# Should Speaker Pelosi visit Taiwan? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 26, 2022, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605 "2022-07-26T17:59:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/21 "2022-07-30T17:57:47Z")
> [@ekedolphin](#): > > It’s a little more complicated than that. What’s the complication? ---
**Author:** ![SharltoCopley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sharltocopley/32/12309_2.png) [@SharltoCopley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SharltoCopley)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/22 "2022-07-30T17:59:12Z")
Yup. Maybe even host the President of Taiwan at the WH. I believe that the time to confront China on Taiwan is now. Russia’s move on Ukraine bears too many resemblances for comfort to the China-Taiwan situation, and the US needs to start behaving like a superpower that doesn’t give a fuck about China’s [bloated territorial claims](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_disputes_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China), maybe even within an AUKUS framework. If that doesn’t happen, China will act more assertively in the region, to the detriment of the independence and sovereignty of too many countries in the South China Sea. The Chinese leadership may be under the impression that the US is currently weakened by a very delicate economic situation, a global energy crisis, and what’s most likely going to be a fierce election season, and Biden needs to correct that pretty decisively. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/23 "2022-07-30T18:10:23Z")
> [@SharltoCopley](#): > > The Chinese leadership may be under the impression that the US is currently weakened by a very delicate economic situation, a global energy crisis, and what’s most likely going to be a fierce election season, and Biden needs to correct that pretty decisively. I’d even go further and say that after the Afghanistan pullout and our (lack of direct military) reaction to Russia re: Ukraine that China believes we are willing to capitulate over Taiwan. As a note before I get flamed, for the purposes of this thread I am not passing judgement on Biden’s Afghanistan/Ukraine decisions and I believe that Biden is treating each situation as unrelated to each other and not as a part of a universal military/foreign policy. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/24 "2022-07-30T21:15:11Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Reading that and taking into account that it is a state-run paper and nothing like that would be written with the Chinese government’s OK, the most generous interpretation is that they are leaving shooting down the military escort planes as an alternative. It would be the end of all trade with China. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/25 "2022-07-30T21:47:22Z")
Just remember, Japan attacked the US because they started to believe their own lies. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2022, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/26 "2022-08-01T19:46:44Z")
It would appear the visit is on. This could get interesting. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/27 "2022-08-02T12:05:54Z")
I find myself wondering if China, like Russia, really has the military they want us to believe. There is news this morning that the US is deploying four warships east of Taiwan. > ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/28 "2022-08-02T12:30:00Z")
I am all for messing with the Chinese. Now is not the best time to do that. A war in Europe. A major naval exercise in the Pacific. An upcoming People’s Congress meeting. A provocative visit to Taiwan. This reads like a textbook example of how stuff spins out of control. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/29 "2022-08-02T12:42:22Z")
Its a show of strength that shows our resolve. We are calling the Chinese bluff, which is what you do to bullies. We should have done that with Russia before the Ukraine situation, but the previous administration was too busy pussyfooting with Putin and it gave them the opportunity to believe that they could make a move. But it backfired on them and now Europe is more united towards Russian aggression, that’s a good thing but too bad it was allowed to happen in the first place. We have the strength here, they don’t. It’s just bluster on their part. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/30 "2022-08-02T13:10:54Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > We have the strength here, they don’t. It’s just bluster on their part. You bet your life. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/31 "2022-08-02T13:28:10Z")
> [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](#): > > I am all for messing with the Chinese. Now is not the best time to do that. > > A war in Europe. A major naval exercise in the Pacific. An upcoming People’s Congress meeting. A provocative visit to Taiwan. This reads like a textbook example of how stuff spins out of control. Those are reasons why we _should_ do it now. Historically, a lot of bad shit has happened because the people who might have done something about it were distracted elsewhere (see for example: the Soviets rolling into Budapest during the Suez Crisis). Sending the message that we’re not going to let shit go down in Taiwan just because shit is going down in Ukraine is exactly what is needed right now. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/32 "2022-08-02T14:49:15Z")
Well, at this point we are beyond arguing. We will see what comes of this. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/33 "2022-08-02T14:58:03Z")
Am guessing (hoping) China is just saber rattling. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/34 "2022-08-02T15:03:26Z")
I’m 99.99% certain China will just issue blustery complaints/threats but Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan will be entirely uneventful (I think her plane already landed?) and she’ll be gone in a matter of hours. Then the Taiwanese media can go back to covering the latest TPop singer’s divorce or CEO’s domestic abuse tabloid story. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/35 "2022-08-02T16:38:37Z")
The Chinese leadership are not stupid; they understand how diplomacy and state interests work. If they were really upset about the visit, they’d have directly and privately contacted American leadership. Public complaints are performative, possibly for an internal audience or an external one, or both. I’ll guess that the primary audience of this rattling is Russia, to show them some “support” while simultaneously gouging them on material and munitions. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/36 "2022-08-02T17:03:15Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Sending the message that we’re not going to let shit go down in Taiwan just because shit is going down in Ukraine is exactly what is needed right now. This is my view as well. While China might want to take Taiwan by force, thely can’t be itching for an actual armed conflict with the U.S. Their threats sound ridiculous and we are right to shrug them off. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/37 "2022-08-02T20:04:56Z")
I was amused to see a Wikipedia entry about “China’s Final Warning”, which is apparently a 1960s Russian idiom for an empty threat. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/38 "2022-08-02T20:25:22Z")
Well here’s something you don’t see every day. > **[Conservatives Praise Nancy Pelosi For Taiwan Visit](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/nancy-pelosi-taiwan-conservatives_n_62e944a3e4b00fd8d84377b3)** > > Top Republican senators and Fox News offered Pelosi rare support after she landed on the self-governing island, which China claims as its territory. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/39 "2022-08-02T20:36:03Z")
Opposition to China is one of the few things there is bipartisan support in Congress for. Although it still baffles me that many conservatives support Russia. Russia is just a less-populous, white, European version of China. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605/40 "2022-08-02T20:52:33Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Although it still baffles me that many conservatives support Russia. Russia is just a less-populous, white, European version of China. Trump. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-speaker-pelosi-visit-taiwan/968605.md?page=3)