The Select: A Weekly Committee Recap (Week of 6/10)
Welcome to The Select, a weekly newsletter on the work of the Congressional Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party led by Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI).
See below for this week's updates.
Moolenaar, Newhouse Introduce Legislation Blocking Chinese Communist Party From Purchasing American Land
As first reported by Fox News, Wednesday, Chairman Moolenaar, co-sponsored the No American Land for the Chinese Communist Party Act alongside Select Committee member Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) to prevent the CCP from purchasing land adjacent to federally owned land.
Chairman Moolenaar said, "There is no world in which the Chinese Communist Party would allow Americans to buy vast swaths of farmland next to its military bases. We need to protect our farmland and ensure our largest adversary cannot own land near sensitive U.S. military bases. Thank-you to Congressman Newhouse for his leadership on this issue and the work he has done to introduce this legislation."
Rep. Newhouse said, “The Chinese Communist Party is at our doorstep, and we best not let them in. I have been closely watching the rise in cases of the CCP’s attempts at undermining our institutions. From spying on sensitive national security sites to buying up American farmland, it is clear we are vulnerable to their malicious efforts. This bill strengthens our domestic defenses and protects critical federal lands against these foreign actors that aim to deepen their already dangerous influence on the world stage.”
This bill would prohibit any agent of the CCP, or any business owned by the CCP, from purchasing land adjacent to federal land in the U.S. This protects our military installations, national labs, and land with critical resources from being purchased by our greatest adversary.
Full bill text can be found HERE
Moolenaar on House Passage of the National Defense Authorization Act
Today, Chairman Moolenaar and Select Committee members secured major wins in the FY2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which passed the House of Representatives in bipartisan fashion today. The NDAA is the legislative vehicle that authorizes policies, programs, and spending for the Department of Defense.
Chairman Moolenaar said, “The 2025 NDAA is a victory for the American people and our courageous servicemembers. It’s also bad news for the Chinese Communist Party. I’m proud that the House has taken decisive action to enhance the Department of Defense’s ability to identify Chinese companies working on behalf of the Chinese military, prevent future Chinese drones from dominating our air space, and advance American research security, among many other accomplishments. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate on this important legislation that will keep our country safe and make sure the United States is able to deter the mounting threats from Xi Jinping."
See the China-related provisions championed by Select Committee members HERE.
Moolenaar Joins China Desk Podcast to Discuss Chairmanship and Break Down the CCP Threats to America
Chairman Moolenaar joined the Federal Newswire's "China Desk" podcast with host Steve Yates in a brand new episode released on Tuesday. On the show, Chairman Moolenaar discussed his leadership of the Select Committee, and his priorities for action in Congress to address the harsh reality of the Chinese Communist Party's global ambitions, including on fentanyl, supply chains and trade.
Listen to the Chairman's full podcast interview HERE, read the full transcript HERE, with key moments highlighted below:
Moolenaar on the bipartisan nature of the Select Committee:
"The members on the committee are very serious minded. You don't have a lot of effort to score political points. You have people asking very good questions on how the US policy should address the changing nature of this relationship with China. It has really been a pleasure to see this. My goal of the committee is to continue to build on the excellent work that Mike Gallagher and the team has started, which has been very bipartisan and meaningful across a wide spectrum of different issues."
On the Select Committee's groundbreaking fentanyl report:
"The groundbreaking report that our committee presented with actual evidence of China was their tax policy where they are actually offering tax rebates to chemical companies in China to manufacture and export the chemical precursors for fentanyl. Not the fentanyl is used in hospitals for medical purposes, but the fentanyl that's used to poison people. Ultimately, the idea that was their government policy being promoted through websites and an active drug distribution that was going on was shocking."
On dealing with the CCP's abusive trade tactics and global aggression:
"Most of us believe in free and fair trade. It is free trade among free nations and when that gets distorted, it makes it very hard to say let's just have free trade. We know that China has been stealing our intellectual property, coopting businesses, showing aggression in transnational repression, and intimidating people on our soil. It is a different kind of relationship... for the last several decades, the hope was that China would become more open, more freedom loving, more democratic, but under Xi Jinping, they have gone in exactly the opposite direction."
Moolenaar, Krishnamoorthi Call for Regulation of Foreign Adversary Drones Operating in the U.S.
As first reported by Politico, Thursday, Chairman Moolenaar and Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi wrote to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, requesting that the Department consider regulating Chinese drones operating in the United States that pose an espionage, data collection, and national security risk.
Earlier this year, President Biden directed the Department of Commerce to develop regulations against foreign adversary-made internet connected cars in the United States, citing the national security vulnerabilities of vehicles mapping U.S. critical infrastructure and collecting information on the car, its surroundings, and its occupants that may be susceptible to exploitation. The Biden Administration particularly focused on the national security risks posed by vehicles made in China, noting these technologies can be exploited by the Chinese Communist Party and Chinese intelligence services.
Earlier this year, the Department of Commerce solicited feedback as it develops the new regulations against foreign adversary vehicles. Chairman Moolenaar and Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi expressed their view that that new regulations on internet connected vehicles should also include Chinese drones. Alternatively, the lawmakers request that the Department initiate a separate investigation to mitigate risks and restrict these drones from the United States.
The lawmakers wrote, “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle companies headquartered in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) control 90 percent of the U.S. consumer market for drones and 70 percent of the global drone market. With UAVs’ connected software and hardware posing similar national security threats to those of other identified connected vehicles, such transactions present undue and unacceptable risks to U.S. national security."
Read the lawmakers’ letter to the Department of Commerce HERE.
Moolenaar, Colleagues Demand Admin Show Congress the Data on Tech Transfer Through US, PRC STA
As first reported by Reuters, Wednesday, Chairman Moolenaar today sent a letter to Department of Commerce Under Secretary Kathi Vidal urging the Administration to provide a full accounting of the national security damage already caused by the United States and China's Science and Technology Agreement (STA). Despite the Biden Administration claiming that the STA has resulted in no dual-use technology transfer, we know that the Chinese Communist Party has previously leveraged the STA to advance its military objectives and will do so again. Alarmingly, the Biden Administration has extended the agreement twice.
The letter was also signed by Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY), and Reps. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO), Andy Barr (R-KY), Michelle Steel (R-CA), and Carlos Gimenez (R-FL).
The lawmakers write, "We believe the U.S.-PRC STA is a vector to give the PRC access to U.S. dual-use research and presents a clear national security risk...The Biden Administration must stop fueling our own destruction and allow the STA to expire."
The Select Committee previously sent a letter urging the Administration to let the STA expire.
Read the text of the letter HERE.