Sen. Josh Hawley said he is prepared to face the criticism that comes with denouncing the Chinese government for the role it played in the coronavirus pandemic.
Hawley joined Fox News’s Tucker Carlson this week and brushed off China’s threat to “sanction” him and the state of Missouri.
“I proposed legislation that would allow every American who has been hurt by this COVID pandemic that Beijing unleashed on the world — to allow every American to go to court who’s been hurt, hold the Chinese government accountable, and have the court freeze Chinese assets,” Hawley said Tuesday on Fox News. “I guess that makes me a target. I don’t care.”
#China has threatened to “sanction” me and punish Missouri for daring to stand up to them. News flash for Beijing: we are just getting started pic.twitter.com/Yd27AOHzor
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) May 20, 2020
In April, the Republican from Missouri announced he would introduce legislation seeking “justice” for people affected either medically or financially by the outbreak.
The bill targets China specifically.
“There is overwhelming evidence that the Chinese Communist Party’s lies, deceit, and incompetence caused COVID-19 to transform from a local disease outbreak into a global pandemic. We need an international investigation to learn the full extent of the damage the CCP has inflicted on the world and then we need to empower Americans and other victims around the world to recover damages. The CCP unleashed this pandemic,” Hawley said. “They must be held accountable to their victims.”
President Trump and other congressional Republicans have echoed Hawley’s sentiment, referring to the virus as the “China virus” and saying that the country caused needless suffering and death through a lack of transparency.
Chinese officials have accused U.S. government officials of using it as a scapegoat.
“We urge the U.S. to correct its mistake and stop its groundless accusations against China,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in late March.
Hawley said the coronavirus presents an opportunity for Congress to take a stronger stance against China.
“We are going to keep speaking the truth, and we are going to hold China accountable, and this is the time,” he said. “We have got to change our relationship with China. It is now or never.”
