Lost in the media coverage of the Bush administration’s internal deliberations about whether to sell Taiwan the Aegis combat system is the bipartisan support for the sale in Congress. On April 3, more than a hundred members of Congress — 82 in the House and 20 in the Senate — signed a letter to the president recommending the sale go forward. Among those signing the House’s letter: Republicans Henry Hyde, Christopher Cox, and Tom DeLay, and Democrats Nancy Pelosi, Barney Frank, and David Wu. The Senate letter was signed, among others, by Jesse Helms, Jon Kyl, Trent Lott, George Allen, Rick Santorum, and Robert Torricelli. Both missives made the telling point that the Pentagon’s own review of Taiwan’s defense needs concluded that the Aegis system was a priority. Folks in Washington are always clamoring for bipartisanship when it comes to foreign policy. Well, here’s one case where it now exists. If the administration decides not to let the sale go forward, there will be one less excuse for its decision.
