In the upcoming 2024 U.S. Senate election, both Republican and Democratic candidates are intensifying their criticism of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). “Dealing with the challenges and threats posed by the CCP” has become a central theme in the campaign to control the Senate, representing a rare area of common political ground and cooperation between the two major parties.
The U.S. Senate currently consists of 51 Democrats (including 3 independents) and 49 Republicans. In the 2024 election, 34 seats will be contested (including a special election in Nebraska), with 23 of those seats previously held by Democrats or independents. The Republicans need to gain just two seats, or win the presidential election in 2024 and gain one seat, to regain control of the Senate.
While foreign policy is not typically a major focus in Senate elections, the proposed policies of both the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and President Joe Biden (who announced his withdrawal from the presidential race on July 21) to increase tariffs on Chinese goods and implement stricter export controls have made “anti-CCP” sentiments a consensus in American politics.
Democratic incumbent Senator Jon Tester of Montana, running for reelection, labeled the CCP as the “greatest threat facing our country” in a political advertisement. Meanwhile, his Republican challenger Tim Sheehy pledged to take tough actions against “deceptive” Chinese companies in a series of TV campaign ads.
In Ohio, Democratic incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown emphasized the urgency of formulating a China policy that is relevant to the current world situation in January of this year, stating, “We must prepare for what may happen tomorrow,” as he called for policies to prevent CCP “deception” and protect American jobs.
Brown’s challenger, Republican Bernie Moreno, endorsed by Trump and victorious in the Ohio primaries, also identified the CCP as a threat to American employment.
Analysts point out that over the past five years, the U.S. Congress has played a crucial role in U.S.-China relations, making significant contributions to national security through internal discussions and legislation. Concerns about the CCP have been steadily increasing in various issue discussions, leading to a surge in legislation aimed at China in areas such as trade, technology, defense, and human rights, with a growingly assertive U.S. foreign policy towards China.
In the 2024 Senate election campaigns, both parties are setting new records in their criticism of the CCP, attributing issues such as the U.S. fentanyl crisis and the loss of manufacturing jobs to the Chinese government.
On Thursday, The Nikkei Asia cited viewpoints from a joint analysis article written in November 2023 by Christopher Chivvis and Hannah Miller, senior researcher and former Research Institute of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, on “The Role of Congress in U.S.-China Relations.” The article suggests that by taking a tough stance against China (CCP), the Republicans hope to demonstrate their fighting spirit and hawkish stance in defending America, while Democrats hope to push through policies to improve society and the environment.
According to data from the analysis article, congressional attention towards China has skyrocketed since 2018, with the number of bills related to China (CCP) on the official congressional website Congress.gov increasing sixfold between 2013 and 2021 (the 113th and 116th Congress). During the 117th Congress (January 2021 to January 2023), there were more bills related to China (CCP) proposed than for the entire Middle East region.
Kyle Jaros, associate professor at the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, has extensively studied how different states in America are dealing with the “CCP threat.” The Nikkei Asia quoted his analysis, which indicates a “political motive” behind the displays of a tough stance against China. He particularly noted that in California, senatorial candidates, at least Democratic candidates, do not hesitate to present actively combating China (CCP) as a path to victory.
Despite the shared stance on the CCP between the two parties, differences remain. According to Chivvis and Miller’s analysis, Democratic senators tend to emphasize economic challenges, while some Republican senators have adopted a “new Reaganism” stance. This includes hawkish Republicans like Senators Marco Rubio and Josh Hawley, who emphasize that the CCP itself is the enemy, not China as a country, warning that failure to defeat the CCP could lead the world into “a new dark age of exploitation, conquest, and authoritarianism.”