2019-2021 Town Halls: on Free Trade


Joe Biden: China is a competitor, not an opponent

Q: Do you believe Russia is an enemy?

BIDEN: I believe Russia is an opponent.

Q: Do you view China as an opponent? The President says you've been too cozy with China, too accepting of them in the international community.

BIDEN: I'm not that guy. We now have a larger trade deficit than we've ever had with China. [Trump in a negative way] keeps going on about the World Trade Organization; they just ruled that his trade policy violated [WTO rules with its tariffs on China]. In our Administration, when the WTO [was dealing with China], we sued. We went to the World Trade Organization 16 times, 16 times.

Q: Do you view China as an opponent?

BIDEN: I view China as a competitor.

Q: Competitor?

BIDEN: A serious competitor. That's why, I think, we have to strengthen our relationships and our alliances in Asia. As you may recall, when I was in China, I said to Xi, "We're going to abide by international norms. That's what we're going to do and insist that they do."

Source: CNN Town Hall 2020 drive-in with Anderson Cooper Sep 17, 2020

Joe Biden: China unfairly competes with state-owned enterprises

Q: How would you address China's unfair trade policies?

BIDEN: I would make it clear, just as we did in our Administration, that when they use state-owned enterprises, which is what they're doing, state-owned enterprises, to undercut the price that they can charge, to be able to come and compete with American manufacturing, that they would be denied that opportunity. I would also make it clear that if any of that is being purchased by any government agency, that we will not purchase anything that is not made in America, including the downriver line of what has to be done, all the parts.

Q: What would you do differently from President Trump?

BIDEN: You can't do where he's given a tax break to companies that go overseas, and then import the product back into the United States, even though their headquarters is here, the chain goes overseas, and they bring it back in cheaper, than you being able to produce it. I'm going to make sure that it's made in America.

Source: CNN Town Hall 2020 drive-in with Anderson Cooper Sep 17, 2020

Joe Biden: FactCheck: Yes, US has tried "Buy American" for 100 years

Biden claimed about his proposed "Buy American" policy that "We've been talking about this policy for a 100 years. We've never fully done it. We can and must do it now." Is that claim true?

Yes, it's true. Some examples: