Friends of China have huge influence on Capitol Hill

Editor’s Note: This interview by Cleo Paskal features CSP Senior Fellow Grant Newsham, and discusses his new book, When China Attacks.

The recently released US best seller When China Attacks: A Warning to America starts with a description of what a devastating near-future attack on Taiwan might look like. But, even more disturbing, is its description of current results of the decades long political warfare attack that China has already waged on its perceived enemies.

In this edition of Indo-Pacific: Behind the Headlines, we speak with the book’s author, Col Grant Newsham (Retd). He was the first US Marine Liaison Officer to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, was instrumental in developing Japan’s amphibious capability and was, for over a decade, an executive director at Morgan Stanley Japan. He also served as the reserve G2 (intelligence) and G5 (plans and policy) at Marine Forces Pacific and was a US Foreign Service Officer specializing in insurgency, counter-insurgency, and commercial matters.

Q: How is an attack from China different than what the United States might be expecting?
A: It’s almost unrecognizable—not least because America’s ruling class has steadfastly refused to recognize it. The Americans tend to think a “war” only happens when both sides kind of agree to it—and shooting starts. And until that happens, it’s all just a misunderstanding—and there’s a potential for working things out. This reflects the American trait—indeed, conceit—that any problem can be resolved by talking.

Q: How bad is it getting in the US?
A: It’s bad. Consider that Chinese origin fentanyl killed about 70,000 Americans last year. 70,000 for crying out loud. And the US administration and government pretends China just can’t do anything about it. This chemical (or drug) warfare that the PRC is waging on us has been incredibly successful. It’s weakening the United States and causing immense social harm and economic costs. Just like “war” is intended. And the elites in China’s “main enemy”—the United States—refuse to admit China has anything to do with it.
That’s just one example.

Chinese communist biological warfare—which is effectively what Covid-19 was, even if it was seeded opportunistically—this time, at least—dealt a body blow to America. Beijing’s penalty for doing this? Nothing. And then there’s ongoing cyber warfare, economic warfare, financial warfare, and thoroughgoing proxy warfare—that has recruited many in America’s elite classes and ensured they’ll use their influence to lessen any potential “pushback” against the PRC.

When your enemy’s most influential people have convinced themselves you are not a threat—as China has done via its American proxies—one has to stand back in awe at what is a successful Chinese psychological warfare offensive.

Chinese economic warfare deserves special attention. Starting 40 years ago, but really “super-charged” from the 1980s and kept going after the PRC was allowed into the World Trade Organization in the early 2000s, America’s business and financial classes moved huge chunks of American industry and business to the PRC—“decoupling” American workers from their livelihoods and lives.

These fools built up the PRC economy and military into a force that could beat us, and weakened their own country in the process. And once again, the Chinese communists did it (or had us do it to ourselves) without firing a shot.

If it’s not “kinetic” warfare—the modern hip word what used to be called “shooting”, too many Americans just won’t admit it’s warfare. Indeed, until 2017, even US service members couldn’t refer to the PRC as an adversary—much less an enemy. Beijing must love all this.

And when Beijing throws in the allure of money—actual or potential—they make short work of Wall Street and America’s business class—and academia as well. And don’t forget how these “friends of China”—many who are part of the “donor class” have huge influence on Capitol Hill.

Q: Your subtitle is “A Warning to America”. You spent over two decades in Japan, have you seen similar things there?
A: Of course. It’s just as bad in Japan—at least among Japan’s ruling political and business classes. Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was long considered dominated by “pro-China” types. Even a number of Prime Ministers had far deeper ties with China than were healthy. Recall former Prime Minister’s Ryutaro Hashimoto’s Chinese girlfriend, and said to be an MSS agent too boot?

Some years back a prominent Japanese politician led a “study tour” to the PRC with dozens of Diet Members. You can imagine how they thought about China after they’d been shown a “good time”.

Read more.