“Death by China” Is Indeed “Deadly” for China
《致命中国》对中国相当“致命”
By He Yuhai (何与怀)
【On December 4, 2024, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Peter Navarro (彼得·纳瓦罗) as Senior Advisor on Trade and Manufacturing. During Trump’s first term, Navarro served as the White House Trade Advisor and was a key behind-the-scenes figure in handling U.S.-China trade issues. When announcing the nomination, Trump said: “During my first term, few were more effective and resolute than Navarro in carrying out my two sacred rules: buy American, hire American.” In September 2023, Navarro was found guilty of two counts of contempt of Congress after defying subpoenas from the U.S. House Select Committee investigating the Capitol riot. In March of this year, he began serving a four-month prison sentence, becoming the first former senior Trump administration official to be incarcerated over the “Capitol Hill riot.” In July, on the day of his release, Navarro attended the Republican National Convention and delivered a speech denouncing the Department of Justice, calling it the “Department of Unjustice.”
The following article, written in 2018, provides a brief introduction to Navarro’s renowned book Death by China and examines his relationship with Trump. It should not be difficult to predict that the return of this Death by China author to the White House portends a continued hardline stance on U.S. trade policy toward China under the Trump administration.】
This book can indeed be classified by many as a “viciously anti-China work.”
The title alone is enough to unsettle anyone. The English original: Death by China: Confronting the Dragon—A Global Call to Action. Translated into Chinese, “Zhiming Zhongguo” literally means “China causing everyone’s death.” The subtitle, “A Global Call to Action,” aimed at confronting the Chinese dragon, if realized, would certainly be quite “deadly” to China.
Death by China lays out its arguments with stark clarity, unmistakable language, and a pungent, gunpowder-like flair. Right from the start, the authors characterize China’s trade practices as mercantilist and protectionist. They assert that China is “rapidly becoming the most lethal assassin on the global stage,” that “unscrupulous Chinese entrepreneurs flood world markets with deadly products,” that “China’s illegal protectionist measures are plundering U.S. industries and jobs,” and that China’s advantages stem from “unfair trade tactics.” The book is divided into five parts: Part One discusses China’s toxic products; Part Two addresses U.S.-China trade; Part Three warns of the threat posed by China’s military expansion and espionage against the U.S.; Part Four criticizes China’s political system; and Part Five offers ways to survive coexistence with a “Deadly China.” Within these pages, the authors enumerate eight “weapons” China uses to eliminate American jobs: a meticulously designed network of illegal export subsidies; clever currency manipulation and severe undervaluation; blatant counterfeiting, piracy, and theft of U.S. intellectual property; the shortsighted mass environmental destruction tolerated by the Communist Party of China in exchange for marginal production cost advantages; substandard labor health and safety conditions far below international norms, resulting in widespread illnesses like byssinosis, disabling injuries, and various cancers; illegal tariffs, quotas, and export restrictions on critical raw materials from antimony to zinc that grant China greater global control over metallurgy and heavy industry as a strategic tactic; predatory pricing and dumping to push out foreign competitors in key resource markets, followed by monopoly pricing to cheat consumers; and China’s proud “Great Wall of Protectionism,” blocking all foreign competitors from setting up shop on its soil. Thus, China’s long-standing, tried-and-true eight “weapons” are stripped bare under broad daylight for all Americans to witness. The authors’ intentions are truly nothing short of “vicious.”
For those repelled by this book, what’s vexing is that the authors know quite a bit about China’s circumstances. Their scope of discussion is wide-ranging, and their examples are grounded in actual events. For instance, in describing how China’s counterfeit products harm both Chinese and Americans, they reference tainted Sanlu milk powder, gutter oil, and plastic rice, then move on to poisonous drywall, toxic flooring, and toxic toys exported to the U.S. American pharmacies are flooded with Chinese-made pharmaceuticals; American supermarkets stock seafood imported from China, where fish and shrimp are fed antibiotics, and Chinese medicines contain pollutants. In the authors’ depiction, nothing escapes China’s supposed toxicity, sending chills down the reader’s spine. The real killer blow is that their arguments are backed by substantial evidence. Even Chinese authorities do not deny some facts; many of these scandals were first exposed by Chinese media themselves. The factual accuracy of this book is undoubtedly quite “deadly” for China’s reputation.
Death by China calls for global unity to confront the Chinese dragon. What remedies does the book propose to cure the United States’ deep-seated malaise in U.S.-China trade relations? The fifth part of the book offers ways to survive and coexist with “Deadly China.” It provides detailed strategies in three areas: individual consumer choices, corporate management decisions, and government policy measures. The survival guide covers a broad range, from teaching consumers how to carefully read product labels at the supermarket to advising how to guard against Chinese business espionage, to tackling China’s colonial resource plundering in Africa, and even how to counter Chinese spy satellites in outer space. On the government policy front, proposals include urging Congress to legislate that any country enjoying free trade with the U.S. must abandon all illegal export subsidies; currency exchange rates must reflect reality; strict intellectual property protections and internationally compliant environmental, health, and safety standards must be enforced; and markets for energy and raw materials must remain open and free, including media and Internet services. In terms of implementation, the book suggests numerous concrete measures, such as imposing a 45% tariff on Chinese imports, preventing Chinese firms from stealing U.S. companies’ intellectual property and trade secrets, reducing the U.S.-China trade deficit, boycotting “Made in China” products, and labeling China a currency manipulator.
This book, deemed by some as a “viciously anti-China work,” caused a strong reaction upon its publication in 2011, with an impact far beyond academic circles. Many U.S. hawks applauded, and Representative Dana Rohrabacher wrote an epilogue for the book. In 2012, funded by major companies, Death by China was adapted into a documentary of the same name, directed by Navarro himself, featuring interviews with numerous U.S. politicians and even members of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. The documentary, though merely a reiteration of the book’s arguments, wielded far greater influence than the original text. Together, the book and documentary produced a considerable political effect on American society. In 2015, China’s trade surplus with the U.S. reached a staggering $365.7 billion. The transfer of manufacturing to China and the resulting decline of America’s Rust Belt were plain to see, making Death by China’s critical perspective resonate strongly with many Americans. This was evident when Donald Trump cited the book’s arguments in his presidential campaign, winning enthusiastic support from white blue-collar workers.
After Trump won the presidency at the end of 2016, he did not forget to offer Death by China high praise. He said: “The book’s clear arguments and meticulous research impressed me deeply. It foresaw how globalization harmed American workers and pointed a way to revitalize our middle class.” Trump also provided a recommendation for the documentary, stating: “Death by China is absolutely right. This important film, backed by ample facts, data, and insights, depicts the problems we face with China. I strongly encourage everyone to watch it.” Trump didn’t first read this book in 2016, but only after winning the presidency did he formally comment on it and strongly recommend it, revealing how much he values it. In fact, Trump and the book’s two authors—economist Peter Navarro and his student, entrepreneur and writer Greg Autry (格里格·奥特里)—were a perfect match. The most crucial prescription in Death by China for America was that the White House should have a new occupant, a president who not only had brains and spines but also dared to say no to China. Trump’s election fit the authors’ ideal scenario perfectly. During his campaign, Navarro and Autry joined Trump’s team as economic advisors. In January 2017, Trump announced the formation of a “National Trade Council” to coordinate trade dispute strategies, appointing Navarro as its chair. Autry was appointed to oversee the NASA transition process.
Cover of the Chinese edition of Death by China
Today, Navarro is the direct strategist behind America’s trade war with the Communist Party of China. During the election, when Trump fiercely attacked and threatened China, all his ammunition came from Death by China. Since taking office, he has been implementing one by one the book’s recommendations, effectively treating it as a strategic handbook for U.S.-China relations. Perhaps the heavens are teasing China: Navarro’s bond with Trump was unexpectedly “brokered” by Xinhua News Agency (新华社). Navarro once revealed that he didn’t know Trump initially. After Death by China was published in 2011, he learned that Trump had praised his work in an interview with Xinhua. That’s when they began corresponding. It was during the presidential election that they first met and immediately hit it off.
Death by China was published in 2011 and made into a documentary in 2012—six or seven years have passed. Over these years, it seems that relevant Chinese authorities never took their publication, their ensuing sensation, or the ideological trends they represent seriously. Nor did they care much about how Trump drew inspiration from them and put their recommendations into action. They remained “calm,” intoxicated by Hu Angang’s (胡鞍钢) claims that “China is No.1 in the world” and the self-congratulatory tone of Amazing, My Country (厉害了我的国). If we dig deeper, Navarro has even more provocative works on China: The Coming China Wars: Where They Will Be Fought and How They Can Be Won (original edition 2006; revised and expanded 2008), and Crouching Tiger: What China’s Militarism Means for the World (2015). Like Death by China, one can guess their content from the titles alone. In The Coming China Wars, Navarro asserts that the Communist Party of China is “pursuing global economic hegemony.” He suggests a direct economic confrontation with China, including sanctions, border controls, and, if necessary, military backing. Today’s trajectory of U.S.-China relations regrettably aligns with his dire predictions. Yet Beijing has long dismissed Navarro and his ilk as fringe extremists incapable of stirring big waves while viewing Trump as a businessman merely bluffing for the U.S. midterm elections. Under this misunderstanding, Beijing also erroneously believed it could form a joint trade front with the European Union against Washington, ignoring the shared core values binding the U.S. and the EU. Perhaps one could say these misjudgments and the measures Beijing has taken and will continue to take under these misjudgments are truly what’s “deadly” for China!
At the end of Death by China, Navarro emphasizes, as a China expert, his love for Chinese culture and his friendships with many Chinese. He even leaves a message on the book’s front page:
“To all my Chinese friends. May they one day live in freedom. Until that day comes, please take care!”
Some have noted that rather than a greeting, this feels more like a reminder or a concern. Reading it evokes mixed emotions and a lingering aftertaste. Many will consider it the ultimate expression of “viciousness.”
(August 11, 2018)
This translation is an independent yet well-intentioned effort by the China Thought Express editorial team to bridge ideas between the Chinese and English-speaking worlds. The text was originally published in Huaxia Wenzhai (华夏文摘) on December 7, 2024, and is available here:
Kindly attribute the translation if referenced.