US House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday pledged to push through more China-targeted legislation before House members stand for re-election in November.
America’s top-ranking Republican said the measures could further restrict outbound investments in China, close a trade loophole for small parcels from the mainland and yield a biosecurity act prohibiting federal contracting with the country’s biotech firms.
“China poses the greatest threat to global peace. Congress must keep our focus on countering China with every tool at our disposal,” said Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, in remarks at the Hudson Institute, a Washington-based think tank.
The goal was to have the package of China-related legislation signed into law by the end of this year, he said.
“We will work aggressively toward that package. I am very hopeful that much of this can be bipartisan.”
“Beijing is our number-one foreign threat,” he said on Monday. “They exploit every nook and cranny in our financial and economic systems.”
Johnson said he would continue the work of the House select committee on China in the next Congress.
The House was also working on a measure to restrict outbound investments in China, he added, noting it was slated to move this autumn.
The House would also vote on the Biosecure Act meant to “halt federal contracts with biotech companies that are beholden to adversaries and endanger Americans’ healthcare debt”, Johnson said.
“That will help stymie China’s attempts to exploit American trade,” Johnson added.
The long-time American trade provision allows companies to ship packages worth under US$800 to the US without paying tariffs. According to data cited by the House Ways and Means committee, 60 per cent of de minimis entries come from China.
China has witnessed a boom in small-item trade as sellers send parcels with a few items directly from local factories to shoppers overseas.
