Trump Should Leave China Alone
His endgame on fentanyl tariffs is unclear
Hardly any other journalist has been more critical of China than I, when it comes to its responsibility for the US fentanyl crisis.
In Fentanyl, Inc. I laid out the problem. Most of the fentanyl killing people here originates in China. I blamed the CCP for offering tax rebates, grants, and other incentives for Chinese companies to export fentanyl products.
My Capitol Hill testimony in 2019 inspired Trump to excoriate Chinese President Xi on Twitter, and I presented similar conclusions to the U.S. House Select Committee On the CCP last year.
I’ve been called xenophobic. I’ve been praised by xenophobes. I’ve been mocked in federal court by a Chinese kingpin, and told by the US State Department that I risk imprisonment if I visit China again, which is a shame because they have amazing eggplant.
All of this to say that I’ve hardly been soft on China. And I’m no knee-jerk Trump hater, either. I’ve given him credit for winning major concessions, particularly China’s blanket bans on fentanyl analogs, synthetic cannabinoids, and nitazines.
Sure, it’s difficult to prove that Trump’s hardball has been effective, and it’s unclear exactly how well China is now controlling the problem.
But they’re clearly trying. And the most important number — US fentanyl deaths — is dropping.
That’s why I believe it’s time for Trump to end the fentanyl tariffs.
Because, man, you got what you wanted.
Has China been a perfect ally in this fight? No. Could they be more stringent about controlling precursors? Certainly. And it wouldn’t even be very difficult. We already have…