Moolenaar Warns of CCP Influence After California Mayor Charged in Foreign Influence Plot

This week, Arcadia, California Mayor Eileen Wang was charged by the Department of Justice with acting as an illegal agent of China.

“These charges highlight the very real threat of the Chinese Communist Party’s attempts to influence our free and open society. While it denies freedom and liberty for the Chinese people, the CCP is actively working to subvert our institutions and divide us against one another. In this case, an elected mayor acted at the direction of CCP handlers, coordinated with Chinese intelligence-linked individuals, and used a local ‘news’ platform to spread CCP propaganda, all while hiding those ties from the public. Communities across the country should demand transparency from United Front-tied organizations and sever links with sister cities in China because those relationships are used to spread CCP propaganda and influence in America,” said Chairman John Moolenaar of the Select Committee on China.

The Select Committee on China has launched multiple investigations into how the Chinese Communist Party uses United Front networks to exert overt and covert influence and conduct propaganda in the United States, including alleged coordination with tax-exempt nonprofits engaged in prohibited political activity and foreign-directed advocacy. Chairman Moolenaar has also scrutinized groups such as the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, China-U.S. Exchange Foundation, U.S.-based hometown associations, and the United States Heartland China Association, among other entities, over their direct ties to the CCP or with Party-linked entities. This scrutiny is part of the Committee’s broader effort to expose, disrupt, and deter foreign malign influence operations targeting American institutions.