The Heritage Foundation has released the final installment of its year-long project, "Chinese Handcuffs: China’s Immobilizing Trap on U.S. Energy, Security, and Prosperity." This series examines China's strategy to dominate the production of renewables, electric vehicles, batteries, and critical minerals through subsidies.
The foundation argues that environmental policies in the United States and abroad enable the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to undermine Western economies. According to Heritage, the Biden-Harris administration's push for renewables and electric vehicles strengthens China's position while weakening America's energy independence established through increased oil and gas production over the past decade.
The fourth pillar of this project is titled "Extricating America from Chinese Handcuffs" and proposes 18 policy solutions aimed at ensuring reliable, resilient, and affordable energy for Americans. The report presents data indicating that states with higher renewable energy usage—therefore more dependent on China—experience higher electricity prices.
Victoria Coates, Vice President of Heritage's Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy, stated: "When it comes to energy security, the United States must be the solution—not the problem. The Biden-Harris administration’s green energy offensive has not only raised prices for millions of Americans but it has also handcuffed the United States to its top adversary: China."
Coates added: "American citizens must not be at the mercy of Communist China—and there is no reason for them to be. The U.S., not China, should be a global energy powerhouse fueling the future."
Diana Furchgott-Roth, Director of Heritage's Center for Energy, Climate, and Environment and co-author of the report said: "The next presidential administration and Congress must swiftly unite to reverse the mandates and detrimental effects of the Biden-Harris administration’s green energy agenda. Americans should have freedom in their choices regarding cars or stoves without facing high electricity bills due to requirements for wind turbines and solar panels."
Furchgott-Roth continued: "America is a leading producer of oil and clean natural gas and should not sacrifice its energy independence to China due to myths about climate change. Just as termites destroy a house by gnawing at its foundation, China is trying to gnaw away at America’s economic prowess by substituting subsidized renewables for America’s oil and gas—and well-built internal combustion engines—and the Biden-Harris administration is complicit in CCP efforts."
She concluded: "The 18 policy solutions found in this report would protect the U.S. homeland, safeguard America’s economy, and remove U.S. reliance on China."
Some key recommendations from Heritage include:
- Expanding permits for oil and gas development as well as domestic mining of critical minerals.
- Repealing green subsidies while implementing tax reforms aimed at spurring domestic production.
- Passing permitting reform to expedite new transmission lines or pipelines.
- Expanding trade deals with African and Latin American countries to secure fair access to resources.
- Banning Chinese electric vehicles (EVs).
- Rolling back mandates requiring costly renewable energy sources.
