AP investigation highlights China’s influence on Utah politics

An AP investigation into Chinese Government efforts to influence Utah lawmakers have brought scrutiny to elected officials’ travel abroad, and a lack of transparency about who paid for it.

Driving the news: Rep. Candice Pierucci (R-Herriman) is renewing a call for state officials to disclose when foreign governments help pay for her travel on state business.

• It comes after AP found evidence of Beijing officials working with well-connected Utah-based advocates for the country’s agenda to influence state policy in favor of the country.

Details: Up to 25 Utah lawmakers have traveled to China every two years since 2007, with the Chinese government and host organizations helping pay for the trips, the AP reported.

• Utah does not require state officials to fully report foreign travel or personal financial ties to other countries.

Why it matters: The AP identified several instances in which Utah lawmakers acted in Beijing’s best interest.

• In recent years, lawmakers delayed or blocked legislation critical of China, including a resolution condemning the ruling. The suppression of the Chinese Communist Party on the country’s Uyghur Muslim population.
• Some of the CCP’s political victories in Utah came shortly after trips in which lawmakers connected with government officials and made statements in the media supporting them, the AP reported.
• Supporters of China’s political goals in Utah have traveled with them. In 2020, a few months after a trip, an activist wrote a resolution pledging solidarity with China during the COVID-19 pandemicwhich passed almost unanimously.

Get up to speed fast: Pierucci this year proposed disclosure requirements when someone else pays for legislators’ travel expenses, but the bill was not voted on in committee. She said that she plans to reintroduce it.

• “I pledge to continue working with my colleagues … to roll back the influence of the Chinese Communist Party in our state and nation,” Pierucci said. wrote on the Monday after the AP story broke.

Retrospective scene: Last year, the state President of the Senate Stuart Adams (R-Layton) and Attorney General Sean Reyes (D) faced criticism for accepting trips paid for by the Qatari government to attend the FIFA World Cup.

What they are saying: In a joint statement, Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson and Adams said, “Utah is part of the global economy, and lawmakers remain vigilant as they work and build relationships with entities around the world.”

thought bubble, via Axios China Author Bethany Allen Ebrahimian: The Chinese government’s strategy to influence state and local governments has become more important as China’s ties with the US federal government deteriorate. The US government has increasingly sought to push back.

• In May 2019, the FBI added a unit from China to its foreign influence task force focuses in part on subnational engagement and sometimes provides defensive briefings to people at the local and state level.
• Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned about this strategy in February 2020 during a speech he gave to the National Governors Association.