In a move that is sure to please passionate Republican voters, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy announced the creation of the China Select Committee on Thursday.
The panel, which will be chaired by Rep. Mike Gallagher, will focus on pushing back against the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party to U.S. national security.
“The Chinese Communist Party is the greatest geopolitical threat of our lifetime,” McCarthy said. “We need a whole-of-government approach that will build on the efforts of the Republican-led China Task Force and ensure America is prepared to tackle the economic and security challenges posed by the CCP.”
Gallagher, who has served as a Marine Counterintelligence officer and has dedicated his time in Congress to understanding, educating, and defending America from the threat the CCP poses, is “exceptionally qualified” to lead the committee, according to McCarthy. Gallagher thanked McCarthy for the appointment and for his leadership on the issue of China.
“The greatest threat to the United States is the Chinese Communist Party,” Gallagher said. “The CCP continues to commit genocide, obscure the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, steal hundreds of billions of dollars worth of American intellectual property, and threaten Taiwan.”
The new committee will “push back in bipartisan fashion before it’s too late,” Gallagher said. “Even in a divided government, we have an opportunity to build a united front against CCP aggression.” When Republicans take the majority in January, the new committee will build on the work already done by the GOP China Task Force.
In a joint op-ed on Fox News Digital, McCarthy and Gallagher wrote that the first step in addressing the threat from China is restoring U.S. supply chains and ending “critical economic dependencies on China.
” The two also vowed to “expose our dangerous dependence on China and advance policies to build secure sources for critical supply chains, either in the United States or in partnership with like-minded allies.”
The committee is also expected to investigate the CCP’s attempts at infiltrating American institutions, such as schools and universities, and will look into the CCP’s exploitation of the United Nations and other international organizations.
It will also examine the role of Chinese-owned media outlets in the United States and their impact on American public opinion.
Overall, the China Select Committee is a much-needed step in holding the CCP accountable and protecting American national security. As McCarthy and Gallagher wrote, “the time-tested formula for victory—while deterring war—as President Reagan proved, is peace through strength.”
