Tough-on-China bills could get a vote next month, Politico, Aug. 12, 2024.
By ARI HAWKINS
With help from Doug Palmer
QUICK FIX
— The House could vote on several China-related measures next month during a so-called China Week, aimed at building bipartisan consensus on how to respond to threats posed by Beijing.
— Republicans are scrutinizing Tim Walz’s connections to China, alleging the Minnesota governor will be too soft on Beijing if he and Kamala Harris win this November.
— The National Foreign Trade Council is pushing back on new legislation to address the de minimis provision that has fueled a flood of low-value imports from Chinese fast-fashion giants.
DRIVING THE DAY
PREPARE FOR CHINA WEEK: House leadership is looking at late September to vote on various China-related bills which could cover the de minimis trade threshold and outbound investment, four people close to discussions told Morning Trade.
A schedule has not yet been finalized, but votes are expected to coincide with a so-called China Week next month. Hill staffers have indicated the week functions as a platform to sharpen consensus on bills targeting China’s unfair trade practices and threats to national security, following bipartisan and bicameral disagreements over how to handle these issues.
The update comes after House Speaker Mike Johnson said in July that he hopes to send the White House China legislation by the end of this year that would empower the next president to take tougher action against Beijing.
“The House will be voting on a series of bills to empower the next administration to hit our enemies’ economies on day one. We’ll build our sanctions package, punish the Chinese military firms that provide material support to Russia and Iran, and we’ll consider options to restrict outbound investments,” Johnson said during a discussion at the Hudson Institute.
The bills are expected to be brought for a vote individually rather than as part of a larger bundle, which two House aides tell Morning Trade they hope will help ease the process of passing bipartisan measures.
Legislation that would halt federal contracts with biotech companies in adversarial regions known as the BIOSECURE Act, and measures to bolster export controls could also be taken up next month, the House aides confirmed.
Johnson’s office did not respond to Morning Trade’s request for comment.
Outbound fight continues: The House Foreign Affairs and Financial Services committees are still at odds over outbound investment.
Foreign Affairs Chair Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and ranking member Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) support a measure that would build on President Joe Biden’s executive order directing the Treasury Department to create an outbound investment screening mechanism. Top House Financial Services Republicans, including Chair Patrick McHenry, support a sanctions-based approach.
A House working group has since sought to negotiate a compromise.
Hope for de-minimis? Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) unveiled a bipartisan bill last week to reform the de minimis trade provision that has fueled a flood of low-value imports from Chinese fast-fashion giants and other suppliers. This could help break a stalemate that has developed in the House over similar legislation.
Earlier this year, the House Ways and Means Committee, on a Republican party-line vote, passed the End China’s De Minimis Abuse Act, which would bar any goods hit by certain trade remedy tariffs from receiving duty-free treatment under the de minimis program.
But House Democrats favor the Import Security and Fairness Act crafted by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) that would essentially bar de minimis treatment for all goods from China — or any other country that is categorized as a non-market economy under U.S. trade remedy law and is on the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s priority watch list for intellectual property theft or abuse.
AROUND THE WORLD
WALZ’S CHINA TIES DRAW GOP IRE: Washington and Beijing are figuring out what to make of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s connections to China and how a potential Harris-Walz administration would approach policy toward the U.S. adversary.
At 25 years old, Walz taught in China at the same time as the Tiananmen Square protests and earned the nickname “Fields of China” among his students. In Congress, he established himself as an advocate for human rights in China and a critic of its government.
China’s view: Chinese pro-government journalist Chen Weihua published a piece last week asking if Walz could restore “sanity” to U.S. policy toward China. Some activists and analysts in China voiced enthusiasm about Walz, pointing to his experience working in the country.
Partisan critique: Meanwhile, Republicans claim Walz is too soft on Beijing and, in some cases, suggest he may advance the Chinese government’s interests.
A pro-Trump super PAC posted an interview on X that Walz gave as a member of Congress. In it, he said he didn’t “fall into the category that China necessarily needs to be an adversarial relationship.” The Republican National Committee also shared an old video of Walz saying he is “pretty friendly with China.”
In a statement, the Harris campaign said Republicans are “twisting basic facts.”
“Throughout his career, Governor Walz has stood up to the CCP, fought for human rights and democracy,” it said.
POLITICO’s Eric Bazail-Eimil and Jared Mitovich have more.
USTR HAILS ‘PRODUCTIVE’ STIP TALKS: The U.S. and Kenya last week took part in a Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiating round, which focused on agriculture, trade facilitation, the environment and good regulatory practices, USTR said. Kenya’s Trade Secretary Alfred K’Ombudo told regional media that he expects another negotiating round next month.
ON THE HILL
NFTC GIVES DE MINIMIS BILL D MINUS: The National Foreign Trade Council doesn’t think much of Wyden’s new bill to curtail use of the de minimis tariff waiver provision for shipments worth less than $800.
“Degrading de minimis is a regressive tax increase that slows supply chains and harms small businesses and consumers alike without enhancing enforcement of trade laws at our borders,” John Pickel, the group’s senior director of international supply chain policy, told Morning Trade.
He argued that limiting the exemption will force U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials to choose between expending limited agency resources on collecting $13 in duties on low-value shipments worth on average about $54 and other priorities like detaining counterfeits or keeping out items made using forced labor.
“Putting 600 million shipments into a process with more red tape related to collecting duty will cause backups in fragile port environments,” Pickel said. He added that the bill will also push large volumes of shipments into other environments like the international mail system, “where border officials have experienced enforcement challenges.”