House panel faults intelligence agencies on response to Chinese influence operations

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The nation’s intelligence agencies are not doing enough to counter large-scale Chinese information operations in the U.S., a House committee investigating Beijing’s information warfare said in letters sent to senior intelligence officials.

House Government Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer disclosed what he said were the agencies’ shortcomings in a 10-page letter to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines last week, contending that China is waging “political warfare” against the U.S. and calling on spy agencies to increase their efforts against it.

The committee is expanding its governmentwide investigation into Chinese influence operations by adding intelligence agencies, the FBI and seven other agencies, including the Energy and State departments.

Mr. Comer said that private analysts recently testified that Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence operations are “destructive, dangerous and jeopardize the safety of all Americans.”

“The federal government needs to recognize the threat from China is grave and it’s past time for the federal government to establish a concrete plan to thwart the CCP’s actions,” he said.

During a hearing April 16, several witnesses described how China is conducting political warfare and influence activities known as “united front” work. The May 6 letter to Ms. Haines said the spy agencies “must step up” countering Chinese activities targeting the United States: “The CCP is waging a non-kinetic war against the U.S.—and the U.S. is falling behind,” Mr. Comer wrote.

The office of director of national intelligence appears to be aware of the shortcomings but “the question remains whether ODNI is effectively conveying the message to the [intelligence community] and other federal agencies to establish a cohesive government-wide strategy to defeat CCP political warfare,” he wrote.

Mr. Comer said China is employing political, psychological, economic, media, and legal warfare along with cyber and other types of sub rosa activities to destroy the U.S. from within. An ODNI spokesman said the letter was received and the office is engaging with the committee.

The letter quoted findings of a 1999 select House committee on China that concluded “the intelligence community is insufficiently focused on the threat posed by PRC intelligence and the targeted effort to obtain militarily useful technology from the United States.”

“Concerningly, that sentiment has remained true for many years but for a few recent exceptions,” Mr. Comer said, noting actions against China taken by the Trump administration that sought to counter Chinese political and economic warfare.

“These successes and lessons need to be institutionalized and applied to the [intelligence community]. Otherwise, the CCP will continue to utilize non-kinetic warfare tactics — because they’ve been successful — until the [intelligence community] coalesces to identify gaps in U.S. national security to protect America,” Mr. Comer said.

There are now indications Beijing has begun using artificial intelligence and social media for its campaigns, he stated. The chairman also requested an intelligence briefing on efforts to counter Chinese influence operations, including whether additional counterintelligence offices should be created within the federal government similar to the congressionally mandated new counterspy unit at the Agriculture Department.

In a separate letter, Mr. Comer told FBI Director Christopher A. Wray that the bureau has an increasing role in addressing the threat from China, threats that he said are increasing in both intensity and complexity, and requested a separate briefing on how the bureau is using an “all-tools and all-sectors approach” to counter China. The panel also wants the FBI to explain how its agents are countering Chinese cyber threats to U.S. networks and advancements in artificial intelligence and quantum computing, according to the letter.

The letter also asks about FBI efforts to sound the alarm about Chinese “talent recruitment” programs targeting individuals in state and local governments, businesses, universities and research laboratories. 

The FBI is also being asked to explain vetting procedures used for bureau personnel during hiring and later to “address any unlawful ties personnel may have to the CCP.”

The panel also is investigating whether the FBI is training federal employees on Chinese tactics in ways that better recognize political warfare tactics and support interagency responses to it, the letter stated.

An FBI spokesman said the letter has been received and that Mr. Wray has testified to Congress and spoken extensively on Chinese government threats.