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Aug 21, 2026
China Comes to Town:
Chinese Investment and Local Politics in the U.S.
Summary
Chinese investment in the United States has become an increasingly contentious issue that is much more complicated than headlines suggest. In this episode, we reflect on recent debates in Michigan’s democratic primary and use it as a jumping-off point to examine more than 25 years of Chinese investment in the US and subnational relationships with Chinese business. We’re joined by Emily Conrad, whose research examines Chinese manufacturing investment in the US. We discuss where investment is concentrated and how local governments interact with investments, with attitudes ranging from facilitation to passivity to obstruction. We also discuss how Chinese companies navigate the present environment and varied contexts across the US. As federal scrutiny has intensified and states have introduced new restrictions on foreign land ownership and investment, Chinese firms face mounting political and regulatory headwinds. Yet, investments have not disappeared, and companies are adapting, raising questions about how geopolitics is reshaping investment, manufacturing and subnational policies and politics in the US.
Sign up for Emily’s Substack
Emily’s book The Faithless?: The Untold Story of the Electoral College
Analysis of State Attitudes towards Chinese investments over time from Conrad’s research here
Other resources from the episode:
- Rhodium Group’s China cross-border monitor
- YouTube podcast with Abdul al-Sayed that mentions some about China: here
- Wall Street Journal article about the State Armor organization: here
- NPR podcast with one of the best overviews on Gotion:here
- More on Gotion:
- ‘No CCP in USA!’: Inside a Michigan town's unhinged war over a Chinese battery plant
- A Chinese battery company bet on a small Michigan town for its U.S. expansion
- Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate primary debate audio used in this episode
- Tweet on the CCP by Sen. Elissa Slotkin
- Financial Times article, China’s assault on Europe’s car market has barely begun
Your Host
Second Cold War Observatory
This podcast is produced by Jessica DiCarlo and Seth Schindler through The Second Cold War Observatory, a collective of scholars committed to advancing historically and contextually situated understandings of contemporary great power rivalry.
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