Honorable Bob Stump
Chairman, House Armed Services Committee
211 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Congressman Stump:

On behalf of our 65,000 supporters nationwide, I am writing to express our outrage over China's continuing belligerent behavior against our country. This enclosed shredded black beret perfectly symbolizes Red China's contempt for the United States. It is also a mocking reminder of how weak and dysfunctional our policy is towards Beijing.

CIC applauds the Pentagon's recent decision to withdraw its contract with China to manufacture the Army's berets; however, there are deeper problems that are weakening our own military that need to be addressed. While the Army has been spending $35 million on 4.7 million berets, our troops are being told to skip firing range practices due to the massive shortage of 9 mm ammunition.

At the same time, Red China is continuing its massive military buildup without any peep from Congress or the White House. The most recent intelligence reports indicate that China is planning another underground nuclear test at the Lop Nur nuclear test site in western China in just a few days (Bill Gertz, Washington Times, 5/11/01).

Therefore, we are urging you to take several actions that will strengthen our own military while weakening China's ability to threaten and harm America:

1) Revoke PNTR by supporting H.R. 1497 and H.R. 1467. China does not deserve special trading privileges that allow it to earn billions in hard cash to build its nuclear missiles and other offensive weapons systems.

2) Support H.R. 1770, sponsored by your colleague Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD). This bill conditions the Army to certify to Congress that our troops are adequately provided with ammunition before any berets are manufactured and issued.

I hope and pray you take our concerns to heart. U.S. national security is indeed at stake here. I look forward to your response.

Best regards,