2020 Democrat Rips Joe Biden, Says His Views On China Are ‘Stunningly Out Of Touch’
In an interview with CNN broadcast Saturday, Democratic presidential candidate Tim Ryan blasted Joe Biden as “stunningly out of touch,” The Hill reports.
Ryan was referring to comments Biden had made about China, and the threat the Chinese economy poses to American manufacturing and industry.
“China is going to eat our lunch? Come on, man… Guess what? They’re not competition for us,” Joe Biden recently said, prompting widespread condemnation and criticism.
Tim Ryan shares the opinion of Biden’s critics. According to him, China poses a threat to the United States, especially when it comes to electric car industries and solar power.
“I actually think that’s stunning,” the Ohio Democrat said of Biden’s comments. “And I love Joe Biden. But I think that’s stunningly out of touch with where we are right now.”
“They’re putting billions of dollars behind these projects, and they have a 100-year plan. We’re in a 24-hour news cycle. And they’re winning, and that’s the urgency that I’m bringing to this race.”
The presidential hopeful then went on to argue that the American trade policy needs to be modified in order to help dying communities across the United States. Communities of color in particular, according to Ryan, have experienced the negative effects of globalization and unfettered free trade.
Pressing the 2020 Democrat, CNN host Van Jones asked whether the American people now need a “return to normalcy” — which Biden is promising, and essentially campaigning on — or “reform,” proposed by more progressive candidates such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
“I think we need reform,” Ryan said.
Joe Biden’s comments about China and trade come as no surprise to those familiar with the former vice president’s voting record. As The New York Magazine put it, Biden has an “anti-labor” track record, and this could become an issue for him in the Democratic primary, given that candidates such as Bernie Sanders have long argued against international trade agreements.
’No one gives a damn about the workers!’ — Rep. @TimRyan passionately railed against Trump’s broken promise to the people of Ohio pic.twitter.com/AGY4EDfn2H
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) May 3, 2019
As the publication notes, Biden is supportive of NAFTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, both of which Bernie Sanders has fiercely opposed. Biden’s free trade views could become a major issue in 2020, since the Democrats will be looking to win back states impacted by international trade agreements. In 2016, Donald Trump — departing from longstanding Republican tradition — campaigned as a trade protectionist, which many claim played a key role in his victory.
The flurry of media reports about private investment in China’s increasingly sprawling surveillance state left out a prominent investor: Hunter Biden, former Vice President Joe Biden’s son. https://t.co/CwCz6lHKwj
— The Intercept (@theintercept) May 3, 2019
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Joe Biden’s voting record is being re-examined and contrasted with progressive policies championed by other candidates in the race. The former vice president’s past support for busing segregation could become a major obstacle in 2020 as well, as could his mixed record on abortion and LGBTQ issues.
