In China ‘Free’ Trade Means Steal What You Want

Why won’t it play by the rules?

What can Democrat Chuck Schumer, Republican Marco Rubio, and President Trump agree on? Almost nothing, but they agree China is robbing America blind and has to be stopped. When the President slapped a punishing 25% tariff on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods starting July 6, his least likely GOP ally, Senator Marco Rubio (FL) applauded the tariffs as a “theft tax.” Senator Schumer backed them too, warning that allowing China’s massive stealing to continue will cause “long-term real damage to America.”

Within hours of Trump’s announcement, China retaliated with $50 billion in tariffs on U.S. imports. Trump shot back with tariffs on another $200 billion in Chinese goods. China accuses Trump of “provoking the trade war.” Provoking? China’s been fighting dirty against American business for years. China steals $225 billion to $600 billion worth of fashion designs, pharmaceutical formulas, and new technologies from U.S. companies every year, according to the Commission on Theft of American Intellectual Property. Previous U.S. presidents did nothing but negotiate. That’s like watching a burglar strip your house and asking him “can we talk?” At last, an American president picked up a weapon — tariffs — to fight back.

Not a minute too soon. The stealing is getting worse. Politicians naively said admitting China to the World Trade Organization in 2001 would push it toward a free market economy observing the rule of law. Magical thinking.

From the start, China violated WTO rules, knocking off American products and selling them as the real deal. A staggering 88% of counterfeit goods seized are from China and Hong Kong, according to Homeland Security. Like the Chinese thought “free” market meant steal what you want.

Steal it or extort it. American companies doing business in China are pressured to transfer proprietary technology to a local partner. China promised to stop that arm twisting but broke its word.

Now China is abandoning any pretense of respecting intellectual property. President Xi Jinping’s official economic policy, called Made in China 2025, elevates technology theft to official status. The government politely calls it “the assimilation and absorption of imported technology.” China plans to steal its way to economic dominance and end dependence on foreign suppliers.

American companies can’t thrive under this threat. Our advantage in world markets isn’t cheap labor or cheap materials. It’s ideas.

American Superconductor Corporation was almost put out of business, its stock value driven down 96%, when a Chinese wind turbine maker stole its technology and flooded the...Read More HERE