This week we’re going to take a look at a figure that has been causing quite a stir around the world, though maybe not as much in Taiwan as people would think. We’re going to talk about US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Media reports indicated Pelosi was planning on visiting Taiwan in August, setting off condemnation from China. She was originally going to come to Taiwan in April, but had to cancel that trip after being diagnosed with COVID.
Nancy Pelosi was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1940. She came from a prominent political family, and became involved in politics at a young age. She moved to San Francisco after graduating from university, eventually rising through the ranks of the Democratic Party. In 1988 she won a congressional seat in San Francisco, and has held it ever since. In 2004 she became the Democratic leader in the House of Representatives, before first becoming Speaker in 2007.
Pelosi, like most congressional leaders in the United States, is supportive of Taiwan. In March 2020, she helped pass the TAIPEI Act, saying that the law “reaffirms [the United States’] strong support for a free, open and democratic Taiwan.” When asked about her planned trip last week, Pelosi said it was important to show support for Taiwan. But she added that she doesn’t support Taiwanese independence, saying that was up to the people of Taiwan to decide.
China, predictably, has said it will respond seriously to a Pelosi visit to Taiwan. The international press is now asking if this trip is really worth it and if it could spark another crisis in the Taiwan Strait. But the Taiwanese press has mostly cooled on the issue, most likely because of its focus on this November’s local elections.