With Republicans taking over the House as the war in Ukraine drags on, financial and material aid to Ukraine could be in doubt, with Republican Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-20) being skeptical of additional Ukraine aid.[1] But Republicans are split on the issue. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has taken the opposite position, urging the Biden administration “to do more to supply the tools Ukraine needs to thwart Russian aggression.”[2]
With regard to China, the Biden administration has taken historic steps to increase US economic competitiveness, including tightening export controls of domestic semiconductors and building strong trade relations with other countries in the region.[3] [4]
Republicans in the 118th Congress hope to extend this adversarial position, with Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) declaring, “We will gradually end all imports from Communist China until a new regime honors basic human rights and freedoms.”
In the House, McCarthy wants to create a select committee on China to produce new policy plans and bipartisan legislation that will further establish the US’s competitive footing, as well as investigate the origins of COVID-19.[5] [6]
Key Issues In The 118th Congress
[1] “McCarthy on debt limit, immigration and Ukraine,” Punchbowl News, October 18, 2022, available at https://punchbowl.news/archive/101822-punchbowl-news-am/.
[2] Yasmeen Abutaleb & John Hudson, “Inside the growing Republican fissure on Ukraine aid,” Washington Post, October 31, 2022, available at https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/10/31/republican-split-on-ukraine-aid/.
[3] “FACT SHEET: In Asia, President Biden and a Dozen Indo-Pacific Partners Launch the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity,” The White House, May 23, 2022, available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/05/23/fact-sheet-in-asia-president-biden-and-a-dozen-indo-pacific-partners-launch-the-indo-pacific-economic-framework-for-prosperity/.
[4] “Commerce Implements New Export Controls on Advanced Computing and Semiconductor Manufacturing Items to the People’s Republic of China (PRC),” US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry & Security, October 7, 2022, available at https://www.bis.doc.gov/index.php/documents/about-bis/newsroom/press-releases/3158-2022-10-07-bis-press-release-advanced-computing-and-semiconductor-manufacturing-controls-final/file.
[5] Office of US Representative Kevin McCarthy, accessed April 7, 2022, available at https://www.republicanleader.gov/leader-mccarthy-announces-china-legislation-conferees/.
[6] Mike Dorning, “GOP Leader Pledges China Investigation if Republicans Win House,” Bloomberg, October 30, 2022, available at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-30/gop-leader-pledges-china-investigation-if-republicans-win-house.
