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More CCP soft power overreach backfiring. The Chinese consulate asked Wisconsin state senate president @SenatorRoth to pass a resolution that they wrote praising China's response to the coronavirus. Instead he wrote one to push back on CCP disinformation. https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2020/04/10/chinese-government-asks-wisconsin-senate-for-a-commendation/
So much going on in this story, including the fact that Chinese consulate staff initially reached out to Sen. Roth using a hotmail account, so he thought it was a prank. Also Sen. Roth's diplomatic response. https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2020/04/10/chinese-government-asks-wisconsin-senate-for-a-commendation/
The @WIExaminer links to the original resolution the Chinese consulate wrote. Familiar propaganda, including that China provided a "window of opportunity" for the world with their "transparent and quick" response. And linking racism w/ criticism of China. https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2020/04/10/chinese-government-asks-wisconsin-senate-for-a-commendation/
Here's the resolution that @SenatorRoth wrote instead. It includes a section on the CCP's human rights violations, calling out among other things Tibet, Tiananmen, the Uyghurs in concentration camps, and organ harvesting. https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2019/related/proposals/sr7
The resolution also calls out the Chinese consulate for trying to get their own propaganda-filled resolution introduced and pushes back on the CCP's coronavirus "minsinformation." https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2019/related/proposals/sr7
And the resolution also directly blames the Chinese Communist Party for the coronavirus outbreak while it "stands in solidarity with the Chinese people." https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2019/related/proposals/sr7
The resolution is in committee and who knows if it will pass, but all in all this is a remarkable self-own by the CCP. But it will be interesting to see if any US states do pass resolutions "supporting China." No way the consulate only targeted Wisconsin. https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2020/04/10/chinese-government-asks-wisconsin-senate-for-a-commendation/
Resolutions don’t really do anything, but they can be diplomatically useful. Here’s a story from the San Francisco Chinese Consulate showcasing a CA state senate resolution commemorating the 40th anniversary of US-China relations last year. http://www.chinaconsulatesf.org/eng/lqyw/t1705203.htm
And here’s a story from 2017 about how the CA state senate shelved a resolution condemning the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong after the SF Chinese consulate sent a letter to CA lawmakers with threats that it would damage relations between CA and China. https://apnews.com/756cce5721d246a2af452fc49fab14c6
