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Rep. Clyburn refuses to comment on State Dept. saying China is committing ‘genocide’ against Uighur Muslims

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Following the U.S. State Department on Tuesday publicly accusing China of committing “genocide” against Uighur Muslims in the Xinjiang region, House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) refused to comment on the declaration issued by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, saying he doesn’t “react to the headlines.”

When asked for his reaction to the declaration during a Fox News interview, Clyburn said: “I try to stay out of these foreign affairs matters. I have not made that a particular endeavor of mine in the Congress. I listen to these things and I usually reserve comment when they are bordering on international issues, and I will today as well.”

Fox News anchor Sandra Smith then asked if he supported the declaration, to which Clyburn replied, “I don’t react to the headlines,” going on to complain about how politics is too soundbite-driven, eventually saying, “I’ll have to see with the substance of [the declaration] is.”

Smith offered some more context about the declaration to South Carolina Democrat, bringing up President-elect Joe Biden‘s treasury nominee Janet Yellen who said on Tuesday at her confirmation hearing that China is guilty of “horrendous human rights abuses” when she was asked if President Xi Jinping committed genocide.

Smith then asked Clyburn the same question and he reiterated that he’s going to “stay out” of international affairs. He also said that Pompeo “has not been one of my favorite people” and criticized the departing secretary of state for making such a move on his last day of office.

Smith pressed Clyburn some more, asking him if he thinks President Xi and China committed genocide.

“You can ask me as many times as you wish,” he replied. “I’m going to wait to see what an administration I trust, what conclusions they come up with. I’m not going to pass judgment on that.”

The statement from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo comes less than 24 hours before Biden becomes president, making this declaration one of Pompeo’s final acts as secretary of state. His statement also forces the incoming president to decide whether or not to maintain the declaration.

In the statement published Tuesday, Pompeo accused the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) of committing “crimes against humanity against the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and other members of ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang” as far back as March 2017.

These crimes, the United States’ chief diplomat said, include “the arbitrary imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty of more than one million civilians, forced sterilization, torture of a large number of those arbitrarily detained, forced labor, and the imposition of draconian restrictions on freedom of religion or belief, freedom of expression, and freedom of movement.”

Moreover, Pompeo’s move is the latest in a series of actions against China by the Trump administration, with tensions between the U.S. and China having escalated over the past year.

You can follow Douglas Braff on Twitter @Douglas_P_Braff.

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Electric Vehicle company with Chinese ties awarded $500 million of taxpayer money for 2nd U.S. plant

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With a little help from their Democrat friends, a Chinese electric vehicle (EV) battery company with ties to the Chinese Communist Party just announced the opening of its second plant in the United States.

Fox News reports Gotion Inc., whose parent company Gotion High-Tech is based in Hefei, China, unveiled plans to build a $2 billion lithium battery plant in Manteno, Illinois, alongside Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who cheered the project.

The announcement comes amid growing opposition to the company’s plans to build a billion-dollar factory in Mecosta County, Michigan.

In order to make the expansion happen, lobbyists for the Chinese Communist Party-tied electric vehicle company funneled cash to Democrats. “Individuals at a law firm registered as foreign agents to lobby on behalf of Gotion, a Chinese electric vehicle battery company developing a controversial project in Michigan, and wired campaign contributions to several top Democrats” reports Fox News.

“According to state and federal filings, Monique Field-Foster, an attorney at the Lansing office of the Warner Norcross + Judd law firm who is acting as a foreign agent on behalf of Gotion, donated to the campaigns of Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Whitmer’s sister Liz Gereghty and Michigan Democratic Senate hopeful Rep. Elissa Slotkin” the Fox News report continued.

“In partnership with the business community and the General Assembly, two years ago we set out to make Illinois a destination for electric vehicle and clean energy companies from across the globe,” Pritzker said in a statement.

“With the right incentives, nation-leading infrastructure, world-class workforce and booming clean energy production, we have transformed ourselves into an attractive location for global manufacturers. Today, we take another leap forward. It’s my pleasure to welcome Gotion to Illinois and to show the world yet again that Illinois is ready to be a player on the world stage.”

Pritzker delivered remarks late last week thanking Gotion for choosing Illinois to call “home” in a ceremony with leaders from Gotion High-Tech, including Li Zhen, the company’s chairman and president, who said he expected the factory to open in less than 12 months.

“All that we see here [in Illinois] are of enormous value to us: an enabling business environment, a supportive state government for the new energy industry and their highly efficient work, as well as the prospects of the State of Illinois in the coming years,” the Gotion president added. “We believe that Gotion’s battery technology will help to boost e-mobility in North America and the economic and trade exchanges between China and the U.S.”

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