New legislation aimed at strengthening sanctions against Chinese companies and individuals that have engaged in acts of political warfare against the United States was introduced by House and Senate Republicans on Wednesday. The Countering China’s Political Warfare Act, sponsored by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN), would require the Biden government to identify and sanction Chinese-aligned foreign actors who take hostile action against U.S. national security interests.
The legislation specifically targets China’s United Front Work Department, an unauthorized Communist Party division involved in espionage, political warfare, the leveraging of the Chinese diaspora, and infiltration of educational systems. According to data from Banks’s office, over 100 United Front organizations are currently unrestricted in the U.S. The Chinese agency is suspected of running espionage operations on U.S. campuses and through Confucius Institutes. Further, it is responsible for propaganda operations against the oppressed Uyghur minority in China.
“The United Front Work Department has targeted our universities, state and local lawmakers, business associations and even Congress,” Rep. Banks said in an interview with the Washington Free Beacon. He added: “This bill gives America the necessary tools to strike back against malign Communist Party influence on U.S. soil.”
Congressional Republicans have ramped up efforts to curb Chinese influence in the United States. Lawmakers say they’re especially concerned about how China and its various social media networks may influence the 2024 presidential elections. Earlier Wednesday, the House passed a bill to ban TikTok unless ByteDance, its Chinese-owned parent company, separates from Beijing.
The legislation is expected to receive substantial Republican support in both the House and Senate. Additional backing from a handful of China hawks in the Democratic Party could expedite the adoption of the legislation in both chambers.