U.S. reliance on China too much

The global economy is more interconnected today than at any point in human history, and as a result, the U.S. has become far too reliant on Chinese support for our supply chains, which has ultimately made us weaker as a nation.
As China becomes increasingly more aggressive, it is apparent we must strengthen and restore the industrial independence we once had and shift from Chinese manufacturing instead of relying on this dangerous communist nation so heavily. 

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has proven time and again that it does not care about the rest of the world. When the coronavirus pandemic began, the CCP kept its knowledge of the virus to itself, which ultimately resulted in the death of millions of people. It is certain that if China saw a benefit, it would not hesitate to intentionally disrupt our supply chains or those of our allies. And if such a scenario were to occur, we would be vastly underprepared. American control over our supply chains is not just an economic issue, it is one of national security. Our nation and our allies would be safer and more resilient in the event of armed conflict if we controlled our supplies.

According to the Semiconductor Industry Association, U.S. semiconductor manufacturing capacity has eroded from 37 percent in 1990 to 12 percent today.
While our nation is heavily reliant on China for crucial minerals and microchips for military, medical and other critical purposes, there is certainly a cause for concern that the CCP may slow down, or even halt shipments of these products to America and our allies. Currently, Taiwan produces most of the world’s advanced semiconductor chips, an aspirational conquest of the CCP. If we were cut off from Chinese minerals and microchips with no backup plan, it would take too long to get U.S. mines and microchip production ready to fill demand.

In response to this alarming reality, both chambers of Congress recently passed and the president signed into law the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, also known as “CHIPS-Plus.” This bill importantly strengthens America’s global competitiveness by investing in our nation’s semiconductor industry and encouraging manufacturing of those critical pieces of technology domestically.

Although this is not a perfect bill and not the one I would have personally written, it represents an important step in the right direction toward keeping Communist China at bay and protecting our nation’s economic and security interests.

Additionally, we must take seriously the fact that China produces an estimated 13 percent of the pharmaceuticals that are used in the U.S.

Even for medicines manufactured domestically, China supplies many of the active pharmaceutical ingredients. If China were to cease shipments of pharmaceuticals or these ingredients, the effect on life and the quality of healthcare would be catastrophic. For instance, around a quarter of the pharmaceutical ingredients in drugs used in military hospitals come from China. This is obviously a national security concern.

When the coronavirus pandemic began, supply chains took a massive hit. Unfortunately, our country did not capitalize on this opportunity to make a transition towards a more “American heavy” production line.

The CCP is no friend of the United States, and we cannot continue to expect countries that do not have our best interests in mind to provide for us. If left as is, our nation’s reliance on the CCP will harm our ability to operate as a superpower.

With the gaps in manufacturing in several industries, now is the time for a concerted, national effort to transition our supply chains back to America. If we do not, the consequences to our nation could be disastrous.