Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the United States still dominates the international sphere as the “bulwark” for economic and diplomatic security and freedom, but the Biden administration’s feeble response to the threats coming from communist China and the border crisis could demolish the nation’s global standing.
“I don’t believe for a moment that we’re in second place, but there’s a real risk of that,” Pompeo warned in a virtual forum hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation on Wednesday.
One vulnerability in the United States that threatens its ability, Pompeo said, is the southern border crisis. He not only believes it creates a “humanitarian crisis,” but said it also poses a “national security crisis” that could easily be exploited by adversaries for “terrorism and narcotics.”
“This isn’t in America’s best interest. It’s not in Mexico’s best interest. And it’s certainly not in the best interest of these people who are in difficult situations in Central America who simply want a better life,” Pompeo said.
Another vulnerability for America, Pompeo added, is communist China. In the authoritarian regime’s most recent attack on the United States, Pompeo said Chinese diplomats weaponized “Marxist-Leninist ideology” propaganda such as Black Lives Matter against Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other American officials to trample the U.S. and justify the communist nation’s “fundamentally different understanding of human rights” on a global scale.
“The Chinese attacked the fundamental nature of the United States of America,” Pompeo said about the Alaska summit. “It wasn’t about a moment or particular language or particular words, but they grabbed on to what the Chinese believe most deeply, which is that America is a nation in decline. And that thesis is one that they propagate through misinformation around the world and through different propaganda tools. The theory of American decline is something I hope that Americans don’t come to believe. It’s fundamentally untrue.”
Pompeo also believes the Biden administration’s prioritization of climate change as a top policy initiative gives the communist country opportunities to exploit and manipulate its relationship with the United States to fulfill an agenda.
“This [White House] is a group of people who see the world through this vision of climate change as a political and almost article of religious faith,” Pompeo explained, “And when you do that, when you put that to the top of your priority list, when you don’t say, ‘Nope, America First is our priority,’ but rather, ‘Climate changes are priority,’ there’s very little you won’t trade to get to that thing that’s at the top of your list.”
The solution to warding off China and other nations’ attempts to embarrass America, Pompeo continued, lies in the promotion and protection of Western ideology.
“People are dying for leadership from the United States of America,” Pompeo said. “They want us to be there. They know that we are the bulwark of security for every country in the world. We are the bulwark of economic security, the bulwark of diplomatic capacity and power, and of course, we have an unrivaled rival military capability as well. … We shouldn’t squander that.”
One important asset in the fight to promote Western ideas, Pompeo believes, is America’s allies in Europe, even if they are “struggling.”
“We need them to join this battle, this battle of ideas, this central understanding of the West as an important bulwark against tyranny,” Pompeo said. “These ideas about democracy and freedom and liberty are pushing back against tyranny, and we need you to join us in that fight and be serious about it and preach this to your people.”
Source: The Federalist
