The US has seen big increases in government expenditure and a growing budget deficit due to the leftist big-government policies of US President Joe Biden’s administration, plus the cost of supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia. This situation has caused endless disputes over the federal budget and other fiscal issues.
To prevent a constitutional and fiscal crisis, then-speaker of the US House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy arranged some compromises with Biden, which upset hardliners in the Republican Party, while the Democratic Party turned around and added to the attacks on McCarthy, culminating in his removal from the post of house speaker on Oct. 3.
Some people in Taiwan who hold US-skeptic or anti-US views criticized and ridiculed the situation, while failing to understand that order in the midst of chaos is normal in a democratic country.
McCarthy was in favor of building the US’ military strength, so now that he is no longer the speaker, would it affect the US’ willingness and ability to resist China? It is a blessing in disguise for Taiwan, as the new speaker supports Taiwan even more strongly than McCarthy did.
McCarthy’s removal was followed by a period of bickering as several candidates failed to win the backing of the majority of representatives. The position of house speaker was vacant for 22 days, with Republican Representative Patrick McHenry serving as acting speaker.
However, a dark horse eventually emerged in the form of 51-year-old Mike Johnson, a relative newcomer who was elected as a federal representative in 2016. Johnson was elected the new speaker on Oct. 25.
Johnson is a member of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus and a co-signer of Taiwan-friendly bills such as the Taiwan International Solidarity Act of 2021.
He has always called for the US to be prepared to prevent China from invading Taiwan. Now that he has become the house speaker, he is sure to go on promoting the US’ strategic priority of resisting China and protecting Taiwan.
Many anti-US and US-skeptic commentators assert that the US cannot fight a war on three fronts involving Russia versus Ukraine, Israel versus Hamas and a conflict in the Taiwan Strait. However, this is quite out of touch with reality. The US has only been giving Ukraine financial assistance and weapons to fight Russia, while Israel is more than capable of crushing Hamas on its own. More importantly, the US’ top strategic priority in the medium to long term is still to contain China, so it would not back down from supporting Taiwan.
Johnson is a devout Christian who abides by the spirit of his faith. He has close ties with US Christian groups such as Answers in Genesis, the Louisiana Family Forum, the Alliance Defending Freedom and Focus on the Family, and he holds firm positions on related issues such as opposing abortion and disagreeing with unlimited calls for gender diversity.
Taiwan has long embraced European and American leftist ideas, with most politicians and opinion leaders believing that “progressive” ideas are universal values. However, it is important to understand that most countries in the world are divided into left and right. Leftists are not the only ones to think their ideas are universal values — right wingers think the same about their own ideas.
When conversing with a staunch friend of Taiwan like Johnson, the topic of same-sex rights could be left out. If Taiwan wants to get along with both left and right in the world, it will also need a deeper understanding of conservative thought.
Tommy Lin is president of the Formosa Republican Association.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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