Bash the Reds....

The Republicans' Red Scare

GOP hopefuls are bashing China ahead of next month’s state visit.

By Nahal Toosi

GOP presidential candidates have a new country to bash: the People’s Republic of China.

This week’s Chinese stock market crash — and the resulting turmoil in U.S. markets — prompted Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker to demand the White House cancel next month’s state visit by China’s president. Donald Trump said he’d treat the Chinese president to McDonald’s instead of a fancy dinner.

There’s likely more China-bashing in the works: On Friday, Sen. Marco Rubio and Walker will deliver dueling foreign policy speeches in South Carolina that in Rubio’s case will focus primarily on the communist-led state.

But while scapegoating Beijing and its questionable economic policies may seem like an appealing campaign tactic, China specialists — including many in the GOP — warn that Republicans run the risk of looking ignorant about U.S.-Chinese ties.

“Welcome to the most complex and challenging relationship of the 21st century,” said Jon Huntsman, a former GOP White House contender and ex-ambassador to China who was once mocked for speaking Chinese during a debate. “It’s foolhardy to think that you can just wave off the work of the China-U.S. relationship for political purposes, but it’s also no surprise that in primary season people make such statements. You want to be seen as a tough guy on the world stage.”

To be fair, China gives White House hopefuls lots of material for a tough-guy routine.

Beijing’s aggressive moves in the South China Sea, its suspected role in cyberattacks on the U.S. and its dismal human rights record are just a few areas already seized upon by Republicans (and some Democrats) for criticism. China’s currency policies have long frustrated the United States in particular, and its increased military spending has led to wariness around the world.

Still, bullying the world’s most populous country isn’t a workable policy prescription, former U.S. officials and other China experts say. Neither is isolating it.

Take, for example, Walker’s call for President Barack Obama to call off Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit, an affair likely to be lavish and, as is tradition, include an elegant dinner, visits to cultural landmarks, a 21-gun salute and an exchange of gifts.

Walker said Obama should show “backbone” and get down to “serious work” with China instead of “pomp and circumstance.” Analysts said those comments foolishly dismiss the high value Beijing places on diplomatic protocol.

“Scott Walker is not ready for prime time,” said Daniel Drezner, a professor of international politics at Tufts University. “The one thing that China really cares about is prestige. The fact that this is a state visit is very important to them.”

Huntsman described the China-U.S. relationship as being “like physics” — “for every action by the United States, there’s a commensurate reaction by China.”

Not only would such a tactic prompt the Chinese to cancel any number of ongoing political, military and economic negotiations, thus scuttling progress on the very issues Walker is worried about, it might lead Chinese leaders to cozy up to another world power instead, like Russia (another favorite GOP boogeyman), the former ambassador said.

Within GOP campaign circles, Walker’s comments didn’t go down well, either. “When you call for something that has absolutely 0.0 percent chance of happening … it looks a little amateurish,” one Republican political adviser said.

A State Department official said it could find “no records of a state visit being canceled by the U.S. in the modern era.”

Walker’s campaign pointed out that the governor, who has little foreign policy experience and once compared labor union activists to Islamic State extremists, has aired concerns for months about China on a range of subjects. Walker, who Democrats noted led a trade mission to China in 2013, has characterized China as neither friend nor foe, but rather a “strategic competitor.”

“Rather than high honors and an unnecessary ceremony for President Xi, President Obama should be focused on real engagement,” Walker spokeswoman AshLee Strong said, adding, “Holding China accountable for its egregious actions doesn’t negate the importance of trade.”

Several other Republican candidates piled on China in the wake of Monday’s stock market plunge.

Trump, who already has bashed Mexico over illegal immigration this campaign, warned that the U.S. and Chinese economies are too intertwined and Xi deserves no more than a Big Mac (which also probably wouldn’t go over well protocol-wise). New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie blamed Obama for letting the U.S. become too in debt to China. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tweeted: “It’s time to build America’s economy, not China’s or Mexico’s, & quit importing cheap labor & exporting jobs overseas.”

But by midweek, the stock market had rallied, showing how catchy soundbites on the presidential primary trail do little to capture the scope and complexity of China’s economic influence.

In theory, Republicans could use the topic of China to their advantage because “Obama has been seen to have been weak in this area,” said John Lee of the conservative Hudson Institute.

“The problem for the Republicans is that [Democratic] front-runner Hillary Clinton is seen as an effective hawk on China by many of the voters during her time as secretary of state,” Lee added. “Indeed, Obama suffers by comparison with Clinton on this issue. Hence, the Republicans have to show that they know how to be tough on China but will be a steady and firm hand at the same time — rather than volatile and reckless on the issue.”

As of now, the Obama administration has no intention of canceling Xi’s visit. Officials say the best way to make inroads with the Chinese is to keep talking to them, and they have noted that Xi’s visit will offer a chance for both countries to tackle vexing disputes, including cyberattacks.

When asked about Walker’s comments on Tuesday, White House spokesman Eric Schultz said: “The value and importance of engagement has been recognized not just by this administration, but by administrations of both parties, and I actually think by governors of both parties in a range of states who have similar engagements with their counterparts in China.”

Both Rubio and Walker will be speaking in Charleston, South Carolina, at around the same time Friday.

Rubio, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has styled himself as a hawk on international affairs, and he’s frequently targeted China, including its human rights record. Earlier this summer, the Florida senator argued that the U.S. should consider sanctions to stop China’s alleged cyberattacks. His speech is supposed to be China-specific.

Walker’s speech focuses heavily on terrorism and the Middle East — in excerpts released by his campaign, he says "radical Islamic terrorists are agents of pure evil" and promises to defeat them — but after his remarks earlier this week, Chinese officials will no doubt pay attention to what he says.

Still, they’re probably not taking any of the 2016ers seriously just yet.

“Top U.S.-watchers in Beijing are pretty savvy,” said Melanie Hart, director for China policy at the left-leaning Center for American Progress. “When election season comes around, they expect to hear a wave of extreme comments from presidential candidates trying to prove they are tough on China. Beijing fully understands that election rhetoric does not reflect how a candidate would approach China once in office.”