[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 27 (Monday, February 9, 2026)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E114]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              CONGRATULATING PRIME MINISTER SANAE TAKAICHI

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOE WILSON

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, February 9, 2026

  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, with elections yesterday 
in our valued ally Japan, it is reassuring for Peace Through Strength 
that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has been re-elected. American allies 
across the Indo-Pacific region are building defenses to deter Chinese 
Communist Party aggression. We all support stability for all citizens 
of all nations, including China, for peace and prosperity. This 
achievement deserves recognition. I include in the Record the following 
editorial from The Wall Street Journal:


             takaichi rolls to a landslide victory in japan

       Who says every political leader in the free world is 
     unpopular? Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi defied that 
     stereotype on Sunday by leading her Liberal Democratic Party 
     to a sweeping victory in the lower house of Parliament.
       Returns show the LDP on a path to win a comfortable 
     majority on its own, which amounts to a landslide. The party 
     had lost support in recent elections and needed a coalition 
     partner to form a government. With her new coalition 
     partners, Ms. Takaichi will have a two-thirds majority that 
     will be able to overrule opposition in the weaker upper 
     house.
       The result is in part a personal victory for the 64-year-
     old Ms. Takaichi, Japan's first female Prime Minister, who 
     has a 67% approval rating that buoyed the rest of the party. 
     It's true she faced weak opposition, but her recent LDP 
     predecessors weren't able to capitalize as she now has.
       Credit also goes to Beijing, which has tried to punish 
     Japan with export and tourist bans after Ms. Takaichl told 
     the truth by saying publicly that a Chinese takeover of 
     Taiwan would threaten Japan's security. Beijing's bullying 
     backfired again, as it previously has in Taiwan and 
     Australia. President Xi Jinping could send his wolf-warrior 
     diplomats to his infamous reeducation camps, except they were 
     probably taking orders from him.
       Ms. Takaichi comes out of the LDP's conservative, pro-
     American wing. She favors more defense spending, which is 
     urgently needed given China's vast military buildup. So far 
     she has managed President Trump's unpredictable behavior as 
     well as anyone can. She'll try to stabilize trade ties, and 
     Mr. Trump would be wise to make that happen instead of 
     treating the country as a zero-sum trade adversary.
       Less certain is whether her agenda will address the 
     frustrations of the Japanese public on inflation. She has 
     called for a two-year moratorium on Japan's 8% consumption 
     tax on food. But the roots of Japan's inflation are monetary, 
     as the Bank of Japan attempts to normalize its policy after 
     years of negative interest rates.
       Ms. Takaichi also campaigned on a new burst of government 
     spending, a Keynesian remedy that has failed in Japan many 
     times in the past. A non-defense spending burst is also 
     riskier in the current environment of high global government 
     debt. Investors may raise their asking price to finance 
     Japan's rising debt load.
       Japan's economic problem isn't a lack of demand. It's on 
     the supply-side, in a dearth of animal spirits and domestic 
     competition. Ms. Takaichi's mentor, the late Shinzo Abe, 
     pursued some deregulation that has helped growth, and that is 
     the policy avenue the prime minister can best pursue.
       The best news is that the clear LDP majority will give Ms. 
     Takaichi running room to govern with a mandate. The U.S. and 
     the free world need a strong and confident Japan as an ally 
     against the Chinese Communist Party's imperial ambitions.

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