U.S. economic crack down on China must be done slowly and wisely

OPINION:

The Chinese Communist Party poses a dire threat to America and the rest of the free world. Party leadership actively covered up the initial coronavirus outbreak — and even persecuted doctors who tried to warn the public. China’s leaders also hoarded masks, gloves and other medical supplies, which resulted in shortages of personal protective equipment here in the United States and in many European countries.

This communist malfeasance has cost humanity hundreds of thousands of lives. And to prevent it from ever happening again, the Trump administration is trying to economically decouple from China. White House officials are considering various “Buy American” measures that would seek to re-shore medical supply chains.

President Trump and his aides unquestionably have the right instincts. But any countermeasures must be properly targeted — and based on facts, not fearmongering. Otherwise, we risk overreacting. To paraphrase our commander in chief, we can’t let the cure be worse than the disease.

Some China hawks claim the Communist dictatorship has a “chokehold” on essential drugs, with 80 percent of the active pharmaceutical ingredients that make up Americans’ medicines supposedly coming from China.

However, those claims have been widely debunked. In reality, only 13 percent of our active pharmaceutical ingredients come from China. Of the 370 drugs deemed “essential” by public health experts, only three rely on ingredients sourced entirely from China. China also isn’t among the top 15 countries exporting vaccines to the United States. And it accounts for just 9 percent of U.S. antibiotics imports.

Simply put, America relies on China for some medicines — but our supply chain isn’t wholly dependent on the Middle Kingdom. So there’s no need to overreact with hasty, ill-planned measures.

In fact, America already produces most of its own medical supplies here at home. U.S. suppliers satisfy 70 percent of domestic demand for medical equipment — everything from ventilators to surgical masks and gowns.

That’s especially true now that so many companies are churning out masks and other PPE, which have been in unprecedented demand worldwide due to the pandemic. We’ve already seen the success of the private-public partnerships set up by the Trump administration. Stalwarts of American industry, like GE and Ford, have helped achieve the president’s goal of 100,000 ventilators in 100 days — the highest production of ventilators in history.

Of course, decoupling from China is still a worthy goal. But we can do so via well-planned industrial policies, rather than rushed mandates.

Congress and the administration could start by incentivizing companies to build manufacturing facilities in America. Getting a new FDA-approved factory up and running is no small feat; it often requires up to $2 billion and 10 years to complete.

Tax credits or a lower corporate tax rate could sway firms to make those investments here, rather than abroad. When it comes to tax support for R&D expenditures, America currently ranks 26th among OECD countries — near the back of the pack.

More investments in workforce training would also help. Today, China produces over twice as many STEM graduates per capita as the United States. If we’re serious about dominating hi-tech manufacturing in the 21st century, we’ll need to pour resources into education and job training.

There’s no question that China poses a threat to our public health and national security. And it’s smart to decouple our economies.

But we can do that without disrupting global medical supply chains. Poorly targeted “Buy American” orders, which force companies and government agencies to purchase domestically manufactured products, would alienate friendly nations like Germany, Switzerland and Canada. If those countries retaliated, it could lead to shortages of needed supplies and higher prices for American consumers.

The best way to beat China is a slow, steady, well-planned push to “invest American” — and build up an innovative, world-class manufacturing sector that puts the communists to shame.

• Stacy Washington is a decorated Air Force veteran, an Emmy-nominated TV personality and the host of the nationally syndicated radio program “Stacy on the Right.”