The Patriot Post® · Pence Takes on China

By Gary Bauer ·
https://patriotpost.us/opinion/66337-pence-takes-on-china-2019-10-25

Vice President Mike Pence delivered a blistering speech yesterday taking on communist China, the NBA, and corporate America. The vice president must be feeling inspired by the Washington Nationals because he hit it out of the park!

His remarks yesterday were among the toughest yet from the Trump administration. Here are some excerpts of Pence’s powerful address:

Past administrations have come and gone, and all were aware of [China’s] abuses. None were willing to upset the established Washington interests who not only permitted these abuses, but often profited from them…

[S]ome multinational corporations say our economic policies are too tough and that advancing our interests and our values runs contrary to better relations with China. Needless to say, we see it very differently…

Today, China is not only exporting hundreds of billions of dollars in unfairly traded goods to the United States, but lately China has also been trying to export censorship — the hallmark of its regime.

By exploiting corporate greed, Beijing is attempting to influence American public opinion, coercing corporate America. And far too many American multinational corporations have kowtowed to the lure of China’s money and markets by muzzling not only criticism of the Chinese Communist Party, but even affirmative expressions of American values.

Nike promotes itself as a so called “social justice champion,” but when it comes to Hong Kong, it prefers checking its social conscience at the door. Nike stores in China actually removed their Houston Rockets merchandise from their shelves to join the Chinese government in protest against the Rockets general manager’s seven-word tweet, which read: “Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong.”

And some of the NBA’s biggest players and owners, who routinely exercise their freedom to criticize this country, lose their voices when it comes to the freedom and rights of the people of China. In siding with the Chinese Communist Party and silencing free speech, the NBA is acting like a wholly owned subsidiary of the authoritarian regime.

A progressive corporate culture that willfully ignores the abuse of human rights is not progressive; it is repressive. When American corporations, professional sports, pro athletes embrace censorship, it’s not just wrong; it’s un-American. American corporations should stand up for American values here at home and around the world.

Kudos to the GOP

As we noted yesterday, House Republicans are stepping up their efforts to expose the fake impeachment charade.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) kicked off the strategy 10 days ago when he attempted to gain access to Adam Schiff’s kangaroo court all by himself. Predictably, Gaetz was kicked out of the room. I suggested then that the GOP needed to show up in much greater numbers, and Wednesday they did!

About 30 House Republicans walked into the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) in the Capitol Hill basement where Schiff has been conducting his secret hearings. They occupied the room for five hours, forcing Rep. Schiff and the witness to leave.

As Rep. Steve Scalise put it, “If people scatter out of a room when you walk in and turn on the light, it begs the question: What are they hiding in there?” One member of Congress told CNN, “It was the closest thing I’ve seen around here to mass civil unrest.” I’m glad to hear it!

Next to declaring war, this is one of the most profound things Congress can do. Impeachment literally cancels the vote of millions of Americans by overturning an election. How can this be done behind closed doors?

Many progressives are complaining about the conservative objections to this process. Well, it’s called due process, and it is what leftists are constantly demanding for illegal aliens, rapists, murderers, and the jihadists at Gitmo!

But when the left tries to take away the president’s due-process rights, it is essentially saying that you — those who voted to put this president into office — don’t deserve due-process rights. It is a signal of how progressives will treat conservatives if they regain power.

They want to violate our First Amendment rights of free speech and religious liberty. They want to violate our Second Amendment rights, and now they are trying to limit due-process rights.

Meanwhile, I’m pleased to report that Senate Republicans (minus Pierre Delecto) are stepping up too. Sen. Lindsey Graham, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is introducing a resolution condemning the Pelosi-Schiff “closed door, illegitimate impeachment inquiry.” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell supports the resolution.

In addition, Senate Republicans may even refuse to hold a formal “trial.” They are reportedly considering a motion to quickly dismiss any articles of impeachment produced as a result of this sham process. Such a motion could be approved by a simple majority vote.

No Safe Spaces

Earlier this week, I was stunned to read that The Crimson, a conservative student newspaper at Harvard University, was facing protests and boycotts because it requested a comment from ICE on a recent immigration related story. That’s it.

The paper’s opponents apparently feel that ICE has no free-speech rights and that the paper should lose its rights for attempting to talk to ICE.

Keep in mind that this hostility to free speech is happening at one of our nation’s most elite and prestigious universities. This is where future congressmen, senators, justices, and corporate leaders are currently being educated. And it’s not just Harvard.

Virtually every university campus is hostile to free speech and free thought, and this closed mindset is dangerous to a free society.

As we frequently note in this report, the left is not interested in having a debate. It wants to shut down debate. It wants to silence any and all opposition. That’s not America. We must fight back!

That’s why I encourage you to go see “No Safe Spaces” this weekend. The movie is a “must see,” featuring Dennis Prager, Adam Corolla, Tim Allen, Jordan Peterson, Alan Dershowitz, Ben Shapiro, Van Jones, and Cornell West.

Please encourage your friends and family members to see “No Safe Spaces,” which opens in theaters today. If the movie is not playing in your area, contact your local theaters and urge them to get it.