Cotton: China Views ‘Corporate America as an Extension’ to Lobby Officials ‘for Pro-China Policies’

On Tuesday’s broadcast of Fox News Radio’s “Brian Kilmeade Show,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) said that China sees “corporate America as an extension of their own embassy or intelligence services to come lobby the Congress and lobby the administration and lobby governors for pro-China policies.” And warned that “Every elected official in America should be alert to the risk of Chinese meddling.”

Cotton said, “Every member of Congress has been targeted by Chinese intelligence in one way or another. I suspect that most people in Beijing don’t think they’re going to get very far with me. But that does not mean that Chinese intelligence isn’t targeting every member of Congress, and for that matter, every governor and Cabinet officials and future Cabinet officials for influence operations. Sometimes, those things can be very nefarious. Sometimes, they’re just as simple as dangling job prospects for one state in front of politicians or getting American businesses to come lobby senators and representatives for China-friendly policies. Every elected official in America should be alert to the risk of Chinese meddling.”

He added that China views “corporate America as an extension of their own embassy or intelligence services to come lobby the Congress and lobby the administration and lobby governors for pro-China policies. And, for too often, politicians in both parties succumbed to that.”

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