U.S. Reps. Max Rose (D-NY) Kendra Horn (D-OK), and Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) introduced legislation requiring the U.S. government to combat efforts by the Chinese government to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Preventing China from Exploiting COVID-19 Act requires the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to prepare an assessment on how the Chinese government has exploited or could exploit the pandemic to undermine the interests of the United States and its allies.
“From the opioid epidemic, to trade, to our intellectual property, China has a long history of trying to rip off America,” Rose, who sits on the House Committee on Homeland Security and is co-chair of the Blue Dog Task Force on National Security, said. “Why should we think the coronavirus pandemic would be any different? It’s not a question of if, but how China is going to use this crisis to its advantage—and we need to be working to prevent that.”
Horn, co-chair of the Blue Dog Task Force on National Security, said it is imperative to determine where the Chinese government has exploited COVID-19 and undermined the fight against the global pandemic.
“Where they’ve crossed the line, they must be held accountable,” Horn said.
Murphy points out that since the start of the pandemic, there has been a “pattern of alarming behavior” from the Chinese government.
“This bill would provide U.S. policymakers with an intelligence community assessment of the different ways the Chinese government may be seeking to exploit the pandemic. Armed with this information, we can hold the Chinese government accountable and protect American interests,” Murphy said.