High-ranking alumni of some of the most powerful congressional offices in the country have lobbied on behalf of companies controlled or greatly influenced by the Chinese military, disclosures show.
Former congressional staffers with ties to powerful members of Congress, like Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Republican House Whip Steve Scalise, have worked to influence policy on behalf of Pentagon-designated “Chinese military companies” like DJI, BGI and Huawei. Chinese military companies are those the Department of Defense (DOD) has determined are “directly or indirectly owned, controlled or beneficially owned by” the Chinese military, as well as those that contribute to China’s military-industrial complex.
“If a lobbying firm chooses to represent a Chinese Military Company then they should be barred from representing any companies that contract with the DOD,” New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “It is disgraceful that American citizens are working to advance the modernization efforts of Communist Chinese military technology that could one day be used against our service members.”
Lobbyists will often leverage relationships they developed while working on Capitol Hill, including with members of Congress, to advance the interests of their clients. A 2012 study conducted by a trio of economists found that lobbyists who had previously worked in the Senate saw an immediate 24% drop in generated revenue after their former boss left office, indicating that lobbyists can sell access to their former bosses.
Nick Sutter, for instance, spent seven years working for Democratic Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell between 2011 and 2018, plus an additional nine months in Schumer’s office. Now, Sutter is an associate at Steptoe LLP, a large corporate influence shop in D.C., and lobbied on behalf of the Chinese military company BGI Group in 2023, disclosures show. Cantwell serves as the chairwoman of the powerful Senate Commerce Committee.
BGI has worked with the Chinese military on research ranging from neuroscience to respiratory disease and U.S. intelligence officials believe the company could enable the Chinese government to collect genetic information on people across the globe, Reuters reported. Sutter lobbied for BGI on a bill recently passed by a bipartisan majority in the House that blacklists the genomics company over concerns it may share information about Americans with China, according to disclosures.
Sutter did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
Many prominent lobbying firms in D.C. have cut ties with companies linked to China’s government and armed forces as lawmakers place increased scrutiny on Chinese influence.
“Granting lobbyists for Chinese military companies access to our highest offices jeopardizes American interests and compromises our legislative integrity,” Republican Florida Sen. Marco Rubio told the DCNF. “Allowing these lobbyists to shape policy puts our nation at risk.”
Keith Castaldo, meanwhile, served in the office of New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand for roughly eight and a half years, leaving her staff after reaching the position of general counsel. Now, Castaldo is a senior vice president at Avoq, another large lobbying outfit, where disclosures show he worked as a lobbyist for DJI, a Chinese military company specializing in drones, as recently as this year, disclosures show.
The Treasury and Commerce Departments have sanctioned DJI for providing drones to the Chinese government to use in its domestic surveillance operations and independent researchers have found that the app used to control DJI’s drones collects large quantities of personal data that the Chinese government could potentially access, according to The New York Times. Castaldo, alongside a coalition of other lobbyists and activists, was paid by DJI to fight the Countering CCP Drones Act, legislation recently approved by the House that would effectively ban the use of DJI drones in American airspace.
Castaldo could not be reached for comment.
Chad Sydnor, former counsel for Republican Arkansas Sen. John Boozman, Kelley Hudak, former coalitions director for Scalise and Julie Rokala, Democratic California Rep. Doris Matsui’s former chief of staff, all lobbied for DJI while working for Cassidy & Associates in 2022, disclosures show. Avery Eagan, who previously worked as a legislative correspondent for Republican Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, and Brian Darling, former counsel and senior communications director for Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, also lobbied for DJI while working for the Vogel Group and Liberty Government Affairs, respectively.
“DJI produces the most capable drones on the market,” Darling told the DCNF. “They are high-quality and cost-effective, therefore are trusted by American first responders, farmers and small businesses. These groups would be disadvantaged by protectionist moves to ban the product from the U.S. I am proud of my work for the successful and innovative commercial drone maker embraced by American consumers.”
Rokala did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment. Eagen could not be reached.
Hudak, who is listed as lobbying for DJI on multiple disclosures, told the DCNF that she didn’t work on the drone manufacturer’s account while at Cassidy & Associates. Sydnor, a senior vice president at the firm, confirmed that Hudak did not work on DJI’s account and stressed that Cassidy & Associates’ work with DJI occurred nearly three years ago.
“I don’t recall why she was ever listed to begin with,” Sydnor said of Hudak.
Spokespeople for Scalise, Barrasso and Democratic Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin all distanced the congressmen from their former staffers-turned lobbyists.
“He does not enjoy privileged access to Sen. Durbin or the Senate Democrats as a result of his work history,” Durbin’s deputy chief of staff for communications Emily Hampsten told the DCNF. “Sen. Durbin has never ‘endorsed’ a former staffers’ lobbying activities.”
Hampsten was referencing Brian McLaughlin, who worked in Durbin’s office as the “primary staff member on a portfolio of issues of technology, homeland security, government reform, procurement and related appropriations” in 2005, according to his LinkedIn profile. McLaughlin is now a Founding Partner at the government relations firm Imperium Global Advisors and has represented Futurewei, a subsidiary of the Chinese telecom giant Huawei, as a lobbyist, according to disclosures. McLaughlin also lobbied directly for Huawei in 2023.
A 2019 study found “strong evidence” that Huawei worked with the Chinese communist party on research and espionage while a Washington Post investigation revealed that the Chinese government has used the corporation’s equipment in its forced labor camps. Futurewei attempted to distance itself from its parent company in 2019 but was ultimately barred from receiving government contracts in 2020 over national security concerns.
McLaughlin did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
Scalise’s communications director, meanwhile, stressed that neither the congressman nor his staff had ever met with lobbyists from Cassidy & Associates and that he had helped advance the Countering CCP Drones Act.
Connections lobbyists maintain with their former coworkers in Congress result in increased revenue for their lobbying firm, according to a 2018 study.
“Offices and individuals with access to privileged information are a high intelligence gathering and influence priority for China’s security state,” Steve Yates, a senior research fellow for China and national security at The Heritage Foundation, told the DCNF. “A simple rule of thumb for responsible Congressional staff, if the content and appearance of communication with Chinese military entities would raise a red flag for security clearance review, then meeting with said entity’s lobbyist should too”
The offices of Gillibrand, Cantwell, Matsui, Schumer, Paul, and Boozman did not respond to the DCNF’s requests for comment. Avoq, Steptoe, Imperium Global Advisors, Liberty Government Affairs, Vogel and Cassidy & Associates also did not return requests for comment.
Featured Image: REUTERS/Lam Yik
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