Congress And China Policy

Congress and China Policy: Past Episodic, Recent Enduring Influence supports findings that bipartisan majorities in Congress have been instrumental in driving the fundamental shift in American policy toward China carried out during the past six years. Filling major gaps in the inadequate treatment of Congress in assessments of US policy toward China, this book compares recent Congressional influence with the episodes of Congressional activism in China policy over the past 200 years, showing Congress recently has been more important than ever. The findings also show that partisan politics, Congressional-executive competition for policy control, swings in public and media opinion, and influences by special interests—longstanding drivers of past Congressional involvement in China policy—have been of secondary or lesser importance as the Congressional members have grappled with the acute dangers posed by Chinese economic, security and governance challenges. Steady and determined efforts by this cohort of bipartisan Congressional majorities to defend America from Chinese challenges have proven more resolute than the erratic practices of President Trump and previously dismissive Joseph Biden who came late to a tougher policy. This volume forecasts that US policy will remain heavily influenced by these members as they serve out their terms in the years ahead.

The purpose of this book is to analyse the influence of domestic politics on congressional intervention in US policy towards China with special reference to three factors which might loosely be termed structural factors: partisanship, constituency and committees. The analysis is conducted by examining two issues: China's most-favoured-nation (MFN) status and the Taiwan issue during the Republican George Bush administration (1989-1992) and most of the Democratic Bill Clinton administration (1993-1999). Contents: Preface; Abbreviations; Committee Assignments; Introduction; A Theoretical Framework; A History and Literature Review; Congress Charges: MFN under Bush; Congress Retreats: MFN under Clinton; Congress Surprised: Taiwan Policy under Bush; Congress Triumphant: Taiwan Policy under Clinton; Congressional Behaviour: Structural Explanations; The Role of Congress: Beyond the Structural Explanations; Conclusion; Bibliography.

The study focuses systematically on the range of domestic influences, but also considers less obvious but vital roles played by European and Asian nations, as well as Taiwan and China Itself.