Last week, China sent a spy balloon to cruise across America. It entered Alaska on January 28 and was shot down eight days later on February 4, off the South Carolina coast.
During that time, the spy balloon went over some very sensitive areas, including major US air bases and communications nexuses. The Pentagon claims it was part of a larger surveillance mission launched by Communist China.
So, what can be done? One option which is being done by America’s top agriculture trade official is to start exporting more American crops to countries other than China.
Reducing Trade Dependence on China
The topic of reducing trade dependence on China has been talked about a lot and is part of the reason that Donald Trump won the 2016 election.
Top US agriculture official Doug McKalip says “additional” markets need to be opened up and more “diverse” places to sell US agricultural products.
Six Chinese companies connected to balloon manufacturing have already been blacklisted by the US government, but taking this further into exports would be a big step.
Around 20% of all exports from American firms go to China, totaling $213 billion in value.
Farmers are actually doing relatively well right now since the war in Ukraine increased the price of grain and many items that China needs.
Exporting to more countries could indeed put pressure on China and act as a diplomatic lever; although the trade relationship between the US and China is still incredibly massive in scale.
The Biden Administration let a Chinese spy balloon fly across our country.
But is defunding American surveillance balloons that help Border Patrol agents secure the southern border.
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) February 10, 2023
What Are Some Promising New Markets?
There are many new markets for US grains and agricultural exports, especially since the Ukraine war has squeezed supply almost everywhere.
McKalip says he’s focused on opening up these markets and also selling things like ethanol, organic food and other crops, which are growing in demand in many areas.
One of the particular areas of focus will be Southeast Asia. McKalip said he’ll be continuing to work to reduce any tariffs and make it more attractive to export.
He also wants Mexico to stop banning genetically-modified seeds (GMO) and Canada to stop its government monopoly on dairy so the US can enter those markets more fully as well in terms of export.
Ohio right now
That's a giant cloud of polyvinyl chloride and a ton of other bad chemicals
The local police blew it up like a beached whale, now megatoxins are Chernobyling Ohio and there's a news blackout and the police are beating reporters and camera people and dragging em pic.twitter.com/yUYxNWhZ6H
— UAE Exotic Falconry & Finance (@FalconryFinance) February 10, 2023
The Bottom Line
McKalip sounds like a smart cookie and his line of thinking makes sense. The problem is he’s working for an administration that is horribly incompetent and irresponsible.
While Biden waited eight days to shoot down a balloon spying on the United States, he’s been steadily defunding surveillance balloons that protect the southern border.
While debt and inflation continue to grow, he brags about how great the economy is doing.
This is a time to face reality; the reality is that China’s brazen behavior needs to be met with a unified and strong response.
