Video: President Obama responded to Mitt Romney’s question if he had looked at his pension lately while debating immigration during the town hall Presidential Debate at Hofstra University in Long Island, N.Y.
President Obama and Mitt Romney revived their high-decibel complaints about China during Tuesday’s debate, each seeking to impress voters with how tough they would be on a country that for decades has served presidential candidates as a convenient villain.
“I’ll crack down on China when they cheat,” Romney pledged, citing China’s record on currency and trade that results in a loss of American jobs and patented technology.
SAY WHAT: Watch the debate and read more context and analysis.
More from PostPolitics
Lerner, who on Wednesday invoked her Fifth Amendment right to avoid testifying, before a House committee, has been put on leave.
“It is what it is,” the former New York congressman said.
Sri Srinivasan is considered a likely potential nominee to the Supreme Court if a vacancy arises.
“We must define the nature and scope of this struggle, or else it will define us,” the president said.
Obama responded with a boast of his own: “We’ve put unprecedented trade pressure on China” and he repeatedly cited Romney’s investments in China through the private equity firm he founded, Bain Capital.
The rhetoric has obvious appeal to voters uneasy with the general state of the economy and resonates particularly in battleground industrial states like Ohio, Wisconsin and Michigan, where residents still feel a visceral impact from the decline of manufacturing jobs. But Obama and Romney know considerably more about the complex realities of dealing with China than they let on — and neither candidate approached fundamental questions raised for the U.S. by the rise of China as an economic power.
Arguably, Romney has the most sophisticated understanding of the global economy of any recent presidential candidate. He founded Bain Capital by drawing international investors to a partnership that produced extraordinary profits anticipating global market trends, including the outsourcing of jobs once done in-house by American manufacturers.
Anticipating attacks on this business record, Romney appears reticent to publicly discuss his considerable international investment experience. In part, that’s because he understands how the word “China” can be used to motivate worried voters.
Bill Clinton deployed the China card in 1992, complaining that his Republican predecessor had coddled the “butchers of Beijing.” Eight years later, George W. Bush criticized Clinton for being too easy on China. And Romney saw Obama use China during the 2008 debate, with his own vow to crack down on currency and trade manipulation, citing President Bush’s failure to take action.
During Tuesday’s debate Romney pledged repeatedly that he would move swiftly against China’s alleged scheme to artificially hold down the price of its currency, the yuan. A low value for the yuan makes Chinese exports cheaper around the world.
“On day one, I will label China a currency manipulator, which will allow me as president to be able to put in place, if necessary, tariffs where I believe that they are taking unfair advantage of our manufacturers,” Romney said.
Obama made similar promises as a candidate in 2008, but now cites the advantage of informal jawboning with the Chinese. “The currency has actually gone up 11 percent since I’ve been president because we have pushed them hard,” he said during the debate.
Despite the attention it received, the pricing of the yuan is a sideshow to the fundamental questions about America’s relationship with China, which now owns a large portion of U.S. debt and is inextricably tied to the overall economy.
The Post Most: PoliticsMost-viewed stories, videos and galleries int he past two hours
Loading...
Comments