Corporate America’s "virtue signaling," ultrawoke, enlightened, socially conscious routine is finally running low on gas. They make a habit of browbeating, undermining, and belittling conservatives while promoting themselves as paragons of leftist moral values. They release ads extolling the virtues of tolerance, conservation, and, above all else, liberalism. Their smugness and self-satisfaction are almost beyond parody. Almost.

After all, today’s leftist corporate entities are better than you, and they know it.

But now it looks like these moral bullies may have finally met their match: China. The Communist regime, well known for its brutal authoritarianism, human rights abuses, and environmental degradation, has demanded these liberal companies bend the knee in fealty. Those corporations, which disparage anyone that dares challenge the liberal orthodoxy, have folded like paper tigers.

This trend has only become increasingly apparent as the Hong Kong protests ramp up in severity. In its quest to snuff out the vestiges of democracy within its sphere of influence, China has cracked down hard against the protesters. But China's strategy to quell dissent is more complex than just enlisting an army of riot police in Hong Kong. Rather, they’re looking to delegitimize the city’s democratic movement on the international stage by pressuring United States companies to be their mouthpiece.

The Chinese have been particularly successful at influencing companies with substantial connections to Chinese markets and, more importantly, no backbone. It makes sense, then, why these leftist corporate entities are so susceptible to that tactic.

Most recently, the NBA officially bowed to its Chinese overlords. After Daryl Morey, the general manager of the Houston Rockets, tweeted his support for the Hong Kong protesters, the NBA quickly condemned Morey’s action, calling it “regrettable.” Despite labeling itself as an organization that promotes free expression, the NBA effectively censored its manager for not voicing the China-approved opinion.

While the NBA may be the latest instance of a company kowtowing to China, it certainly isn’t the only one. Google also sided with the communist regime by banning The Revolution of Our Times, a pro-Hong Kong protest mobile game, from its platform. It’s an astounding display of hypocrisy from companies that claim to be in favor of free speech. And yet, their behavior isn’t entirely surprising. Money talks, after all, and these virtue signaling companies have been courting China for quite some time.

Take Tesla, for example. Elon Musk’s electric car company has become the corporate poster boy for environmental conservation. Musk himself has been a good soldier for the Left. He regularly promotes climate change alarmism, whether he’s voicing his support for radical environmental activists or snubbing President Trump over the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate accords.

Musk, of all people, should recognize the blatant hypocrisy of pandering to China, the world leader in environmental pollution.

Over the last few months, Musk has fully embraced China's authoritarian regime. During an August China summit, the environmentally conscious billionaire praised China extensively, calling the country “the future.” It was later revealed why: Musk was attempting to cajole the Chinese government for tax incentives, and he succeeded.

In September, Musk secured a 10% tax break from the regime and promptly moved forward with plans to open additional Tesla production facilities within China. Studies show that electric cars are not as economically pristine as corporate leaders make them out to be.

When it comes to SpaceX, Musk’s reusable rockets have consistently been found to be no more sustainable or effective than traditional ones. Indeed, Musk’s environmentalism is nothing more than a money-making façade.

But Musk’s apparent coziness with China is more problematic than mere hypocrisy. Currently, Musk’s other business venture, SpaceX, contracts with the U.S. government in efforts to curtail China’s global influence. How then, can Musk be trusted to prioritize America’s interests when they are in direct conflict with those of his other business, Tesla? This is a serious concern, and it’s one that demonstrates that Musk may not be the paragon of environmental virtue the Left believes him to be.

But, ultimately, Musk is merely a symptom of a larger, toxic culture of corporate leftism. These liberal companies may talk about environmental protection and freedom of expression, but they are not above shameless corporate glad-handing with China. Their behavior, whether it be from the NBA, Google, or Tesla, belies their claims of moral superiority. When push comes to shove, these corporations will happily abandon their liberal virtues to make an extra buck. In this way, China does serve a vital purpose: exposing these leftist corporate bullies for the paper tigers they are.

Kevin Mooney (@KevinMooneyDC) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner's Beltway Confidential blog. He is an investigative reporter in Washington, D.C., who writes for several national publications.