Hillary Clinton said America’s national security and its ability to intervene in crises around the world had been jeopardized by the Bush administration because of debt held partly by China, Reuters reported. The New York senator, who is running for the Democratic presidential nomination, said America was "too dependent on decisions made in other countries’ capitals." She cited a discussion she had with a retired general who painted a "nightmare scenario" of Beijing attacking Taiwan and preventing US intervention by threatening to sell its US dollar holdings. China has US$490 billion in US Treasury bonds, which form part of its US$1.5 trillion in total foreign exchange holdings. The US trade deficit with China hit a record US$252 billion last year. American politicians have complained that China deliberately undervalues its currency in order to make its exports cheaper.
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