The United States should shut down trade with China until the Chinese government blocks the sale of fentanyl-related chemicals to Mexico’s criminal gangs, former Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC) said Wednesday during the GOP’s third presidential debate.
“We will go and end all formal trade relations with China until they stop murdering Americans from fentanyl,” Haley said early in the debate, where multiple candidates promised to block or slow the fentanyl threat.
“If we are going to deal effectively with 100,000 overdose deaths in our country — and the 70,000 that is directly linked to fentanyl — no we have to deal with our ports of entry and deal with our southern border,” said Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC).
“We’re going to call this what it is — this disease like heart disease, diabetes, or any other disease like cancer — that can be treated should be treated,” said former Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ). “We not only have to stop supply, but we have to lower demand and save lives,” he added.
The drug trade “is closer to bioterrorism,” said businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.
“It comes from Mexico — something’s got to be done,” former President Donald Trump told NBC’s Meet the Press in September. “We’re losing more [people] than you lose in just about any war that we’ve ever had.”
National leaders “don’t care that we have tens of thousands of opioid deaths, that the fentanyl is pouring, they are not taking the type of action we need,” Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) said. “We’re declaring it a national emergency on day one.”
If elected president, Haley’s China embargo would be bitterly opposed by Fortune 500 investors and the major trade associations in Washington, DC.
In 2019, Trump used economic threats to pressure Mexico into blocking most migrants coming across the U.S. border. Unlike all prior presidents, Trump took that step amid much opposition from his business-related deputies and D.C. lobbyists.
The Commerce Department said that in 2022, imports and exports between the United States and China hit a record $690 billion.
U.S. trade with Mexico was $863 billion in 2022 and included many agricultural products and parts needed for U.S. continuous production of autos and other products.
President Joe Biden has not applied economic pressure on Mexico, where criminal cartels convert Chinese chemicals into the fentanyl drugs that kill roughly 70,000 Americans per year. Instead, Biden’s deputies have made closed-door arrangements with Mexico while it streamlines and hides the flow of wage-cutting migrants into the United States.
Haley has relied heavily on major investors for donations. Politico reported in August 2022:
Haley’s nonprofit policy advocacy group, Stand For America, Inc., has received major donations from people including New York hedge fund manager Paul Singer, investor Stanley Druckenmiller, and Miriam Adelson and her late husband, casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, the Internal Revenue Service filings reveal.
The roster of supporters who gave undisclosed donations in 2019 also includes Suzanne Youngkin, the wife of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, himself a possible presidential contender; former Pennsylvania Senate candidate and hedge fund executive David McCormick; and Vivek and Lakshmi Garipalli, members of a New Jersey family that has donated large sums to Democrats — but which gave Haley’s organization $1 million.
Haley’s team can hope for support from major donors to help her outpace other GOP candidates. CNBC reported on November 8:
… for Haley there are a number of wealthy financiers, including Citadel CEO Ken Griffin, hedge fund titan Paul Singer and, the founder of stock brokerage firm Interactive Brokers, who have yet to decide the candidate they want to support.
“Griffin, who recently said he was currently sitting on the sidelines of the 2024 presidential election, reportedly called Haley “a rockstar” during a closed door meeting with other business leaders,” CNBC reported.
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