China’s plan to build own cryptocurrency a ‘recipe for disaster worldwide,’ Nunes warns
Beijing ‘trying to replace the U.S. dollar as the world's reserve currency,’ Republican lawmaker says.
Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, is warning against China's interest in developing its own cryptocurrency.
"The Chinese are looking to build their own cryptocurrency," Nunes told the John Solomon Reports podcast. "I mean, that is a complete recipe for disaster worldwide because they can force any money they give out on their so-called Silk Road Initiative — can you imagine if they force them to use their cryptocurrency? You know how easy it would be to manipulate a Chinese cryptocurrency, what the Chinese would be able to do with that?"
Nunes said that the U.S. is too reliant on China for consumer goods, and while countries in Central America and elsewhere in Asia would be better to work with, they would require investment capital. On the other hand, China can just "move a lever and they can shut things down entirely. And they can compete and beat us on just about every — any sector of the economy, they can beat us on.
"China is definitely on the rise — from the size and scope of their Navy that's ... now, I think, many people believe larger than our own navy. They're trying to replace the U.S. dollar as the world's reserve currency. They're not coming clean on the origins of the coronavirus ... they own so much manufacturing, and they're lowering the price of energy in their country so that they can continue to compete globally. They're locking up oil and minerals — oil, gas, and minerals all over the world. And meanwhile, they're selling us solar panels.
"So this is all being done to displace the United States in the long run to make it almost impossible for us to manufacture most goods and services. And this is being done with either the witting or unwitting help of U.S. companies."
Nunes and other Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee are investigating ties between China and U.S. companies.
He also criticized American companies for pushing leftist ideology while using slave labor: "[W]e're talking about critical race theory, Black Lives Matter all over this country — you know, has to do with slavery that the Republican Party ended in this country over 150 years ago. And yet, you've got these U.S. companies relying on slave labor, Uyghurs — low-cost labor at best — and you've got a genocide going on there against the Uyghurs.
"So it just seems like we're completely — everything is just completely backwards, the world's turned on its head and we're not operating with full situational awareness of the truth. Like why would you be running around this country talking about slavery that's been gone, saying that white supremacy is the biggest issue, yet you've got all these major companies actually using slave labor, and they have to give up half their ownership and put Chinese nationals on the board that all are affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party?"