新闻来源：www.nytimes.com
原文地址：Why House Republicans Are Targeting China Weeks Before the Election
新闻日期：2024-09-12
美国众议院本周采取了几项对中国的强硬立法措施，但这些法案很可能不会最终成为法律，因为共和党领导人选择优先处理几个具有政治分歧性的议题，而民主党人对此表示反对。
众议院领导人数月来曾许诺为美国最大的经济和军事竞争对手中国打造一个两党的合力，包括限制敏感行业的中国投资、加强数据窃取和间谍活动，并确保更多中国的进口商品要缴纳税款或符合劳工标准。但本周只有部分提案得以通过。相反，共和党人增加了几项具有政治分歧性的措施，试图展现自己在应对中国的力度上更强，而民主党人和拜登政府则被认为较为软弱。
这一事件发生在选举前的数周。众议院议长、来自路易斯安那州的米克·约翰逊（Mike Johnson）对记者说：“由于白宫选择不对中国进行有效对抗并保护美国利益，因此众议院共和党将如此行事。”
以下是众议院的具体行动及其原因：
共和党人因批评世界卫生组织应对新冠病毒疫情的表现，推动了一项要求参议院批准世卫组织关于大流行病准备的协议的法案。
众议员、来自弗吉尼亚州的鲍勃·格奥尔吉（Bob Good）在辩论中表示：“这无非是一个由左翼精英进行的国际权力 Grab，他们恨美国，想侵犯个人隐私，并试图攻击美国自我治理和自治的基本原则。”
除了4名民主党人外，所有其他民主党人都反对这项措施，最终以219票对199票获得通过。民主党人认为美国必须与世卫组织合作以防止下一次大流行病的发生。
两党在一项旨在复活并重塑司法部的“中国倡议”措施上存在分歧。“中国倡议”是特朗普时期的计划，旨在遏制在中国境内的间谍活动。拜登政府于2022年结束了这一计划，称其在针对华裔美国人方面不够公平。
民主党人认为该计划让一些有才华的中国工程师和研究人员不愿前往美国公司或大学工作，但共和党人表示没有证据表明它导致了对华裔美国人有任何偏见。
该措施最终以237票对180票获得通过，其中23名民主党人和支持所有共和党人的意见。
只有7名民主党人支持一项禁止购买含有中国、俄罗斯、朝鲜或伊朗制造或组装部件的电动汽车的人享受税收抵免的法案。民主党人认为这项措施会削弱拜登政府让美国过渡到更清洁车辆的努力。
数十名民主党人与自己的政党分道扬镳，支持共和党的两项法案：限制农业用地出售给来自俄罗斯、中国、朝鲜和伊朗的外国国民，并扣留某些参与北京支持的研究机构合作的大学的联邦资金。55名民主党人与所有但一名共和党人共同支持了农田措施。批评人士警告称这可能会导致将移民视为国家安全威胁。
众议员马克·塔卡诺（Mark Takano）表示：“这为仅仅因为他们的国籍而将移民视为国家安全问题开了绿灯。”
36名民主党人支持共和党的另一项法案：限制联邦资金向与北京支持的研究机构合作的大学提供。该法案由来自德克萨斯州的众议员奥古斯·普弗勒格（August Pfluger）提出，他指控孔子学院在美进行广泛的军事间谍活动。
两党议员共同支持了《生物安全法》：该法案禁止联邦资金支持收集美国人基因数据的生物技术公司。此外，还一致通过了一项关于防止使用由中国制造商大疆科技（DJI Technologies）生产的无人机监控设备、阻止国土安全部采购中国制造的电池以及加强出口管制的措施。
众议院议长约翰逊表示今年夏天，众议院有望处理两个尚未通过的宏大措施：限制向敏感中国的行业进行境外投资和降低适用进口自北京的商品征收税费和强制劳工标准的门槛（即最小阈值规则）。目前关于限制出境投资的倡议在众外事务委员会与金融服务委员会之间存在执法机制上的分歧。而关于最小阈值规则的立法则受到了航运公司和零售商等重要收入来源来自较便宜中国商品的企业大力游说反对。
“‘中国周’对中国来说显得有些弱。”来自伊利诺伊州的民主党人、中国小组排名成员拉贾·克里希南穆提（Raja Krishnamoorthi）表示：“这个包裏子所欠缺的是什么，就是其中的内容。”
众议院本周通过了几项对中国的强硬立法措施，但由于共和党人在优先处理几个具有政治分歧性的议题上采取了行动，这些法案很可能不会最终成为法律。
原文摘要：
The House this week tackled a long-promised package of bills to get tough on China, but few if any have a chance of becoming law after Republicans opted to prioritize a handful of politically divisive measures that Democrats oppose.For months, House leaders had promised a bipartisan show of force against the United States’ biggest economic and military adversary, including curtailing investments in sensitive Chinese industries, clamping down on data theft and espionage, and ensuring more Chinese imports were subject to taxes and forced labor standards.But only some of those proposals made it to the floor this week. Instead, Republican leaders added a handful of partisan measures that appear to be aimed at portraying their party as stronger on countering China and Democrats, including the Biden administration, as weak.It comes weeks before the elections in which the White House and control of Congress are up for grabs.“Because the White House has chosen not to confront China and protect America’s interests, House Republicans will,” Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, told reporters on Tuesday.Here’s a look at what the House did, and why.Republicans, who have castigated the World Health Organization for its response to the coronavirus pandemic, pushed through a bill that would require Senate ratification of any W.H.O. agreement on pandemic preparedness.“This is nothing more than an international power grab by leftist elitists who hate America, want to infringe upon individual privacy and seek to attack the fundamental principles of American self-governance and self-determination,” Representative Bob Good, Republican of Virginia, said during the debate.All but four Democrats opposed the measure, which passed by a vote of 219 to 199, arguing that the United States must work with the W.H.O. to prevent the next pandemic.The two parties also largely split over a measure to revive and rebrand the Justice Department’s “China Initiative,” a Trump-era program that sought to curb Chinese espionage in the United States. The Biden administration ended the program in 2022 amid complaints that it had been used unfairly to target people of Chinese descent.Democrats argued that the program had discouraged talented Chinese engineers and researchers from moving to American companies and universities, but Republicans said there was no evidence that it had led to any bias or prejudice against people of Chinese descent.The measure passed 237 to 180, with 23 Democrats and all Republicans in support.Only seven Democrats joined Republicans to support a bill to bar people who purchase electric vehicles that contain parts made or assembled by an entity of China, Russia, North Korea or Iran from receiving tax credits.Democrats argued that the measure would undermine the Biden administration’s efforts to transition the country to cleaner vehicles.Dozens of Democrats broke with their party and supported Republican bills that would restrict the sale of agricultural land to foreign nationals from Russia, China, North Korea and Iran, and would withhold certain federal funds from universities partnering with Beijing-backed research institutes.Fifty-five Democrats joined all but one Republican to endorse the farmland measure, which critics warned could lead to scapegoating immigrants.“This opens the door to treating immigrants as national security threats solely because of their country of origin,” said Representative Mark Takano, Democrat of California.Thirty-six Democrats joined Republicans to support a measure restricting federal funding for universities that partner with Confucius Institutes, which Representative August Pfluger, Republican of Texas, charged have conducted “widespread military espionage inside the United States.”Lawmakers in both parties banded together on the Biosecure Act, which would bar federal support for biotechnology companies that collect Americans’ genetic data.There was also unanimous support for bills to prevent the use of drone surveillance equipment produced by DJI Technologies, a Chinese manufacturer that the U.S. government has accused of conducting widespread human rights abuses and providing sensitive data to Beijing; to prevent the purchase of Chinese-made batteries by the Department of Homeland Security; and to beef up export controls.Mr. Johnson signaled this summer that the House could tackle two ambitious measures that did not make it to the floor this week: a bill to restrict outbound investments in sensitive Chinese sectors and another to lower the price threshold at which imports from Beijing are subject to taxes and forced labor standards, known as de minimis rules.The outbound investment initiative is mired in a standoff between the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Financial Services Committee about enforcement mechanisms. The legislation addressing de minimis rules has run into an onslaught of lobbying from shipping companies and retailers that generate significant revenue from cheaper Chinese goods.“China Week is weak on China,” said Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, Democrat of Illinois and the ranking member of the China panel. “What’s weak about this package is what’s not in there.”
