State lawmakers must lead fight to thwart threat from Communist China

Every facet of American life is being infected with unprecedented Communist Chinese influence.

Whether it’s America’s farmers, small business owners, students, or Border Patrol agents, Americans face a record number of Chinese nationals illegally coming across the U.S. border. It is clear that the CCP is continuing their strategy to infiltrate American life and culture.

China now owns 349,442 acres of U.S. agricultural land, up 82% from three years prior.

In July, a Chinese national was arrested in New York City and indicted for importing "enough fentanyl precursor chemicals from China to kill millions of Americans." He was charged with selling more than "2,000 kilograms of fentanyl precursors."

HERE'S WHAT US MUST DO NOW TO DETER CHINA MILITARY THREAT

And Communist China is influencing our state capitals, too. In 2017, the California legislature poured cold water on a symbolic resolution criticizing the religious persecution of Falun Gong members after Chinese officials sent a letter saying the resolution could damage China-California relations. 

The list of examples is growing every day, and the threat is growing while politicians sit idly by. We can no longer rely on Washington to stop the Communist threat. We need state leaders from across the country to protect Americans from the growing threat of Communist ideas — before it’s too late. 

Americans are increasingly concerned by the growing Communist China threat. New polling shows that China is viewed by American voters as the top foreign threat to the U.S., with 78% of general election voters and 86% of Republicans agreeing that China is a top threat to the United States.

CHINESE THREAT IS HERE, BUT NOT EVERYONE IN CONGRESS WANTS TO TALK ABOUT IT

Americans realize that our infrastructure and supply chains are under assault. Chinese Communist Party officials regularly lobby local politicians and leverage influence, food security, state subsidies and American farmland. 

Americans overwhelmingly support legislative proposals that stop this threat, including intercepting fentanyl and banning Chinese companies found to import drugs, combating China’s efforts to steal American intellectual property, banning Chinese influence on state and local politics, prohibiting Chinese nationals from buying farmland, and cracking down on illegal immigration.

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These findings also show that there are electoral consequences for lawmakers who fail to take action. Specifically, the issue of outsourcing our food supply could play a major role in upcoming elections: 52% of general election voters and 54% of Republicans say they would be more likely to oppose a candidate who voted to outsource U.S. food supply to China.

Americans are worried about Communist China’s threat to our food supply, infrastructure, economy and culture — and rightly so. 

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We must act now to stop them, and it starts with state leaders who will recognize and respond to China's threats by: 

• Protecting U.S. agriculture, farmland, and food supply
• Defending American political independence and stopping attempts to lobby state and local politicians
• Promoting American jobs and American industry
• Keeping Chinese technology out of state government
• Guaranteeing "Made in the USA" infrastructure
• Maintaining independence in higher education
• Safeguarding national security and stopping Chinese nationals from invading our border

It will take us all to protect our freedoms, our values and our identity — and it starts with leaders in the states. Join us at the Protecting America Initiative to support state lawmakers in the fight to protect our country from Communist China’s ideology.

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Lee Zeldin, a Republican who formerly represented New York's 1st Congressional District, is a senior adviser to the Protecting America Initiative.