Wuhan Lab, Fentanyl And Nuclear Weapons: Defense Bill Takes Aim At China, But Leaves Out Key Restrictions – By Arjun Singh (Daily Caller) / Dec 8, 2023
- The National Defense Authorization Act for 2024 includes several measures to counter Chinese influence but dropped many others.
- Items in the bill include investigations into whether defense funds were used by the Wuhan Institute of Virology, whether the Chinese government has supported Mexican drug cartels and requires the U.S. to delist China as a “developing country,” while items excluded range from studies of China’s role in Africa to an export ban on weapons to Hong Kong.
- “[N]o compromise with the Democrat-led Senate and White House would be perfect,” wrote House Speaker Mike Johnson in a letter to his colleagues.
Congress’ compromise version of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2024 (NDAA) takes aim at China by scrutinizing its relationships with Mexican drug cartels and Russia while also leaving out key restrictions.
High-ranking officials in both major political parties have often stated that countering China’s rise is America’s top foreign policy priority. On Dec. 6, Congressional leaders issued a 3,093-page report with a compromise version of the NDAA, which includes several measures to counter Chinese influence but dropped dozens of others — such a extending a ban on weapons exports and studies of China’s influence abroad — that were included in the House’s version.
“We succeeded in reducing extraneous provisions hitching a ride to the NDAA, which is evidenced by the fact that the final bill is 2,100 pages shorter than last year. While no compromise with the Democrat-led Senate and White House would be perfect, the final product includes meaningful changes,” wrote House Speaker Mike Johnson in a letter to congressional colleagues shared with the Daily Caller News Foundation. “[O]ur conferees for the National Defense Authorization Act have reached an agreement with their Senate counterparts that delivers on our promise to focus the bill on core national defense priorities.”
