(The Center Square) – A Wisconsin congressman is warning about possible Chinese spying at the nation’s ports.
Republican Congressman Mike Gallagher, who leads the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, said his committee is looking into whether the Chinese are using giant port cranes to spy.
“Over the last eight months, the Committee on Homeland Security and the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party have been investigating critical vulnerabilities at U.S. seaports and exploring potential solutions to mitigate the extraordinary threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party,” Gallagher said in a statement.
Gallagher said the Department of Homeland Security is looking into possible vulnerabilities at the nation’s seaports, including whether the CCP is monitoring activity.
“The threats facing our seaports demand a whole-of-industry change in how we protect our port infrastructure, procure equipment and ensure the free flow of U.S. goods and services both domestically and abroad,” Gallagher said.
The Biden Administration this week unveiled the Supply Chain Resilience Center, which the White House says will “analyze vulnerabilities and conduct scenario planning with private sector stakeholders to help mitigate supply chain disruptions, ensure reliable and efficient deliveries of goods and services, and lower costs for the American people.”
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the nation’s supply chain is just as important as strategic oil reserves or other key, non-military assets.
“The global pandemic has revealed that the supply chains that Americans rely upon for food and essential other goods must be more robust and resilient. Conflict, political instability, and climate change could challenge our supply chains in the years ahead,” Myorkas said. “The Supply Chain Resilience Center will help American businesses and the federal government anticipate these disruptions and play a key role in the Biden-Harris Administration’s work to prevent them.”
Gallaggher said he has hopes, and worries, about the new SCRC.
“DHS must be diligent to ensure their Supply Chain Resilience Center follows through on its mission and does not just become another layer of bureaucracy with once-high ambitions,” Gallagher added. “The CCP, in particular, represents an existential threat to U.S. security, and will use every lever of power to gain an advantage over the United States and our partners and allies.”
