Biden Says Chinese Communist Party Is Lobbying Against Competition Bill

President Joe Biden speaks to employees at Lockheed Martin, a facility that manufactures weapon systems such as Javelin anti-tank missiles, in Troy, Ala., on May 3, 2022. (Julie Bennett/Getty Images)

President Joe Biden said on May 3 that the Chinese regime is trying to influence the outcome of legislation aimed at bolstering U.S. competitiveness against Beijing.

“Fundamentally, this is a national security issue. This is one of the reasons why the Chinese Communist Party is lobbying folks to oppose this bill,” Biden said. “And it’s an issue that unites Democrats and Republicans. So let’s get it done.”

The House version of the bill was approved in February, on a mostly party-line 222–210 vote. In the following month, the Senate bill was passed in a 68–28 vote, with 27 of the 28 senators who voted against it being Republicans. The legislation is known as the COMPETES Act, with one of the key provisions being to provide billions to support the U.S. semiconductor industry.

Biden made the remarks in Troy, Alabama, during a tour of a plant belonging to U.S. defense giant Lockheed Martin. The rest of his remarks focused mainly on the Ukraine war.

To make his case about the need for the legislation, Biden pointed to how a single Javelin anti-tank missile requires 200 semiconductors. Ukrainian forces have used the missiles to fight back against the Russian invasion.

“That’s why we are making it as hard as we can for Russia to get a hold of semiconductors and advanced technologies that it could use to upgrade its military during this conflict, and why we’re taking steps to make it easier to source what we need here in the United States during a global semiconductor shortage,” Biden said.

Now, the two chambers of Congress will start negotiations to reconcile differences in the respective bills before a final version can be sent to the president’s desk.

The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment by press time.

The Chinese regime has publicly criticized the legislation. In February, Zhao Lijian, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, accused the United States of engaging in “hegemonic and bullying practice” through the legislation, when asked to comment on how the House bill was passed.

Some Republicans have voiced concerns about the bill, saying it fails to address challenges posed by China.

On May 3, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) issued a statement saying the measure has many shortcomings.

“The COMPETES Act is a perfect example of how a broken Washington tries and fails to solve problems,” he stated.

“Instead of combatting the threats posed by [Chinese leader] Xi Jinping and the evil Communist Chinese Party, the COMPETES Act recklessly wastes $250 billion we don’t have on Green New Deal policies, like the UN Green Climate Fund, wild handouts to universities partnering with Communist China and tech companies making record profits.”

Scott claims the bill would provide $8 billion to the U.N. Green Climate Fund. He said the bill also fails to hold China accountable for the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Reckless government spending like this fuels inflation. With prices skyrocketing and CPI at a 40-year high, American families can’t afford more failed policy and reckless spending from a broken Washington,” he stated. “I won’t stop fighting to defeat this bad bill.”