Peter Navarro, senior economic advisor to 2016 Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
President-elect Trump just picked Peter Navarro to head a new National Trade Council. Navarro means both metaphorically, and literally, there are coming wars with China that we do not need: One of Navarro’s books is titled “The Coming China Wars: Where They Will Be Fought, How They Can Be Won.”
What kind of wars with China does Navarro mean? Earlier last year, he published another book on fighting with China, called “Crouching Tiger: What China’s Militarism Means for the World.” A review of this by Freebeacon was entitled “Thinking About the Unithinkable in the Far East.” In other words, Navarro is not at all just a “trade hawk” about China. He is a “hawk” about China across the board, in all the theatres of struggle, including the military. Navarro is, about China, in a word, a war hawk.
Does he envision the possibility of actual military combat between the United States and China? Take this Navarro comment earlier this year in a book review. “From what I can see, and my Chinese wife can see, China will probably soon implode . . . . The Chinese Communist Party will probably try to get the population to focus outside the country, probably through conflicts in the South China Sea or Taiwan”
And, “For more than two decades, I have been telling people that the first thing China would do before trying to take Taiwan would be to take the Spratly Islands. If the world simply ignored that, then Taiwan would be next.” Is there anyone else than the United States who would mobilize its military to protect Taiwan? Now Trump’s phone conversation with the President of Taiwan, in breach of the 40 year old “One China” policy, fits into a larger policy picture: viewing war with China as entirely possible.
To be sure, Navarro is himself an economics professor. And, his portfolio is labeled as just trade. But he can still serve as a way that China hawks in the Department of Defense and elsewhere can exchange views with Trump.
I am no dove about China. I published a critique of normalizing trade relations with China, back when there were not many academic critics, that was as long and specific about China’s negatives as a short book. But there is no trade-related reason to have a war hawk attitude.
But, China will interpret the Trump administration moves as an overall challenge, including a military one. And that, in turn, will justify the Trump Administration in its extravagant campaign promises about monster increases in the United States navy. The Department of Defense in general, and the Navy in particular, already have a large wing devoted to being ready for an anticipated potential war with China. That is what powers the vision of the budget-breaking 350 ship Navy that Trump promised.
In sum, Navarro means the title of his book: The Coming China Wars.
Recommended by Forbes
What does it mean to put Peter Navarro in charge of a White House council. It elevates Navarro’s policy views on China to a high level. It also creates a base for China policy that is not, like the Pentagon, CIA, or State, subject to Senate confirmation or regular Congressional oversight.
Navarro has a major advantage over the Special Trade Representative: his office is not envisaged as a bridge between the White House and Congress. He is Trump’s man, not the Congressional Republican party – a party which has more balanced views on the inadvisability of wars with China.
No comments:
Post a Comment