Former Washington Gov. Gary Locke blasts 'Soft on China' GOP memo as 'stigmatizing, dividing'
A 57-page Republican strategy memo, "outed" in the press over the weekend, advises GOP candidates in this year's election to depict Democrats as "soft on China," to ignore President Donald Trump, and blame the COVID-19 pandemic on the Chinese government for "covering it up."
The memo is "stigmatizing and dividing," and an attempt to cover up slow U.S. response to the corona virus, former Washington Gov. Gary Locke said Sunday. The first Asian-American governor elected outside of Hawaii, Locke later served as U.S. Ambassador to China.
The Trump administration "waited too long to respond" and the president's party now seems "to blame China for its own inept handling and mismanagement," Locke said in an interview. He noted that two Asian nations, South Korea and Taiwan, responded faster with more testing, and have experienced far fewer casualties per capita than the U.S.
It is the second time this month that Locke has called out Republicans for China bashing.
An attack ad by the pro-Trump America First Action Committee pictured Locke, standing between two Chinese officials beneath two Chinese flags (though next to an American one) when then-Vice President Joe Biden visited Beijing. Biden is walking in Locke's direction, head bowed and looking deferential.
The clear implication was that Locke was a Chinese officials.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/former-washington-gov-gary-locke-blasts-soft-on-china-gop-memo-as-stigmatizing-dividing/ar-BB13hv2q?ocid=hplocalnews
