Jesse Helms, Senator from Taiwan

CHINA THREAT THEORY

Helms writes:

‘Premier Zhu Rongji went so far as to warn the people of Taiwan that if they elected Chen, they "won’t get another opportunity to regret." The people of Taiwan told Zhu what he could do with his threats.’

Nonsense. In fact the "people of Taiwan," the overwhelming majority of whom resolutely oppose Taiwan independence, told Chen Shui-bian, not Zhu Rongi, what he could do with his reckless and irresponsible "Long Live Taiwan Independence" rhetoric. Even after Chen flip-flopped, swearing up and down that if elected he absolutely, positively would NOT declare Taiwan independence, the people of Taiwan still voted against him, by a margin of 61 to 39 percent. Imagine how much lower his numbers would have been had he not loudly repudiated his pro-independence ideology?

Chen won solely because ROC election laws do not provide for run-off elections, and because KMT Party Chairman Lee Teng-hui deliberately prevented his own party from nominating James Soong, purposely splitting the anti-separatist vote between the immensely popular Soong and the unelectable Lien Chan.

FOREVER MUNICH, FOREVER 1938

Helms writes:

‘Now it is the United States’ responsibility to ensure that Zhu can never fulfill his threat to make Chen’s election the final democratic election in China... the Clinton administration has tried to buy peace in the Taiwan Strait by kowtowing to the Chinese Communists... the administration sticks doggedly by its Chamberlainesque approach... Those who support economic engagement with China must recognize the Clinton policy for what it is – appeasement.’

Oh please. Not the specious "totalitarian communist Goliath denying a democracy-loving David’s right to exist" thesis. Not the imperialistic, un-American "It’s America’s solemn duty as the world’s only remaining superpower to make the world safe for democracy" thesis. And God have mercy on us, not the brain-dead "Chamberlainesque appeasement no! Churchillian firmness si!" or as George Szamuely puts it, "Forever Munich, Forever 1938" thesis.

FOREVER VIETNAM, FOREVER 1960

What is Helms’ alternative? Helms demands that:

"The United States must make clear to Beijing that there is no military option in dealing with Taiwan by (1) approving Taiwan’s full defense request ... (2) sharing theater missile defense technology with the aim of bringing Taiwan under a regional missile-defense umbrella; (3) passing the Taiwan Security Enhancement Act, which will junk antiquated restrictions prohibiting senior U.S. officers from visiting Taiwan, expand the advice our experts can give them and establish direct, secure communications between our two militaries."

In short, Helms proposes that Americans repeat every one of John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson’s Asian policy blunders of the early and mid 60s, which incrementally but inexorably dragged America down into the futile and costly quagmire known as Vietnam. First materiel. Then "advisors." Then air support. Then ground troops. Then the Hercules transports filled with bodybags. Mission Creep Redux. Helms has no excuse. After all, he was there. The lesson of history, it seems, is that nobody ever learns a damned thing from history.

BLANK CHECKS AND MORAL HAZARD

Mind-bogglingly, Helms proposes that:

"The United States can help Chen restart the cross-strait dialogue only by allowing Taiwan to engage the mainland on the basis of peace through strength. A renewed dialogue with Beijing can be successful only if it is undertaken on the basis of political strength as well."

Say what? Write a foreign separatist political leader a blank check, to be filled out with American soldiers’ blood, and subsidized with American taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars? This is supposed to encourage Chen to engage in serious cross-Straits dialogue? Is Helms kidding? See "Taiwan Independence & Free Lunches."

EAST AND WEST GERMANY, NORTH AND SOUTH KOREA, EAST AND WEST CHINA

Helms writes:

"Just as East and West Germany were part of 'one Germany,' they were nonetheless separate 'states.' The same holds true for the two Korean states and for the two Chinese states – the People’s Republic of China in Beijing and the Republic of China on Taiwan. Accepting this objective reality does not require abandoning the possibility of reunification."

Wrong.

Neither West Germany nor South Korea were headed by pro-Japan Quislings like Lee Teng-hui and Chen Shui-bian. Neither West Germany nor South Korea were saddled with Stockholm-syndromized, Japanophile elitists dead set against reunification on any terms, deliberately dragging their feet and sabotaging all good faith efforts at negotiating a gradual, peaceful reunification.

JESSE HELMS, CLUELESS

Whether Helms is sincere, or whether he is paying pro forma lip service to reunification, only he knows for sure. But one thing is certain, the only nation the Taiwan independence elite wants to reunite with is the Japanese Empire.

The problem is not that the Taiwan independence elite doesn’t want to live under communism. The problem is not that the Taiwan independence elite doesn’t want to live under authoritarianism. The problem lies somewhere else altogether.

Hell, mainland Chinese don’t want to be communists. Mainland Chinese don’t want to live under authoritarianism. They haven’t wanted to since Mao’s asinine and tragic Great Leap Forward and Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. Contemporary mainland Chinese hate communism, probably more than anybody in the world, including even the Russians. Nobody hates Hell as much as someone who has lived inside the inferno.

WE JUST DON’T WANT TO BE CHINESE

No. Communism is not the issue. Even authoritarianism is not the issue.

The real issue is the Taiwan independence elite doesn’t want to be Chinese. The real issue is they have a emotional hang-up about identifying themselves as Chinese.

The Taiwan independence elite had no problem with communism in the past. After all, Lee Teng-hui, would be Father of a Republic of Taiwan, was a card-carrying member of Taiwan’s Communist Party.

Nor has the Taiwan independence elite ever have a problem with authoritarianism. The petty demagogue Chen Shui-bian and his harridan running mate Annette Lu are themselves bonafide petty dictators, and have made no effort whatsoever to conceal their admiration and nostalgia for fascist Japanese colonial rule.

To understand the bizarre psychology underlying the Taiwan independence elite’s obsession with denying their own ethnic and cultural identity, see "Taiwan Independence & the Stockholm Syndrome."

CHINA’S FREE MARKET COMMUNISTS

Perception often trumps reality. More than one western China hand has noted , only half-jokingly, that the smartest PR move Beijing could make would be to simply change the name of Chinese Communist Party to something less emotionally loaded. While they’re at it they might want to change the design of the flag, the national anthem, and take down Mao’s portrait above Tienanmen Square.

Ironically if the authoritarian capitalists ruling China were to do so they would not be misleading anybody. On the contrary, they would be reflecting current reality far more honestly than they are doing now, when they refer to themselves as "communists."

The reality is American college faculties probably contain more dyed in the wool communists than the Chinese Communist Party. For that matter, the United States congress probably contains more bonafide Marxists than the Chinese Communist Party. Senator Paul Wellstone for example, is probably to the left of PRC President Jiang Zemin.

How many "communist" countries, after all, can boast not one, but two stock exchanges? How many "communist" countries have, according to Nobel laureate in economics Robert Mundell, a private sector comprising over 60% of China’s GDP? A private sector larger not only than Sweden and Denmark’s (50%), but larger even than France and Germany’s (55%).

ITS A NEW ERA, JESSE

Helms writes:

"... just as the two German states eventually reunited under democracy, so too do we hope that the two Chinese states may one day reunite – under democracy."

Helms may be sufficiently out of touch with the real world that he actually believes he is ingratiating himself with the DPP by advancing such arguments. If so, Helms is in for a surprise. This line of argument may have pleased the outgoing KMT, but it’s not about to win him any Brownie points with incoming DPP hardliners. Lee Teng-hui is no longer KMT party chairman. Liu Tai-ying is no longer KMT business affairs manager. If Helms wants the Taiwan Lobby’s generous six figure checks, made out to the Jesse Helms Institute to keep rolling in year after year, he’d better get a clue.

THE SENATOR FROM TAIWAN

"The Jesse Helms Center was created to preserve the works Jesse Helms. It includes congressional documents and other such memorabilia. It also appears to act as a center for questionably legal donations. Many of the contributors to his center are companies or countries that Helms often acts in the interest in. It’s illegal for foreign governments to donate money to a political campaign, but not to an independent center.

The Jesse Helms Center has used this to raise large sums of money for itself and also as a way for foreign countries to give money to Jesse Helms. Taiwan, which Helms supports, donated $225,000 to the center in 1993.

Kuwait donated $100.000 to the Helms Center after the Persian Gulf War.

If the center was simply something set up by a few independent citizens for individuals to ‘appreciate’ Jesse Helms, the donations would not be suspicious. However, Helms’ links to this center are hardly passive. Helms’ wife and daughter serve on the Board of Directors of the center along with his foreign relations chief of staff and a former chief legislative assistant... Helms also evidently helps to set up some of the donations. "

House of Crooks Presents: Jesse Helms