GOP TAIWANNABES
REES, MATTHEW
GOP TAIWANNABES by Matthew Rees WHEN PRESIDENT CLINTON returned from China on July 4, congressional Republicans were in a bind. A number of GOP leaders, most notably Newt Gingrich and Jack Kemp,...
...China hawks like Tim Hutchinson and Connie Mack immediately signed on, but so did traditional China engagers like Richard Lugar and Craig Thomas...
...Other Republicans had quietly stuck with their criticism of Clinton's China policy on issues like human rights and nuclear proliferation...
...He also questioned the motives of China hawks, charging that they "prosper in direct mail and media campaigns...
...The coalition opposed MFN renewal last year...
...And while the Senate will probably soon pass some modest human-rights legislation—for example, mandating that human-rights monitors be sent to the U.S...
...Robertson's stance also poses a dilemma to his friends on the Hill, particularly Sen...
...A $10,000 contribution from Robertson earlier this year has been viewed as a tacit, and highly prized, endorsement of the Missouri senator...
...One of the original cosponsors of the Taiwan resolution was Bob Torri-celli of New Jersey, a liberal Democrat and an ardent defender of Clinton in all scandals...
...Hutchinson, normally his allies, as isolationists...
...First, while the annual fight over renewing China's most-favored-nation trading status provokes trouble with business groups, those groups don't mind an offensive in behalf of Taiwan...
...On July 10, the resolution—slightly modified to accommodate hesitant senators—passed 92-0...
...And we don't believe that Taiwan should be a member in any organization for which statehood is a requirement...
...Look for continued action on the Taiwan front, partly because Republicans really believe in supporting the island once known as "Free China," and partly because Taiwan is the one China-related issue on which the GOP can easily unite...
...While it did not contradict official U.S...
...companies export twice as much to Taiwan as to China, according to the Senate resolution...
...The Senate therefore will not be required to vote on the matter, and probably won't—both houses must reject MFN for it to go down...
...At a Senate GOP leadership meeting early on July 7, Don Nickles of Oklahoma linked Clinton's words to what he views as the president's recklessness in foreign affairs...
...This signaled a subtle yet significant shift in the American posture toward Taiwan...
...But the president gave Republicans a way out of their bind when, late in his trip, he was asked whether he had discussed Taiwan with the Chinese number one, Jiang Zemin...
...After that meeting, Lee rebuked Washington, saying "your country should negotiate directly with us about any matters involving Taiwan...
...John Ashcroft, an all-but-declared presidential candidate...
...Other senators agreed on the need to express disapproval of Clinton's statement, and the group decided with uncustomary speed that a resolution should be introduced reaffirming support for the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 and calling on China to renounce the use of force in its dealings with the island...
...embassy in Beijing—there is no great appetite for doing more that would directly challenge the Chinese...
...Clinton's statement created an opening for Republicans, who have been generally supportive of Taiwan...
...U.S...
...A few hours later, when Senate Republicans met for their weekly lunch, they were handed a draft resolution...
...In addition, committees in both chambers are slowly learning more about the administration's export policy and its resultant transfer of missile technology to China (although these investigations haven't grabbed headlines...
...Recognizing the potential damage, the administration dispatched a private envoy to Taipei to meet with Taiwan's president, Lee Teng-hui...
...A number of GOP leaders, most notably Newt Gingrich and Jack Kemp, had praised the president's performance...
...policy, it did contradict the spirit of that policy, given that no president had ever expressed it in quite those terms...
...The alacrity with which Senate Republicans moved illustrates the party's unease over the impression created during the president's trip that it backs every aspect of his China policy...
...So, which way for Republicans on China...
...Continuing the intra-Right skirmish, Hutchin-son mocked Robertson's column as a "Clinton echo," and Bauer says he has seen "no evidence the piece has had any effect at the grassroots...
...Nonetheless, Robertson's salvo provides cover for wavering Republicans inclined to support MFN for China and a generally softer line, as does the Christian Coalition's decision not to take a position on MFN this year...
...The value for Republicans in challenging the president on Taiwan is twofold...
...Which raises the question: How will Clinton and his new friend Jiang react to Congress's affirmation of support for Taiwan...
...But Beijing is hypersensitive about the flourishing and self-governing republic off its coast, and the Clinton administration is hypersensitive to Beijing's feelings...
...Within minutes, majority leader Trent Lott had summoned to the meeting his national security adviser, Randy Scheunemann, and instructed him to begin drafting a resolution...
...The Family Research Council's Gary Bauer continues to inveigh against the Clinton policy, but Pat Robertson, among others, is urging a softer line...
...Matthew Rees is a staff writer for THE WEEKLY STANDARD...
...In a June 30 Wall Street Journal piece titled "Friendship with China Is a Moral Imperative," Robertson cast Bauer and Sen...
...Next week, the House will vote to support the president's renewal of China's MFN status...
...Second, the Taiwan issue has divided congressional Democrats from the White House...
...But Ashcroft nevertheless con-Trent Lott tinues to roast Clinton for his China policy...
...Clinton replied, "I had a chance to reiterate our Taiwan policy, which is that we don't support independence for Taiwan, or two Chinas, or one Taiwan/one China...
...One reason Republicans can't muster majorities for a harder line toward China is that social conservatives are divided on the issue...
...Shortly after the lunch, the resolution was formally introduced, and Lott was distributing to the press a statement expressing "grave concerns" about Clinton, China, and Taiwan...
Vol. 3 • July 1998 • No. 43
