House Passes Bill Targeting Universities’ Ties To Chinese Influence Hubs

The House of Representatives passed legislation targeting universities for maintaining partnerships with Chinese government-backed entities, including Confucius Institutes, in a bipartisan manner 266 to 153 on Wednesday afternoon.

Fifty-five House Democrats backed Texas Republican Rep. August Pfluger’s bill, which would restrict Department of Homeland Security funding to universities that have partnerships with “a Chinese entity of concern” or Confucius Institute, a Chinese government-backed organization. Lawmakers across both parties have accused Confucius Institutes of disseminating Chinese Communist Party (CCP) propaganda and conducting espionage at American universities.

“In no world should our adversaries have a taxpayer funded front-row seat in our university’s classrooms,” Pfluger told the DCNF. “Under the guise of promoting Chinese language and culture, Confucius Institutes have spent years propagandizing the future leaders of our country, stealing criticalresearch, committing transnational repression, and much more. The passage of my legislation today is a hugevictory for our national security and for the protection of the future generations of Americans.”

Confucius Institutes promote CCP propaganda and a positive image of China around the world under the pretext of advancing Chinese language and culture. Critics of the alleged Chinese influence hubs have also argued