Globalists are declaring war on travel bans and trade restrictions as President Trump tries to stop the spread of the coronavirus in the United States.
While the death toll of the coronavirus climbs to more than 3,000 — with now six confirmed deaths in the U.S. — the World Health Organization (WHO) is standing by its declaration that travel bans must be ended and that trade restrictions should be withheld.
“Travel bans to affected areas or denial of entry to passengers coming from affected areas are usually not effective in preventing the importation of cases but may have a significant economic and social impact,” WHO officials said in a February 29 news release.
“Several countries that denied entry of travellers or who have suspended the flights to and from China or other affected countries, are now reporting cases of [coronavirus],” the WHO officials said, though they did not acknowledge how travel bans may have largely mitigated the spread of the virus into countries like the U.S.
Likewise, Georgetown University professor Mara Pillinger in Foreign Policy magazine calls travel bans on China implemented by the Trump administration “ineffective” that have “more insidious downsides” such as “incentivizing countries to conceal outbreaks, hindering response efforts, infringing on human rights, and fueling the spread of xenophobia.”
Pillinger writes:
In short, travel restrictions are both harmful and difficult to prevent. Global health experts, led by WHO, should continue to discourage such measures. But once they are imposed, the critical question becomes: What can be done to mitigate their harms? [Emphasis added]
Rep. Rho Kanna (D-CA) said on Fox News that the coronavirus outbreak in China was proof that more free trade and normal trade relations with China are necessary.
The remarks come as White House officials argue the coronavirus is proof of why their economic nationalist agenda is key to decoupling the U.S. from China, making the American economy less dependent on foreign imports.
Khanna, though, said he is worried about Apple’s profits.
“This shows why we need actually a global economy and why a trade war would be devastating for America,” Khanna said. “Look what has happened to the markets just in a few weeks. Apple is in my district. Their profits are being hurt. So we should be really understanding that we are in a global economy and America benefits the most from that global economy.”
As Breitbart News reported, the U.S. currently depends on China to produce an estimated 97 percent of all antibiotics and 80 percent of the active pharmaceutical ingredients that are needed to manufacture drugs in the U.S.
Every year, current legal immigration laws allow for nearly half a million Chinese students to study at American schools — delivering more than $10 billion worth of university fees. Likewise, since 2010, tech corporations like Amazon and Microsoft have helped bring close to 60,000 Chinese workers into the U.S. labor market.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.
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