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Tag: China
Pros & Cons of Banning Chinese Social Media Apps
The Trump administration moved to protect Americans’ data privacy in September when it banned Chinese-developed social media apps TikTok and WeChat from U.S. app stores, sparking a debate over national security and free speech. The U.S. Commerce Department’s order barred all new U.S. downloads of the apps after Sept. 20 and would ban the apps’ functionality beginning on Nov. 12. Ahead of the September announcement, President Donald Trump had argued for weeks that the apps were allowing the Chinese Communist Party to surveil Americans. “The spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in the…
U.S.–China Climate Change Deal
On November 11, during his visit to China, President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping jointly announced a landmark agreement on climate change that sets ambitious carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reduction targets for each country. Under the agreement, the United States will double its current pollution reduction, which so far has seen CO2 emissions fall roughly 10 percent below 2005 levels. The new target will be a reduction of 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. China has pledged to reach peak CO2 emissions “around 2030” and to “increase the share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy consumption…
Vote Nears on China Currency
Despite the Chinese Government’s warnings of a trade war, the Senate has moved toward approval of a bill designed to bring back jobs from China by targeting that nation’s currency. With 62 senators voting to end debate on the bill, it is all but certain to have the simple majority needed for passage. That vote is scheduled to occur this week. The legislation ― S. 1619, the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act, introduced by Senator Sherrod Brown (OH-D) ― would direct the Obama Administration to take action against China’s alleged manipulation of the value of its currency. The U.S….
China Currency Debate Heats Up
A congressional report issued November 17 reinforced U.S. accusations that China deliberately keeps its currency weak against the dollar to make its exports cheaper, leading to a huge trade imbalance with the United States. (See “China Currency Policy,” International Debates, November 2010.)
What to Expect in the Lame Duck Session
Congress has a full plate of unfinished business to consider during the lame duck session, which begins November 15, continues for a week, and then resumes after Thanksgiving. Congressional Digest and International Debates have covered many of the issues on this agenda.