Washington needs to refortify our commitment to the small island nation of Taiwan through increased weapon sales and military drills. This, according to a bipartisan delegation who see these expenditures as a necessary deterrence to China, which claims Taiwan is Chinese territory. Whenever anything out of Washington today is ‘bipartisan’, scrutiny is called for louder than French horn. Because I’m a registered Republican, I’ll let them take the microphone.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairperson Michael McCaul, R-Texas, argues that: “freedom and democracy is worth supporting Taiwan,” and ostensibly taking America to war with China to support and defend.
Aside from the fact that 60 years of expensive failure on our part has proved beyond a shadow of a doubt the ‘democracy’ is not a canned good that can be exported by America, recent failures should be fresh enough in the American conscious to dismiss his rhetoric.
McCaul knows, especially just off the heels of the 20-year Afghanistan debacle, that fewer will be persuaded with ‘flag waving’ to obtain only flags draped on American caskets paraded in front of senile presidents who can only endure the hypocrisy by frequently checking their time pieces.
So, it is for insurance that McCaul adds: “but if that doesn’t persuade people, 90% of the advanced semiconductor capabilities for the world in manufacturing exist right here in Taiwan,” and those are a “national security asset.” The implication is clear. The Department of Defense is dependent on an island nation at the edge of the South China Sea for nearly all our advanced military needs.
To which I may ask: Whose fault is that? While you can blame the Democrats for only focusing on enriching themselves with cash from our vassal states, and even enemies such as the CCP, right up to the American President (and in the spirit of bipartisanship, McCaul’s net worth has reportedly ballooned from $74 million to $294 million over the last year), it was the Republicans, who have been asleep at the chopsticks, that let this happen. Fortunately, the Taiwanese have kept their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel, and have been driving semi-conductor manufacturing plants to Arizona.
‘But wait, there’s more!’ McCaul implores, as even the news reporters had probably begun side glancing. If China is allowed to take Taiwan, “it will send this globe into a world of hurt and a global depression.” A claim, by the way, the French have already been debunking. And this time, we would be wise to pause and butter our baguettes.
After extracting themselves from an unwinnable situation in Vietnam in the 1950’s, the French warned us not to get embroiled there. It turned out to be a proxy war with China, whom they could not defeat on the Chinese mainland. At the time, fresh from our defeat at the hands of the Chinese in the Korean Conflict, many in top brass and in congress knew as much. Nevertheless, the Industrial Military Complex dismissed the French warning, and took us to Vietnam to lose 58,000 American men, $1 trillion dollars, and $22 billion in yearly disability payments thereafter (adjusted for inflation).
Today, French president Macron is warning all of Europe that America’s interest in Taiwan, and friction with China, is not in France’s, nor Europe’s interest. He stopped just short of declaring that Taiwan was not even in the American interest. Of course, the French are right again. America has no national interest in Taiwan, or in going to war with China – at this time. There is no question that China will eventually take Taiwan. The French are obviously aware of this, and see their future semi-conductor orders being filled by the Chinese. The question for America is: How much blood and treasure are we willing to let politicians working for the Industrial Military Complex throw away to get another ‘Vietnam’ in Taiwan, and prove the French are right again?
References:
Winner of Tchaikovsky competition 2019 Yun Zeng French horn. Youtube. July 8, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMhRmVDhXy0
“McCaul says China saber-rattling will ‘only firm up our resolve’ amid aggression against Taiwan.” Fox News. April 8, 2023.
“TSMC approves capital injection of $3.5 bln for Arizona factory,” Reuters. February14, 2023.
https://www.reuters.com/technology/tsmc-boost-capital-arizona-factory-by-35-bln-2023-02-14/
“French President Macron rejects ‘American rhythm’ on Taiwan, nods to China’s ‘unity’ after meeting with Xi.” Fox News. April 10, 2023.