White House Rejects GOP Plan Limiting China Trade Status

WASHINGTON — The White House on Friday rejected a Republican proposal to extend China’s low-tariff trade status for no more than six months, a step that GOP leaders say would keep pressure on Beijing to abide by its promises to Hong Kong and clean up its abysmal human rights record.

Although some GOP lawmakers described the proposal, endorsed this week by House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), as a compromise that would give the administration and Congress more time to evaluate China’s performance, White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry said it would only prolong the uncertainty that threatens trade between the two countries.

“It certainly sounds like the legislation the president would have to veto,” McCurry said.

Under existing law, the administration can extend China’s most-favored-nation trade status--the normal treatment accorded to all but a handful of rogue states--for no more than one year at a time. Administration officials say Clinton will give China the full year’s renewal early next month. Congress will then have 30 days to consider rejecting or shortening the extension.

Gingrich said Wednesday that he favors an abbreviated extension, either for three or six months, to give Congress time to evaluate conditions in Hong Kong after the July 1 hand-over of the British colony to Chinese rule. China has promised to respect Hong Kong’s political, economic and legal systems for 50 years.

But McCurry said the president would treat a short extension the same way he would treat outright rejection--with a veto.

Under the procedure governing China’s MFN status, the president’s decision takes effect unless both houses of Congress vote to reject or change it.

In effect, the president prevails if he can get one vote more than one-third of the membership in either the Senate or the House, the margin required to sustain a veto.

Although the debate is expected to be hot, administration officials are confident of victory.

“We do not support a short-term extension of most-favored-nation status,” McCurry said.

He said it would hurt Hong Kong’s trade-based economy under Chinese rule.