Mike Gallagher (R-WI)

In the US, there is a group of politicians who wear the "anti-China" label as a badge of honor. They repost every media coverage of their reckless anti-China "causes" and become overjoyed every time they're called "China hawks." Republican Congressman Mike Gallagher is one of them. 

According to a Friday report from The Guardian, Gallagher once again hyped the bromidic "China threat theory" during his recent two-day visit to the UK. According to him, China's goal is "to render us subordinate, humiliated and irrelevant on the world stage," a statement that couldn't have more absurdity.

For years, we have seen so many China hawks from the US either encourage increased arms sales to the island of Taiwan, criticize Washington's decision to hold back sanctions against China, or call for the condemnation of China's so-called human rights problems. But as a rising star in the US political anti-China circle, Gallagher has not only accomplished the above-mentioned routine actions, but also stands out among all American anti-China politicians for his extremely imaginative and sensationalized words.

For example, the US lawmaker made a big deal about "China bullying the US" on several occasions, making people wonder if he comes from a parallel world whose reality is so seriously out of touch with ours.

Earlier this year, Gallagher was appointed president of the anti-China club in the US Congress - the so-called House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the US and the Chinese Communist Party. This title obviously gives him a greater sense of "responsibility" and "pride," as he has been striding on the anti-China path this year. Some American political elites have even praised him and his anti-China club for being "hard at work."

However, Gallagher is working hard in the wrong direction on China-related issues, and such "diligence" reflects a kind of laziness of US politicians that do not seek to make progress. According to Lü Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Gallagher's words and deeds represent a typical mindset among US politicians who do not want to compete on a level playing field, but rather want to trip up their opponents to maintain their country's dominant position temporarily.

Such a force is still growing in the US, with power that cannot be underestimated. These people are not thinking about a zero-sum game with China, but a negative-sum game where two sides compete for who causes more harm to the other. They don't care if this will lead to a lose-lose situation, and the US also has to pay the price. It only matters to them that China should always be suppressed by the US, and they act confidently as if that will definitely happen. 

Coupled with the military-industrial complex that constantly profits from warmongering, people like Gallagher are now really creating such an absurd public opinion environment against China in the US.

Yet, the reality is that China hawks like Gallagher actually have no confidence in his country's dominance in the world, as the decline of US hegemony continues to accelerate. Washington knows that it has no certainty of winning, so it prefers to rope in more allies against its competitors, persuading the former to follow it to implement a dangerous China policy. This is exactly the intention behind the UK trip of Gallagher and the other 10 US congressmen.

Right now, Republican politicians are almost a synonym for ignorant ultra-conservatism in the US. And it is evident that almost every GOP politician who wants to stand out is maliciously talking about China. For newcomers like Gallagher who seek higher familiarity and position in their party, this means they have to take an even more conservative and extreme position, especially by playing up the pursuit of suppression instead of competition with China.

To these people, honor comes from their interests. In other words, they feel their actions and deeds are glorious as long as their interests can be advanced. No wonder Gallagher feels so proud to be labeled a "China hawk."

"I think it's extremely sad that instead of contributing to the US' development by proposing positive and beneficial ideas, politicians like Gallagher are clipping others' wings to defend American interests," Lü said.