Young Republicans want to see meaningful action on the environment.

They do not want to see a proliferation of solar power from Xinjiang’s cheap, coal-powered solar manufacturing industry, which facilities also raise several ethical flags for its labor practices.

More importantly, they do not want to see America put itself at a competitive disadvantage. This is especially true if these actions will not even put a dent in global emissions.

Young Republicans do want to ameliorate global pollution, and address climate change. These problems will not be solved with a toothless international treaty, but the world desperately needs a framework to allow other countries to follow suit with America’s lead.

Take China, for example, the country spews out more emissions than all other developed countries combined. For some reason, world leaders have accepted that China does not need to meet the same environmental standards as the developed world.

Republicans can take control of the environmental discussion by holding polluters like China accountable. This means clarifying the true costs of labor and environmental compliance, akin to what they would face in a competitive market economy.

Representative John Curtis has brought us a step towards real accountability by calling attention to China’s shameful environmental record, as it contrasts with our own country’s standards. In legislation he introduced earlier this month, he took a powerful step to show just that. Indeed, there is nothing free about trade with China. It is a smart move–and one that might finally get us to put our foot down instead of footing the bill.

Victoria Vincent; national committeewoman, Utah Young Republicans