What Selling Out Looks Like

According to recent reports in the Wall Street Journal, a group of American bankers were enticed to take China’s side against the U.S. in trade negotiations two years ago. According to the news reports, the deals were made in a Washington DC meeting in February of 2018 with the head of China’s trade delegation. In exchange for their support, the bankers were given access to China’s growing financial market.

Jaimie Dimon, who helms Chase Morgan and chairs the Business Roundtable, was there at the meeting. For his support, Chase Morgan got full control of a futures venture in which it had held only a minority stake.

David Solomon was there too. He’s the second in command at Goldman Sachs, who with Morgan Stanley, received controlling interests in a Chinese securities firm they’re involved with.

Citigroup was licensed to serve as managers of securities held by various Chinese funds.

Larry Fink, the CEO of Blackrock, got the best deal of all. Blackrock became the first foreign firm to get permission for a wholly owned mutual fund in China.

These executives were overjoyed to make the deals. China is the fastest growing market for financial services in the world.

Sadly, it’s not surprising these men would cut such deals against U.S. interests. Big business and big government have always been prone to become big buddies in an effort to standardize economies and consolidate power in their respective arenas.

Larry Fink of Blackrock is fond of saying his company is a German company in Germany, a Mexican company in Mexico, etc… The problem is that by that logic, Blackrock becomes a Communist company in China. That makes them an anti-American company.

I’m sure each of these executives originally rationalized their associations with the Chinese communist government by telling themselves their involvement would move China toward a more enlightened western attitude. They comforted their consciences by believing they could cause China’s communists to suddenly express new respect for individual freedom and personal dignity.

That, of course, is idiotic. Any parent knows if their children hang out with bullies and near-do-wells their children are more likely to become one. A barrel of good apples doesn’t turn the one rotten apple good. Instead, the one rotten apple poisons the rest.

That’s how it’s worked out with Wall Street. China hasn’t become more enlightened. The bankers have become more socialist. They’ve imported their new regard for big government control to their free market home. They’ve stepped up efforts to use government to subjugate their neighbors, inhibit their competitors, and further dominate their markets.

It’s no coincidence these titans of Wall Street finance have given overwhelmingly to Biden and the Democrats — by last count they contributed 5 times more to Democrats than Republicans.

Biden and Democrats have nurtured China’s economic and military rise. Biden famously made speeches around the world advocating a “strong” China, claiming it would lead to Chinese reform, moderation, and human rights.

Exactly the reverse has happened.

According to John Ratcliffe, Director of U.S. National Intelligence, “China poses the greatest threat to America today, and the greatest threat to democracy and freedom world-wide since World War II.”

He reminds us that China’s main route to economic strength has been to “rob, replicate, and replace.” China’s government and industry steals information and technology from western companies, replicates those innovations, then replaces the victimized companies in global commerce.

It worked spectacularly well when U.S. presidents were willing to look the other way.

But Trump’s isn’t and hasn’t. The Justice Department has aggressively publicized cases of China gaining access to classified research by buying off American scientists.

Trump’s Defense Department has stepped up efforts to block China from illegally obtaining U.S. military technology.

Trump has gone after Chinese companies with ties to the Communist government that want to infiltrate and dominate their markets – companies like Huawei.

And America’s intelligence community is uncovering China’s clever use of American interest groups to manipulate public opinion and even our elected representatives.

One of those manipulation schemes is unfolding this very moment. China is pushing the rumor that Trump will declare martial law in advance of the electoral college on December 14th. They claim it’s the only way he can effectively extend his legal challenge of election results.

Despite the damage such rumor-mongering can do to peace and stability, the press are happy to pass such rumors along. Like Larry Fink, Jamie Dimon, and the other bankers doing business with Beijing, the American media have no problem taking China’s side. At least the bankers are getting a pay day out of it. The media only get the benefit of knowing they’ve stuck another thumb in Donald Trump’s eye – for them, it’s compensation enough.

John Ratcliffe wrote recently that American intelligence clearly shows, “Beijing intends to dominate the U.S. and the rest of the planet economically, militarily, and technologically.” America’s media, and some of our biggest Wall Street bankers, are apparently happy to help.