I have recently returned from a trip to China sponsored by the China-United States Exchange Foundation (CUSEF) and the China Association for International Friendly Contact (CAIFC). On the trip with me were four Former Members of Congress, all of whom have outstanding records and greatly contributed to the success of the trip. They were Congressman Jay Rhodes (R-AZ), Congressman Dennis Hertel (D-MI), Congressman Bill Zeliff (R-NH), and Congressman Sam Gejdenson (D-CT). This report and any errors in this report are mine although I believe that all five of us agreed on much of what is written. I have asked them to send me their thoughts which I will include in future letters.

7. Meeting with the Ministry of Commerce - Wang Chao, Assistant Minister. This Ministry is important for both domestic trade and foreign affairs, such as foreign investment. One of the concentrations is to roll out more projects in rural areas. They are also trying to step up building and commercial networks in cities so people can buy goods conveniently and so the products can find buyers. Minster Chao pointed out that the Ministry had played an active role for the last three decades. In 1979 foreign trade was $20 billion U.S. dollars. Last year it was $2.22 trillion U.S. dollars and would have even been higher except for the financial crisis. Currently there are 780,000 foreign businesses in China with a total investment near $1 trillion U.S. dollars. It is China’s policy to regard reform and opening for investment as basic state policies. Today China is the third largest U.S. export market. When asked about intellectual property protection the Minister replied that China is doing everything it can to solve this problem but it’s not solved.

There was some discussion about how China handles grievances. The Minster pointed out there were arbitration offices and courts under the Chinese Trade Promotion Act that work. When asked whether they would like to see change in the U.S. approach to trade the Minister said, “There is an issue of cultural difference between China and the U.S., when a trade issue becomes a political issue. Tires as an example, China produces low and mid-level tires not made in the U.S. This U.S. sanction affects 100,000 employees in China’s tire industry. U.S. media hypes the link between unemployment and Chinese issues.”

Congressman Rhodes mentioned that the U.S. needs to be aware of China’s core values. However, the Chinese must recognize American core values, to not have the Taiwanese forcefully integrated. This is an American core value which should be recognized. The Minister disagreed. He doesn’t believe that U.S. core values can be based on other countries’ sovereignty. Herein lies the problem. I [Frey] said, “There are major cultural differences in our systems of government. The American political system requires responding to constituent concerns. A member of Congress may have to speak out against China to satisfy constituents to stay in office, even if U.S. policy is more friendly. It is impossible not to politicize issues in the U.S., even if they shouldn’t be. We need to ask you to understand how our system works, and we’ll hopefully do a better job of understanding where you are coming from. We will have to work together on increasing understanding regarding where we are coming from to avoid conflict that may be unnecessary.” The Minister replied: “I recognize this about U.S. politics, but such a fact will be seen as pressures on U.S. administration, which in turn will be seen as pressure on the Chinese administration and will hurt relations. Recent House letter urging that administration labels China as a currency manipulator, could lead to frictions or a trade war.”

Congressman Zeliff said: “The Olympics were a great coming out party for China. At the end of the day trade issues will unite us. If there is unbalance, we will be smart enough to figure out how to make the system work for both of us.”

Congressman Hertel ended the meeting and said: “There is a very real political force pressuring [our] government to act against China. Our countries need to work together to address this and nip it in the bud.”

Links to video programs:
The Lou Frey Institute of Politics and Government
2010 Spring Symposium - Congress and Bipartisanship
http://www.loufrey.org/programs/symposia/2010_spring.php

Sunday, January 24, 2010 Flashpoint with Lauren Rowe WKMG-TV Political Rules of the Road. You may view by clicking on this link or copying and pasting it into your browser:
http://www.clickorlando.com/video/22298882/index.html

December 4, 2009 Political Rules and Congress in the C-SPAN Video Library. You may view by clicking on this link or copying and pasting it into your browser:
http://www.c-spanarchives.org/program/290436-6

Radio:
Mark Simpson with Lou Frey and Dick Batchelor tape INTERSECTION 30-minute radio show on WMFE-FM 90.7. The show is recorded usually on the 1st Monday of the month, it then runs on the 1st Tuesday of the month at 9:30 a.m. and the 1st Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. and the 1st Saturday of the month at 7:30 a.m.

Frey appears on the BUD HEDINGER SHOW WDBO-AM 540 at 8:45 a.m. every Wednesday
Frey appears on the FLORIDA RADIO NETWORK at various times depending on what is Breaking News