As the U.S. secretary of state meets with Chinese officials this week. U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-Springfield) says this is important.

“Chien is our biggest geo-political threat in the world,” Budzinski said in an interview during a holiday trip to her district. “We need to make sure that, obviously, we have a strong national defense. I think one of the things that’s been shown us after covid is we have some real vulnerabilities as it relates to our own supply chain: an overreliance on countries like China. I think we need to be making more things here in the United States.”

Budzinski says the level of bipartisanship is greater than she expected in her almost six months in the House, as she shares this area with U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Oakland), who is her political opposite. Budzinski says they also share an interest in farming, both sitting on the Agriculture Committee.

And Budzinski says she’s confident in a Biden-Harris ticket next year.