Rep. Nancy Mace, who traveled with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to Taiwan over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, said Sunday that China pushed back hard against the trip.
"We were in [South] Korea at the time, in Japan, serving Thanksgiving to our troops," the South Carolina Republican told Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures."
"Many of our troops during COVID couldn't get back home over the last two years, couldn't have family travel to see them. That was the major intent of the program."
At the end of the trip, before the delegation boarded a plane for Taiwan, the Chinese tried to stop them, said Mace.
"It was the Chinese embassy pushing back very strongly against every member on that trip, demanding that we don't visit Taiwan," said Mace. "Of course I don't get permission from China or Communist China to do anything and so we ignored their demands and we went to Taiwan anyway."
The group met with Taiwan's minister of foreign affairs, the president, and others in the government, and also took an "innovation tour" to see the technology that is being worked on, said Mace.
But while they were there, "China flew eight lanes across the international defense zone," said Mace. "They're the ones showing aggression."
She added that it is "beyond me" that the United States should allow China to continue to be aggressive to America's friends and partners, but she came back from the trip "stronger with that feeling today than ever before."
The United States, she continued, will have to stand strong against China's aggression against Taiwan and elsewhere.
"We should not listen to China's demands when it comes to this," said Mace.
"We know with their aggression, what they're trying to do is eventually take over Taiwan. I think if Taiwan goes, then other countries will be vulnerable. Look at the humanitarian crisis in China, what they've done to the Uyghurs. There are other ways besides militarily that we should look at via the economy and the kind of business we do in China to hold them accountable and keep them from going to wars with any country in the Asia-Pacific region. It's bad for countries there and eventually, it will harm the United States of America and allies abroad."
Mace on Sunday also spoke out against the upcoming vote on the $1.75 trillion Build Back Better bill.
"One of the reasons that inflation is going to get significantly worse is because of the greater spending we have through Build Back Better and through other COVID-19 relief programs," said Mace.
"I believe until Republicans are in the majority in 2022 and I believe that will happen, it will be significant. We will win at least two dozen seats or more. It will be incumbent upon us to try to reverse some of the policies that will be created."