and advocate for a strong military and self-sufficiency in order to protect our freedom, values, and future.