Pelosi was right to visit Taiwan

And Trump is wrong to attack her for it

Last month, I argued that Nancy Pelosi should visit Taiwan, as she said she was planning to do, even in the face of pushback from the Biden administration and threats from China. This week, Pelosi went ahead with the visit.

China responded with tough talk, military training exercises, and live ammunition drills near Taiwan, with some economic sanctions likely to follow. This sound and fury doesn’t signify nothing, but neither does it signify war.

If China wages war against Taiwan, it will be at the time of Beijing’s choosing. And because China’s military capability keeps improving relative to America’s, the time of Beijing’s choosing will likely be down the road, not just now.

What does Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan signify? At least two things. It shows that strong support for Taiwan is bipartisan to a meaningful degree. And it shows that China was unable to dictate which Americans can and cannot visit Taiwan.

While in Taiwan, Pelosi made it clear she’s not quarreling with America’s policy of “strategic ambiguity” regarding China and Taiwan. But the visit itself makes it clear that she rejects unambiguous kowtowing to China.

Unfortunately, the reactions to Pelosi’s visit of Joe Biden and Donald Trump — for now, the leading figures in our two political parties — were ambiguous in this regard. Biden and his team made it clear they wanted Pelosi to stay home. Fortunately, they stopped short of insisting on this.

Trump’s response to the visit was disappointing, though not wholly unexpected. The former president tweeted:

Why is Crazy Nancy Pelosi in Taiwan? Always causing trouble. Nothing she does turns out well (Two failed impeachments, loss of House, etc.). WATCH!

Every sentence of this tweet is off base, and the sum of the parts is disturbing.

There’s plenty wrong with Pelosi. I can’t stand her, Taiwan visit or not. But if she’s crazy, she’s crazy like a fox. (See below)

Always causing trouble? This claim isn’t “America first” stuff; it’s “blame America first.”

Whatever trouble comes in the aftermath of Pelosi’s visit will be China’s fault, not the Speaker’s. That is, unless Trump thinks China has the right to dictate the itineraries of U.S. politicians — a view manifestly at odds with any plausible version of American greatness.

Nothing Pelosi does turns out well? From whose perspective? Plenty of what she’s done in her nearly eight years as Speaker has turned out well for her side. Obamacare and massive spending bills, for example.

Impeachment is another example. Pelosi’s two impeachments weren’t “failed.” The House impeached Trump twice.

Pelosi knew the Senate wouldn’t convict Trump, but she wanted to disrupt his administration (with the first impeachment), place him on the very short list of impeached presidents, and ultimately make him the only president impeached twice.

Mission accomplished.

Indeed, I believe it’s Pelosi’s successes on the impeachment front that drive Trump’s criticism of her trip to Taiwan. He can’t see past his feud with Pelosi to the pros and cons of her visit. (His other tweet about the visit is similarly devoid of substance.)

Mike Pompeo, Trump’s most trusted foreign policy adviser and a former member of the House, probably can’t stand Pelosi either. But he’s able to separate policy from grudges. He tweeted:

Glad to see Speaker Pelosi follow through today on her visit to Taiwan. America has never taken orders from the Chinese Communist Party, nor shall we ever. And we will always support the sovereign, independent state of Taiwan and its freedom-loving people.

Pompeo had even said he’d be willing to accompany Pelosi to Taiwan.

The former Secretary of State strongly criticized the Biden administration for not supporting Pelosi’s visit. I wish Trump had directed his ire Biden’s way instead of attacking Pelosi on this exceedingly rare occasion on which she deserves credit.

But Trump is mired in old grievances. He can’t get past those two impeachments.

I don’t mean to suggest that getting past them should be easy. But just as with the 2020 election, it’s something Trump needs to do if he’s to lead the Republican party effectively.