While foreign policy has been etched off the list of topics for the next presidential debate, to the chagrin of the Trump campaign, the president's former National Security Advisor Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, said it should still be a major concern for Americans, particularly when it comes to China.
“This is a grave challenge, I think, to all the free world. This is because, I think, the Chinese Communist Party is driven by this combination of fear and ambition and it’s driving the party to extend and tighten their exclusive grip on power internally,” McMaster told Cheddar.
In his new book titled, Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World, McMaster details his time in the Trump White House and how he attempted to shift the dynamics of foreign policy. Specifically, when it comes to China, he said there needs to be continued pressure applied as the communist nation cracks down violently on its own people and to ensure the protection of intellectual properties.
Protecting Personal Data
As TikTok’s presence in the United States remains conditional and temporary pending a federal judge’s decision, McMaster calls the social media platform’s rumored security risk a real threat to Americans. “Do you really expect the Chinese Communist party to treat your son or daughter better than they treat their own people?” McMaster asked.
Trump has contended that the platform is a national security risk because Beijing could demand vast amounts of data from its parent company, China-based ByteDance. McMaster also cited the 2018 charges levied against Chinese nationals accused of hacking global businesses and the U.S. government.
“I think it’s very important not to give the party the access to this data they’re just going to use to try to dominate the emerging data-driven economy, but also, I think, to weaponize against us the way they weaponize it against their own people,” he continued.
The president has suggested a Biden presidency would be weak on the nation. But for McMaster, when it comes to Trump’s handling of China, particularly on the issue of trade, there needs to be a new approach that affects real change.
“I don’t see how steel and aluminum tariffs, for example, on our allies help us cope with the problem associated with Chinese overproduction and dumping practices,” he said of Trump's economic maneuvers meant to put pressure on Beijing.
Global U.S. Concerns
The retired lieutenant general was also critical of the way the Bush and Obama administrations handled China, encouraging the nation to join the international order, calling them both “just flat wrong.”
The election’s winner has to be ready for “competing effectively” as Beijing is still unwilling to join the fold of the “free world,” McMaster said.
While the U.S. faces known opposition from nations like Russia and China, according to McMaster, there are more threats that are not being discussed enough. Among those global U.S. concerns are countries like Pakistan and North Korea, which he said both pose nuclear threats. McMaster also noted the tensions in Afghanistan that could flare again once troops are withdrawn, carving a path for “the Taliban and Jihadist terrorists” to regain power in the region.
Markets were pointing mostly lower to end the week as investors reacted to the threat of a Covid resurgence in Europe. Jeff Schulze, Investment Strategist at ClearBridge Investments joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss Friday's pre-market activity.
A federal judge tossed out a lawsuit against financial services platform Robinhood following the meme stock saga that swept the investment world. The judge said it found no wrongdoing on Robinhood's part after the platform halted trading on popular meme stocks Gamestop and AMC.
Jill and Carlo are back to cover the latest in the Rittenhouse trial, new information on the origins of Covid, return-to-office and more.
JOIN US FOR THE YOUTUBE WATCH PARTY @ 9aET: http://www.youtube.com/cheddarnow
The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against Uber after it was discovered that disabled people were being disproportionately affected by extra “wait time” fees. Attorney Jonathan Bell joined Cheddar to discuss.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has been accused by the EU of manufacturing a migration crisis along his border with Poland. But, even as tensions appear to be stabilizing at the moment, Ali Noorani, the president and CEO of National Immigration Forum and the host of the "Only in America" podcast spoke to Cheddar about the ongoing danger to the migrants who hail from countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. "What is going to happen to folks who are in Belarus who came from these countries? Is Lukashenko going to provide them asylum and protection in Belarus, or are they going to continue to be political pawns in a geopolitical battle," he said. "Real people's lives are being put at great risk."
A group of crypto investors has come together to raise millions of dollars in the hopes of owning a rare piece of the U.S. Constitution. According to the crypto group, "Constitution DAO" It is time to put the constitution in the hands of the people. CEO and Founder of Metaversal Yossi Hasson, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Polarization is among the defining traits of American politics in the 21st century. Sometimes it seems like the only thing we can all agree on is the fact that we don't really agree on anything. But those divisions don't just stop at whether you vote red or blue.
A new survey from the Pew Research Center finds that rather than just two political buckets, we have nine. The "2021 political typology" as it's called distinguishes between different ideological subsets in the Democratic and Republican party. It encompasses everyone from the loudest revolutionary lefties, to the loudest insurrection apologists on the right.
Andrew Daniller, research associate at the Pew Research Center, joins None of the Above to discuss.
Tanya Snyder, transportation reporter at Politico, joins None of the Above with J.D. Durkin to discuss the bipartisan infrastructure law, what it means for the electric vehicle industry and whether Democrats will be able to capitalize on the legislative victory ahead of the 2022 midterms.
Heading into 2022, the eyes of political nerds like us are fixed on statehouses across the country. State legislatures are in the process of taking the data from the 2020 census and using it to draw new congressional districts. The process has major implications for midterms, as Republicans could retake the majority just by gerrymandering enough seats into their column. In Maryland, state level Democrats are considering several maps, one of which would completely draw out the only Republican from the state in Congress.
Bruce DePuyt, senior reporter at Maryland Matters, and Helen Brewer, legal analyst at Princeton's Electoral Innovation Lab, join Cheddar Politics to discuss.
