US President Barack Obama dismissed Republican rival Mitt Romney’s tough talk on China at their second US presidential debate, as the two sparred over how to handle ties with the world’s No. 2 economy.
China policy has emerged as a key issue in the race for the White House, with Obama mocking his foe’s record of making money on overseas investments and Romney countering that the Democratic incumbent has been soft on Beijing.
“Governor, you’re the last person who’s going to get tough on China,” Obama said at Tuesday’s debate after Romney repeated his promise to crack down on Beijing over its widely criticized trade practices and currency policy.
Photo: AFP
“When he talks about getting tough on China, keep in mind that Governor Romney invested in companies that were pioneers of outsourcing to China, and is currently investing in companies that are building surveillance equipment for China to spy on its own folks,” Obama said.
Obama’s aggressive response may have referred to a story his campaign has highlighted recently: a New York Times article from earlier this year that laid out how Bain Capital, the private equity firm founded by Romney, was profiting from investments in Chinese companies.
The piece detailed how a Bain-run fund in which a Romney blind trust has holdings bought the video surveillance division of a Chinese firm that says it is the largest supplier to a monitoring system that allows Beijing to watch over schools, hospitals and theaters.
Romney made a point of returning to the issue of China multiple times during the fiery town hall-style debate at Hofstra University in New York — the second of three debates before the Nov. 6 vote.
“China has been a currency manipulator for years and years,” Romney said, lambasting Obama for not labeling Beijing as such. “On day one, I will label China a currency manipulator.”
Obama fired back, saying the yuan had appreciated during his time in office “because we have pushed them hard, put unprecedented trade pressure on China, and that will help create jobs here.”
The Chinese yuan hit a record high against the US dollar on Friday — 6.2640 to the greenback — in what analysts said could be a response to US political pressure.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique