House China Task Force Offers Assistance to President Biden to Tackle China Challenge

WASHINGTON, DC — Earlier this month, President Biden announced the formation of a Defense Department task force to address the China challenge. In response, the House China Task Force, formed last year, reached out to the president and his task force to offer their assistance. The House China Task Force released a report last year with more than 400 policy recommendations for how to confront the generational threat posed by China.

“Addressing the generational threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is not a Republican issue or a Democrat issue — it’s an American issue,” the lawmakers wrote. “And we stand ready to work with you to hold them accountable for their malign actions. Our report, which was released last September included more than 400 policy recommendations on how the U.S. can better combat the threat of the CCP. Two-thirds of the legislative recommendations were bipartisan, and overall, more than a quarter of the recommendations have already become law or have been implemented by the previous administration. Our hope is this report will serve as an action plan that will help shape America’s foreign policy toward China for years to come –and also as a guide for the DoD’s China Task Force. “

The letter was also sent to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense Ely Ratner, Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen, and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas.

The lawmakers who sent the letter are:

Kevin McCarthy, Republican Leader

Michael McCaul, Chairman

Adam Kinzinger

Andy Barr

Chris Stewart

Elise Stefanik

Darin LaHood

Jim Banks

Liz Cheney

John Curtis

Mike Gallagher

Anthony Gonzalez

John Joyce

Guy Reschenthaler

Michael Waltz

The full text of the letter can be found here and below:

Dear President Biden,

We were pleased to see your announcement on the formation of a Department of Defense China Task Force and want to offer our assistance as your efforts begin by briefing you and your team on the China Task Force Report we released last year. Addressing the generational threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is not a Republican issue or a Democrat issue — it’s an American issue. And we stand ready to work with you to hold them accountable for their malign actions.

For more than 40 years, the United States has sought to draw the People’s Republic of China into the family of nations as a responsible stakeholder. This engagement strategy often turned a blind eye to the CCP’s human rights violations, economic malfeasance, expansionist aggression, and empty promises. This strategy — embraced by both Republicans and Democrats — simply put, has failed. To this day, the core CCP threats largely remain the same, but are more aggressive, more expansive, more sophisticated, and better resourced.

In response to the multifaceted and growing threat the CCP poses to our national and economic security, we formed our own China Task Force (CTF) last year to address the CCP’s malign campaign for global and military dominance.

Our CTF was comprised of 15 Members of Congress, representing 11 House committees: Foreign Affairs, Armed Services, Judiciary, Ways & Means, Financial Services, Energy & Commerce, Science, Space & Technology, Education & Labor, Homeland Security, Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and Appropriations. We were tasked with identifying the primary challenges posed by the CCP and developing recommendations for addressing them. Over the course of six months, the China Task Force conducted over 60 briefings with government officials, private sector leaders and outside experts on both sides of the aisle to develop long-term, bipartisan solutions to best counter the CCP. These briefings even included an informative engagement with Ely Ratner, who will be leading the DoD task force, while he served as the Center for a New American Security’s Executive Vice President.

Our report, which was released last September included more than 400 policy recommendations on how the U.S. can better combat the threat of the CCP. Two-thirds of the legislative recommendations were bipartisan, and overall, more than a quarter of the recommendations have already become law or have been implemented by the previous administration. Our hope is this report will serve as an action plan that will help shape America’s foreign policy toward China for years to come –and also as a guide for the DoD’s China Task Force.

The time to act is now because our national and economic security depends on what happens in the coming months and years. We have been encouraged by many of the public statements from your key foreign policy leaders regarding China, including Secretary Blinken confirming his belief the CCP is committing genocide in Xinjiang. We also appreciate you directly addressing our nation’s fundamental concerns about Beijing’s coercive economic practices, their crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan, in your call with General Secretary Xi. Over the past few weeks, we have discussed our report with senior officials in your administration and would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you and your team to discuss our CTF report further and identify a path forward to work together on this most pressing of great power competitions.

Enclosed, please find a copy of the China Task Force Report.

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