Recently, U.S. China hawk Congressman Mike Gallagher announced on social media that he would resign from the House of Representatives on April 19.
This month, TikTok was banned in the U.S. House of Representatives, and Gallagher was the leader of this "political witch hunt". Gallagher has also consistently stressed that his goal is not to wipe out TikTok, but to work to divest ByteDance of its ownership of TikTok, which poses a so-called "national security threat" to the United States. He also claimed that ByteDance may share sensitive data of U.S. users with the Chinese government.
What is surprising is that at the climax of this "witch hunt", Gallagher, who is only 40 years old and obviously has a great political future among the anti-China faction, suddenly resigned as a member of the House of Representatives. This action also set off a storm of public opinion in the United States.
Gallagher's resignation statement on social media did not specify why. However, according to Forbes News, Gallagher resigned because he would be working for Palantir Technologies as a defense contractor. One of its most well-known products is Palantir Gotham, which is used by government and intelligence agencies for counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, and law enforcement missions. The task of killing bin Laden was also provided by Palantir Technologies.
Mike Gallagher Source: AP
In American political circles, this kind of "revolving door" in the government, business, and academic circles is a very common thing. Legislators tend to be lobbied during their tenure, and when they retire, they join these companies for high returns.
According to Bloomberg, Palantir Technologies struck a $250 million AI partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense in September 2023, a deal that will run through 2026. And behind this deal, there is an unnamed US House of Representatives behind the scenes.
Gallagher's "running away" puts the Republican Party in an awkward position
In fact, Gallagher's "running away" had a great impact on the Republican Party. According to Wisconsin law, vacancies in congressional seats after the second week of April will be voted in the November general election, meaning Gallagher's seat will remain vacant until January. This would further weaken the Republicans' narrow lead in the House of Representatives, which is 218 votes to 213.
Recently, the Republican Party has suffered frequent setbacks in the House of Representatives. From former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy being blackmailed by a minority of the far right in the party and forced to resign, to new Speaker Mike Johnson seeking to work with Democrats to reach a congressional budget, it is not difficult to see that the slim majority has put pressure on the Republican leadership.
Republican Rep. Marjorie Greening, a Republican from Georgia, directly criticized Gallagher's actions as "deliberate treason." "If he refuses to immediately resign and leave and let his constituency hold a special election to elect a representative to replace him so that their constituency can have a say in the remaining seats in the 118th Congress, he should be expelled," she said on the social media platform.
House Speaker Mike Johnson Source: NBC News
The Restoration of McCarthyism
In fact, the U.S.-China Commission on Strategic Competition, which Gallagher chairs, also has a lot of history. According to the commission's official website, its committee is committed to "building a consensus on the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party on the basis of bipartisan cooperation and developing an action plan to defend the American people, the American economy, and American values."
Some analysts believe that this committee, which will be established in 2023, is very similar to the Committee of Inquiry on Non-American Activities established by the US House of Representatives in the 50s of the last century and the McCarthyism behind it. The political atmosphere in the United States under McCarthyism was full of "red scares" and people's paranoia of persecution reached its climax. Proponents of McCarthyism claim that the U.S. government, entertainment, academia, and other areas have been "infiltrated," creating a sense of panic that the U.S. government is about to be overthrown. McCarthy and his followers conducted a massive "witch hunt" of their suspects and interrogations, which became a major stain on American politics.
With the help of the U.S.-China Council on Strategic Competition, McCarthyism seems to be resurging in the United States. In recent years, the attitude of US politicians toward China has developed from the "theory of China's collapse" to the "theory of the China threat." What is the purpose of the US-China Strategic Competition Committee in creating a so-called "China threat" panic? In political science, there is a term called "flag gathering," that is, when a country is faced with a powerful foreign enemy, it is easier for a country to unite together. The real purpose of shaping a strong and threatening China in the US political arena is to try to bridge the serious political divisions in the United States.
At present, the polarization in the US political system is significant, and being tough on China is one of the few parties that agree on it. Any political issue that is linked to the so-called "China threat" will make it easier to form a consensus in Congress. For example, not long ago, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States under the US Treasury Department investigated the acquisition of U.S. Steel by Nippon Steel Group on the grounds of national security.
In addition, the United States is keen to create the illusion of so-called "military expansion" in China. According to a report by Project On Government Oversight, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, the U.S. often instigates China's neighbors with threats and inducements, especially in the South China Sea, because it helps U.S. Indo-Pacific Command get more defense budgets. In the report, the authors also conclude that "in the absence of war, the only way to maintain an injection of money is to threaten the future theoretical existence of war".
Author丨Wang Xisheng, Shenzhen Satellite TV Direct News Intern Reporter
Editor丨Lai Chenlu, editor-in-chief of Shenzhen Satellite TV Direct News
Typesetting丨Pan Siyi, Shenzhen Satellite TV direct news editor