As China rises, so does its lobbying influence

Source: Washington Post

Beijing’s multimillion-dollar image-and-influence campaign pays off

By John Pomfret
updated 9:50 a.m. CT, Sat., Jan. 9, 2010

Ten years ago, U.S. lawmakers publicly accused the China Ocean Shipping Co. of being a front for espionage and blocked plans to expand its Long Beach, Calif., port terminal over fears that Chinese spies would use it to snoop on the United States.

By last year, Congress was seeing the state-owned Chinese behemoth in a far kinder light. Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) authored a resolution applauding the company for employing thousands of Americans and helping keep the waters of Alaska clean. Rep. Stephen F. Lynch (D-Mass.) hailed the firm on the House floor, calling its chief executive "a people's ambassador" to the United States after it rescued Boston's port — and thousands of jobs — when a European shipping line moved out.

The congressional about-face illustrates a dramatic increase in China's influence on Capitol Hill, where for years its lobbying muscle never matched its ballooning importance in world affairs. Members of Congress, lobbyists and other observers said China's new prominence is largely the result of Beijing's increasingly sophisticated efforts to influence events at the center of U.S. power — and a growing realization among U.S. lawmakers that China has become a critical economic player across America.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34778554/ns/world_news-washington_post/

The Republicans spent the better part of the century demonizing them and Red Baiting and as soon as they had a pile of money, well we're friends now.
Has there ever been a bigger pack of lying diseased whores than the Republican Party?

The two names in the OP are both Dems.

avoid any environmental & safety restrictions....of course the republicans love communism when it comes to slave labor & their corporate profits.

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and circumvent environmental & safety restrictions as much as they can.

I've lost many jobs simply because of my involvement with Unions and Safety and Health Committees up here.

A large company up here recently got fined 1 million bucks for dumping pollutants in our Ottawa river.

The general public whooped HOORAY!

BUT THE COMPANY SAVED 15 MILLION BUCKS by not implementing the proper systems.

Like that'll scare them . . .

(sigh)

I'm quite aware of American corporations hatred & sabotaging of my beloved labor unions and workers.