Tim Walz’s China experience draws GOP attacks, but Beijing isn’t counting on better ties

Republicans target Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's China connections, accusing him of being too cozy with Beijing.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has a history with China. And Republicans are seizing on it.

At 25, Mr. Walz taught a year of high school in China. He returned for his honeymoon and many more times with American exchange students. As a congressman, he served on a committee tracking China’s human rights and met figures like the Dalai Lama.

Now that Mr. Walz is the Democratic Vice Presidential nominee, Republicans have accused him of a decade long relationship with “Communist China” and even opened an investigation. The attacks reflect how, amid a tense U.S.-China relationship, visits once seen as simple cultural interactions have become a target for political opponents. “Ultimately, Beijing does not expect U.S. policy to thaw regardless of who is in the White House,” experts say.

With competition defining Washington’s relationship with Beijing, any interaction with China appears to be “regarded with scepticism, if not outright suspicion,” and it’s become “a well-worn tactic to attack opponents simply for having a China line in their resumes,” said Kyle Jaros, an associate professor of global affairs at the University of Notre Dame.

“The assumption behind these attack lines is that having China connections makes individuals beholden or sympathetic to China and compromises U.S. interests,” Mr. Jaros said. “There is definitely such a thing as being too cozy with one’s geopolitical rival, but blanket China-bashing and excluding people with firsthand China experience from U.S. policymaking is also bad for U.S. interests.”

Republican Representative James Comer, chair of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, announced on Friday (August 16, 2024) an investigation into Mr. Walz’s China connections, including the student trips he had organized. Mr. Comer said he asked the FBI for information on whether Mr. Walz could have been targeted by or recruited for Beijing’s influence operations.

Mr. Walz’s “longstanding and cozy relationship with China” should be a concern for Americans, Mr. Comer said in a statement.