"Confronting Threats Posed by the Chinese Communist Party to the U.S. Homeland" was a hearing broadcast March 9 presented by the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement and Intelligence.
Chairman August Pfluger (TX-11) recently introduced a bill alongside Sen. Marco Rubio that would sanction Chinese tech companies that provide equipment which the Chinese Communist Party uses to commit human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic groups, according to a March 1 release.
“The United States should not enable Chinese surveillance companies that help the Chinese Communist Party track and monitor dissidents, harvest genomic data and torture ethnic and religious minorities," Pfluger said in the release. "I am proud to work with Senator Rubio to introduce a bill that makes it clear that American companies will not be complicit in these atrocious human rights violations.”
The Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement and Intelligenceis comprised of Pfluger, who led the March 9 hearing, along with five Republican and two Democratic members. The subcommittee oversees the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, the Federal Protective Service, the Secret Service and several other agencies, according to its website.
The panel included William Evanina, founder and CEO of The Evanina Group; Lt. General Joseph T. Guastella, gopunder and CEO of JTG Advisory Services; Kari A. Bingen, Center for Strategic and International Studies Aerospace Security Project director; and Dr. Tyler Jost, assistant professor of political science and international and public affairs at Brown University, according to the hearing witness list.
Pfluger opened the hearing by stating the purpose of the meeting was to receive statements from expert witnesses in the security realm to educate efforts to mitigate threats posed by the Chinese Communist party to the U.S. homeland, according to the broadcast.
“Today's topic, China, in front of the homeland is an existential threat,” Evanina said during the broadcast. “It's the most complex, pernicious, aggressive, strategic threat our nation has ever faced. I proffer to the subcommittee that the US private sector and academia have become the geopolitical battle space for China."
"Xi Jinping has one goal, to be the geopolitical military and economic leader of the world period," Evanina continued, according to the broadcast. "Along with the Ministry of State Security, the People's Liberation Army, the United Front work department, they drive a comprehensive whole country approach to their efforts to invest, leverage, infiltrate, influence and steal from every corner, United States. We must approach this threat from the Communist Party of China with the same sense of urgency spending and strategy we have done for the past two decades to combat terrorism.”
Guastella expressed his deep concern about the threats of the Chinese Communist Party during the broadcast.
“Faith drives toward the U.S. homeland, especially in the military swim line,” Guastella said during the hearing. “And that's why events like this today are so important."
He reported his time with the U.S. Air Force helped him develop "a good understanding of the threat that China poses to the United States and the capabilities they use to achieve those objectives,” according to the broadcast.
Additionally, the Chinese surveillance balloon that flew across the U.S. in February sparked security concerns after the State Department confirmed it had the capability to collect intelligence, The Hill reported Feb. 9. The balloon, which was approximately the size of three school buses, had antennas and solar panels and could potentially gather more intelligence and take clearer pictures than a surveillance satellite.
