In China, ‘free trade’ means steal what you want

WHAT can Democrat Chuck Schumer, Republican Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump agree on? Almost nothing, but they agree China is robbing America blind and has to be stopped. When the president slapped a punishing 25 percent tariff on $ 50 billion worth of Chinese goods starting July 6, his least likely GOP ally, Senator Marco Rubio, applauded the tariffs as a “theft tax.” Senator Schumer backed them, too, warning that allowing China’s massive stealing to continue will cause “long-term real damage to America.”

Within hours of Trump’s announcement, China retaliated with $50 billion in tariffs on U.S. imports. Trump shot back with tariffs on another $ 200 billion in Chinese goods. China accuses Trump of “provoking the trade war.” Provoking? China’s been fighting dirty against American business for years. China steals something between $225 billion to $600 billion worth of fashion designs, pharmaceutical formulas and new technologies from U.S. companies every year, according to the Commission on Theft of American Intellectual Property. Previous U.S. presidents did nothing but negotiate. That’s like watching a Made in China 2025, elevates have to compete in the rest of the world against Chinese companies that stole their technology and enjoy low- cost financing from Chinese state banks.

Are tariffs the best weapon against this plan? Trump is threatening a third tranche, bringing the total to $450 billion. China only imports $130 billion worth of American goods, and won’t be able to keep up tit for tat. Advantage U.S.

Critics claim tariffs raise consumer prices, clobbering American households. That’s exaggerated. You might have to pay slightly more for a laptop or cellphone. But a whopping 88.5 percent of goods and services consumers buy are domestically produced, according to the Federal Reserve of San Francisco. The criticism also disregards the uncalculated price Americans are paying for Chinese intellectual property theft.

The real question is whether anything can make China stop stealing its way to the top. Trump may win concessions only to see China shamelessly pursue other criminal ploys.