The last time we caught up with GOP senator Rod Grams, he was helping Dianne Feinstein block a Senate resolution on human rights in China. And not even a very tough resolution. It merely urged the Clinton administration to urge the U.N. to criticize China for human-rights violations. Despite the efforts of Feinstein and Grams, the Senate passed the resolution last week 95- 5. But not before Grams gave a repellent speech at a meeting of the Foreign Relations Committee.
The problem, said Grams, is that the Chinese government doesn't take kindly to public pressure; indeed, Grams announced that Beijing "will listen more to the Chinese people than they will listen to the threats from outside its borders." Yes. They listen to their people and imprison the uppity ones.
But Grams managed mainly to insult his colleagues on the Foreign Relations Committee. "Many of you agree with me privately," he informed other senators, and then challenged them "to prove to me that these efforts to demagogue improvements are productive." As for those interest groups that have criticized China's human-rights abuses, Grams wondered whether they were really just motivated by greed: "I am disappointed that certain grassroots groups have chosen to capitalize on concerns about China just to further their own fund-raising goals."
Say this for Grams: He has no talent for demagoguery himself. After his speech, his 17 colleagues were moved to vote unanimously against him, and for the resolution.