House Pushes to Resurrect China Initiative

September 18, 2024

By Lindsay McKenzie

The House approved legislation last week that would reinstate the Department of Justice’s controversial China Initiative over the objections of critics who argue it was biased against Asian American academics. The bill passed on a vote of 237-180, with support from 214 Republicans and 23 Democrats.

The Protect America’s Innovation and Economic Security from CCP Act would require the DOJ to launch a “CCP Initiative” that aims to “curb spying by the Chinese Communist Party on United States intellectual property and academic institutions,” among other goals.

The legislation is unlikely to advance in the Democrat-controlled Senate, where the companion bill has only Republican cosponsors. In addition, the White House issued a statement strongly opposing the bill last week, stating it “could give rise to incorrect and harmful public perceptions that DOJ applies a different standard to investigate and prosecute criminal conduct related to the Chinese people or to American citizens of Chinese descent.”

The original China Initiative, launched during the Trump administration in 2018, aimed to prevent espionage by the Chinese government at U.S. academic institutions and businesses. However, critics of the program argue it disproportionately investigated academics of Asian descent and often pursued flimsy charges of grant fraud, many of which were dropped or overturned.

During the Biden administration, DOJ discontinued the China Initiative label on the grounds it had created a “perception” of bias that had a chilling effect on the research community. In its place, DOJ has pursued a prosecution strategy focused on a broader array of nation-state threats and has more frequently delegated enforcement responsibilities to federal science agencies.

Multiple Asian American advocacy groups issued statements expressing their dismay at the passage of the House bill.

“This bill would essentially re-establish the DOJ’s harmful and ineffective China Initiative, in all but name,” said Joanna Derman, director of anti-racial profiling, civil rights, and national security for Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, in an email. “Instead of reviving a program that we know led to the racial profiling of Asian immigrant and Asian American scientists, we should be discussing policy solutions that would actually attract and retain top talent in critical STEM fields,” Derman continued.

Last week’s vote is not the first time that the House has attempted to reinstate the China Initiative — a similar provision is in the House’s appropriations bill for DOJ. Various advocacy groups representing Asian Americans, such as the Asian-American Scholar Forum and Stop AAPI Hate, have called for Congress to remove the provision from the final version of the appropriations bill.

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