November 07, 2018

With Democrats in control of House, Trump White House may double down on China interference claims

Featuring Abigail Grace

Source: Yahoo! News

Journalists Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian, Jenna McLaughlin, Hunter Walker

Some six weeks after President Trump accused China of trying to interfere in the midterm elections to hurt Republicans, little public evidence has emerged to support that claim. But now, with the Democrats set to control the House in January, the issue is far from over for the White House, and Beijing’s alleged meddling in American affairs is set to be a major focus for Trump in the weeks and months ahead.

“China’s political interference campaigns are broad and deep,” a senior administration official told Yahoo News, adding that the president would “continue to take actions against foreign interference.”

There are clearly potential political benefits for the Trump administration in raising the specter of Chinese meddling, particularly after an election that didn’t go the White House’s way. But there are also legitimate concerns about Beijing’s activities even if most analysts and experts don’t believe China’s actions rise to the level of an election interference campaign.

Read the full article and more in Yahoo! News.

Authors

  • Abigail Grace

    Research Associate, Asia-Pacific Security Program

    Abigail Grace is a Research Associate in the Asia-Pacific Security Program at the Center for New American Security (CNAS). Her work focuses on U.S. strategic competition with ...