Republican senators want President Trump to impose sanctions on China to hold the country accountable for the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
Sens. Lindsay Graham of South Carolina, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, Mike Braun of Indiana, Rick Scott of Florida, Steve Daines of Montana, Todd Young of Indiana, Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, and Roger Wicker of Mississippi co-sponsored a bill that would authorize the president to impose a series of penalties against China if the country does not fully cooperate with any investigation into the COVID-19 virus outbreak, which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan, led by the United States and its allies or a United Nations affiliate, such as the World Health Organization.
“I’m convinced that without Chinese Communist Party deception the virus would not be here in the United States,” Graham said in press release on Tuesday. “This hard-hitting piece of legislation will sanction China until they cooperate with investigators. We must determine how the virus came about and take steps, like closing the wet markets, to ensure it never happens again. It’s time we push back against China and hold them accountable.”
The South Carolina Republican has been an outspoken critic of China, accusing its government for allowing the spread of coronavirus by withholding information about its origin.
The U.S. intelligence community reportedly believes the Chinese Communist Party downplayed the severity of the initial coronavirus outbreak and that China continues to mislead about the infection rate and death toll inside the country. Beijing has denied orchestrating a cover-up of its coronavirus response.
Last month, Graham called China the “largest state sponsor of pandemics” and agreed with the idea that China should pay by giving up some of the debt the U.S. owes the country. This happened after Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, said he would introduce a bill to sanction Chinese officials involved in “the ongoing suppression of medical experts, journalists, and political dissidents, amid Chinese censorship of its citizens that is helping to fuel the global pandemic of the coronavirus.”
Under the new legislation, the COVID-19 Accountability Act, Trump would be required to make a certification to Congress within 60 days that China must provide full accountability in investigations, close all operating wet markets that have been accused of contributing to the spread of the coronavirus, and release all Hong Kong pro-democracy advocates who had been arrested following the coronavirus lockdowns.
Without congressional certification, Trump would be authorized to impose sanctions such as asset freezes, travel bans, visa revocations, prohibit Chinese firms from being listed on U.S. stock exchanges, and restrict U.S. financial institutions from making loans or underwriting to Chinese businesses.
According to reports, the Trump administration is preparing to accuse Chinese Communist Party-backed hackers and spies of attempting to steal U.S. research into potential vaccines and treatments for the virus.
The public warning is expected to come within a couple of days from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security. The warning will state that Chinese actors are targeting intellectual property and public health data through illicit means related to vaccines, treatments, and testing.
