Poll shows Americans desire stronger policies towards China.

Americans Favor Tariffs on‌ Chinese Goods and Call for Military Preparedness, Survey Shows

Bipartisan majorities of Americans favor more tariffs on Chinese goods and believe that the⁤ United States needs to step up preparations for ​military threats from the country, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos survey.

The ⁢two-day poll,‍ which ​concluded​ on Tuesday,‌ revealed deep worries among ‍ Americans about China’s global influence at a time when U.S.-China relations have‌ fallen to their lowest point in decades.

Some 66 percent of respondents said they were ‍more likely to ⁢ back a candidate in the 2024 ⁢presidential election⁣ who “supports additional tariffs on Chinese imports.”

Another 66 percent⁣ of respondents—including 58 percent of Democrats and 81 percent ⁣of Republicans—agreed with a statement that the United States “needs⁢ to do ⁣more to prepare for military threats from China.”

Still, just⁣ 38 percent of Americans supported the ‌possible deployment of U.S. troops to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack, showing the political constraints facing⁤ any president seeking ​U.S. military involvement in ⁣a conflict​ involving China.

The⁤ bipartisan concern about China helps explain the increasingly combative stances Republican presidential candidates⁢ have taken toward the world’s second-largest economy.

In recent months, Republican White House hopefuls have attacked China‍ daily,⁢ with‌ each candidate‌ trying to show voters that they are⁣ best positioned to take on America’s geopolitical foe.

Former president Donald Trump, Florida governor ‍Ron DeSantis, and former UN⁢ Ambassador Nikki Haley have all⁣ called for the ​United States​ to end permanent normal trade relations with China, which ​would limit ⁤economic ties between the countries.

Biden has sought to stabilize the intense U.S.-China rivalry through ⁢high-level official​ engagement. But ⁢at recent fundraising events the ⁣president has called its‍ economy a “ticking ⁢time ​bomb”⁣ and referred to ⁤its ⁢leader⁢ Xi Jinping‍ a dictator.

Defending Taiwan?

The online Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted nationwide, ‍collecting ⁣responses from ‍1,005 adults, including 443 ⁣Democrats and 346 Republicans. It had a credibility interval, a measure of precision,⁤ of about 4 percentage points in either direction.

Seventy-five percent of Americans had a negative⁤ view toward China, while 84%​ saw Xi at‍ least ‍slightly unfavorably. ‌Some 65 percent⁢ felt China’s government was trying to influence the U.S. election.

While half of respondents ‍supported aiding Taiwan with military ‍equipment to deter a‍ possible Chinese attack, 42 ‌percent opposed ‌deploying U.S. troops⁣ in Taiwan’s ⁣defense, and 20% said they didn’t know.

Taiwan, ‌the democratically​ governed⁣ island claimed by China as its territory, is the main ‌flashpoint in U.S. ​ties with China’s Communist government.

U.S. Central ⁤Intelligence Agency director William Burns ‌has said that ⁣Xi had ordered ⁣his military to be ‍ready to conduct an invasion of Taiwan by 2027,⁤ though that​ does not necessarily mean he will go ahead with it.

Beijing has never renounced the use of force to‌ bring Taiwan​ under its rule.

Biden said in 2022 that ​U.S forces would defend Taiwan in the​ event of a⁣ Chinese invasion, appearing to go beyond the long-standing U.S. approach of “strategic ‌ambiguity” – not making clear ‌whether ⁣it would ⁤respond militarily to such an attack.

But his administration‌ has routinely said there has been no change to​ U.S.‍ policy toward Taiwan.

(Reporting by Michael‍ Martina, Jason Lange and Gram ‌Slattery; Editing by Don‍ Durfee & Shri Navaratnam)

Published under: China