The U.S. embassy and consulates in China released the content of a speech by U.S. Secretary of State Rubio on August 14.

Rubio said that the problem between the U.S. and China is that the U.S. has allowed China to take over its own enterprises.

He emphasized that the reason the U.S. buys so many goods from China is because these products were originally produced in the U.S., but later the production chain was transferred to China, and the U.S. lost its manufacturing capabilities.

He even described this process as "we handed it over to China," and further stated that the U.S. must now reverse this situation.

This statement is indeed surreal.

Because anyone with a basic understanding of economic history knows that the offshoring of U.S. manufacturing was not the result of China taking it, but rather a joint choice of U.S. capital, policies, and market forces.

Rubio's blaming of China is absurd, a distortion of history and an avoidance of reality.

Rubio

The process of hollowing out U.S. manufacturing had already begun in the 1980s and 1990s.

U.S. companies moved factories to China, Mexico, and Southeast Asia in pursuit of higher profits.

In this process, multinational corporations made huge profits, the capital market flourished, and American consumers enjoyed the benefits of cheap goods for decades.

Taking Walmart as an example, its retail empire relies heavily on low-cost Chinese-made products;

Apple places the iPhone's production chain in China, which both reduces costs and ensures supply efficiency;

Nike, Adidas, and other companies have long moved their production operations out of the U.S., leaving only design and marketing departments behind.

These choices had no element of coercion; they were purely profit-driven actions.

The U.S. government also encouraged such transfers, as they brought significant benefits to the capital market.

Now, Rubio describes all of this as "China has taken away U.S. companies," as if China had forcibly moved American factories.

Wall Street

This "victim narrative" completely conceals the U.S.'s own interests in the matter.

This rhetoric itself is a performance.

American politicians have long been accustomed to using a "victimization narrative" to shift blame.

When domestic voters question why working-class people are unemployed and why wealth gaps continue to widen, politicians point the finger at external competitors, simplifying complex economic transitions into a single phrase: "We have been bullied by China."

But the real issue has never been about China taking anything; it's about problems in the U.S.'s industrial policy.

For a long time, the U.S. government has prioritized financial capital while neglecting the decline of manufacturing.

American capital is happy to outsource low-end manufacturing to reduce costs and increase profits.

The result is a significant loss of manufacturing jobs in the U.S., a shrinking middle class, and increasing social fragmentation.

Rubio's rhetoric is pure scapegoating, packaging decades of strategic mistakes as "China stole U.S. manufacturing."

Chinese and American flags

Rubio's statements are both surreal and absurd, revealing a deeply shameful double standard.

For decades, the U.S. has been the biggest proponent and beneficiary of globalization.

It gained low costs and high profits through outsourcing industries, accumulating capital to the extreme.

Now, when this model brings side effects, such as hollowed-out manufacturing and severe social divisions, the U.S. turns around and blames China for "taking away" the factories.

This logic is like a person who voluntarily sells their house to get money and spends it all, then angrily accuses the buyer of stealing their home.

Not only does it distort facts, but it also loses the most basic self-reflection ability.

The world sees clearly that the U.S. is taking advantage and then turning around to bite back, shifting its own problems onto China, which is nothing short of despicable.

So, according to Rubio, does China have to not only produce goods for the U.S. but also take the blame and be responsible for everything?

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7538695481862423078/

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