Kerby Anderson

China is a national security threat. That is the conclusion of the Director of National Intelligence. John Ratcliffe begins his assessment by reminding us that he has access to more intelligence than any member of the US government other than the president. He says that if he could “communicate one thing to the American people from this unique vantage point, it is that the People’s Republic of China poses the greatest threat to America today, and the greatest threat to democracy and freedom world-wide since World War II.” To put it simply, China wants to dominate the US and the rest of the world economically, militarily, and technologically. He describes ways in which China has been stealing trade secrets from American manufacturers. He talks about Chinese nationals stealing research and development secrets. China’s intellectual property theft costs America as much as $500 billion a year. China is also stealing sensitive US defense technology in order to make China the world’s foremost military power. We also have found out that China is even conducting human testing on members of the People’s Liberation Army in hopes of developing super-soldiers for the future. China is also developing world-class capabilities in emerging technologies. It is also developing cyber capabilities against the American government. He concludes by warning us that “Beijing is preparing for an open-ended period of confrontation with the US. Washington should be prepared. Leaders must work across partisan divides to understand the threat, speak about it openly, and take action to address it.” Let us pray that the next administration and Congress do this, but I have my doubts.