Jeff Fortenberry: “As I was shopping for some family items recently, I noted how difficult it is to find items that are made in America.…”

“As I was shopping for some family items recently, I noted how difficult it is to find items that are made in America. While American manufacturing is, encouragingly enough, on the rebound, products ranging from hairbrushes to iPods still carry that ``Made in China'' label. All the while, many questions about China and its economic policies, foreign policies, and human rights records are left largely unexamined. For the good of our economy, it is essential that we thoroughly understand China's record and their intentions as a country. Our nations have a complicated and lopsided economic relationship. Americans buy great quantities of Chinese-made products. China finances a great portion of America's debt. Currently, nearly one-third of our debt is foreign owned with China easily being the largest debt holder at nearly $1.2 trillion. Other estimates peg the figure at closer to $2 trillion. The effect of such indebtedness is the shift of our wealth assets into the hands of a foreign nation, losing the market for American-made products to a country with lax labor and environmental standards, which manipulates its currency and creates unbalanced and unfair trading conditions. China's involvement on the world stage is also of significant concern. While it aggressively pursues its own mercantilistic agenda, China lends little constructive hand to creating conditions for international stability.…”