Political Quotes

“I understand the deep feelings of the opponents of MFN and I have deep sympathy with those feelings. But the question before us is very simple. Will revoking MFN lead to more freedom in China? In my view, the answer is a resounding no. I want to send the Communist Chinese Government a message regarding human rights and religious freedom. But I believe that cutting off MFN is a very ineffective way to send that message, and in sending that message, we are taking freedom away from Americans. Mr. Speaker, free trade leads to freedom, and capitalism is a synonym for freedom. Will revoking MFN help those Chinese who are being persecuted by their Government? Will revoking MFN stop the Chinese Government from selling dangerous weapons to unstable countries? Will revoking MFN end barbaric social practices within China? I fear that the answer to all those questions is a big no. Instead of closing the door on China, we should be forcing that door open to open even wider. Instead of taking away freedom from Americans, we should empower our citizens to fully engage China. We should have congressional delegations going to China demanding that the Chinese Government free political and religious prisoners.”