Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a drive-in campaign rally at Lexington Technology Park, Pittsburgh on Nov. 2, 2020. (Andrew Harnik/AP Photo)
Though Democratic Party presidential candidate Joe Biden has not been declared a winner by the U.S. statutory electoral authority, Chinese state media have touted his declared victory and expressed hopes for a cozier U.S.–China relationship under a Biden administration.
According to a Nov. 6 report by Radio Free Asia, Chinese authorities gave an order to domestic news outlets, forbidding them from forwarding U.S. election reports or updates from foreign sources. Instead, they should quote the coverage from state-run Xinhua News Agency, make comments based on “the remarks of our country’s spokesperson,” and warn against anti-U.S. hateful rhetoric.
At a daily press briefing in Beijing on Nov. 9, Western journalists asked Wang Wenbin, spokesperson for China’s foreign affairs ministry, whether he has congratulated Biden. He replied: “We have noticed that Mr. Biden has declared election victory. Our understanding is that the result of the U.S. presidential election will be determined following U.S. law and procedures.”
CNN, AP, FOX, NBC, and other major news outlets projected Biden’s victory despite lawsuits against suspected voter fraud in several states.
Hundreds of Donald Trump supporters gather in the state capital of Pennsylvania to display their anger at the outcome of the election hours after the state was called for Joe Biden on Nov. 07, 2020 in Harrisburg, Pa. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
In a Nov. 6 interview with Newsmax TV, chairman of the U.S. Federal Election Commission Trey Trainor said that voter fraud was taking place in various states. “If the law isn’t being followed then this election is illegitimate,” he said. He also noted that the lawsuits filed by the Donald Trump reelection campaign are “very valid” and need to be “fully vetted” by the court system.
China Commentator: Gamesters Are Celebrating Their Win
Independent scholar and China commentator Ge Bidong told The Epoch Times that the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) media reaction to Biden’s declaration of victory lies in sharp contrast to their commentaries on Trump and his administration’s officials. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, for example, has been called “the people’s enemy” and other epithets in editorials.
Ge believed that the state media’s celebration of Biden’s declaration demonstrates that the CCP wishes Biden could steer the United States to become more pro-Beijing, and that the U.S. presidential election is, in fact, a duel between democracy and totalitarian rule.
“Who will be the next White House winner will determine the security of the CCP’s lifeline,” Ge predicted.
A man arranges newspaper at his newsstand in Shanghai in this file photo. (Liu Jin/AFP/Getty Images)
“The CCP state media’s heated coverage of Biden is the same as gamesters celebrating their win,” he analyzed. He noted that Chinese officials would avoid too radical a move to antagonize Trump, because they know that currently, he is still the president, and Biden has not yet been verified as the winner.
According to Ge, Biden’s acceptance speech is an attempt to establish a fait accompli, and create pressure upon future judicial challenges to the election results.
Frank Yue is a Canada-based journalist for The Epoch Times who covers China-related news. He also holds an M.A. in English language and literature from Tianjin Foreign Studies University, China.
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