A long-awaited tightening of U.S. funding for China's military and strategic industries is on the verge of becoming law after House lawmakers successfully built sweeping restrictions on outward investment into the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
House past huge $900 billion defense political bill Wednesday, setting the stage for a Senate vote next week before the measure goes to President Donald Trump. desktop. Supporters restrictions on outgoing investments — including Republican Rep. Andy Barr of Kentucky — call it “the strongest foundation in history” for protecting American capital and strengthening national security.
“This legislation takes President Trump's 'America First' investment policy to a new level and gets Beijing's attention,” said Barr, who presented The Anti-China Foreign Investment Protection Act is included in the House version of the NDAA. “Congress is sending a clear message: no more American money for [Chinese Communist Party] create missiles that target our troops, the next spy balloon to fly over our communities, or any other product that could harm Americans.” (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: US Nuclear Bomber Fleet Shares Fence With Trailer Park Linked to Chinese Intelligence-Linked Rogue)
WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 7: Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) speaks with Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) before a House Financial Services Committee hearing on May 7, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Pete Marovich/Getty Images)
If passed, the provision would prohibit U.S. investment in sensitive Chinese technology, require domestic companies to notify the Treasury Department of certain transactions in the People's Republic of China (PRC), and give the Treasury Secretary the authority to impose sanctions on Chinese businesses associated with the country's military or intelligence services.
Lawmakers have tried to apply similar language to the protection funding bills both in 2023 and 2024, but ultimately there were unsuccessful. It is noteworthy that this measure met resistance in 2023 from then-House Financial Services Committee Chairman and North Carolina Republican Rep. Patrick McHenry, who said increasing U.S. private investment in China would prevent Beijing from taking government control of it.
The move now has broad bipartisan support and strong backing from China hawks who warn billions American capital is fueling PRC companies involved in critical technologies, including those linked to the Chinese military, the surveillance state, and the CCP's genocide against Uyghur Muslims.
In 2023 alone, major US financial institutions such as BlackRock invested $6.5 billion in 63 Chinese companies blacklisted by the US government for supporting the CCP's military or violating human rights. according to to the House Select Committee on CCP.
The restrictions will also apply to investments in other countries that are adversaries of the United States, including Iran and North Korea.
“President Trump has made clear that over the past several decades, investments that support communist China's aggression must end,” Speaker Mike Johnson said, calling the inclusion of investment restrictions “an important step to protect our nation's national security and economic competitiveness.”
Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who sponsored The Senate version of the Counter China Act also said he is glad the effort is nearing the finish line.
“This landmark legislation would prohibit and require reporting of U.S. investments in certain technologies in countries of concern, ensuring that American ingenuity, innovation and investment do not fall into the hands of adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party who will use them as weapons against us,” Cornyn said.
Republican Rep. Brian Mast of Florida also called the measure a “huge victory” for national security by preventing “American investors from feeding Beijing's war machine.”
Investment restrictions also have support from Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who co-sponsored the Senate bill and called This is “an important step to ensure that the United States remains a global leader in advanced technologies.”
Other victories for the China Hawks in the NDAA include: Biosecurity Lawwhich limits federal contracts with biotech firms linked to foreign adversaries such as the People's Republic of China. Previously this position was relegated to the background in 2024 after Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts — then chairman of the House Rules Committee — intervened to protect jobs linked to one of the Chinese companies targeted in his district.
Despite the NDAA's new restrictions on China, President announced On Monday, the US will allow Nvidia to supply its advanced H200 artificial intelligence processors to approved customers in China in exchange for a 25% premium. Critics argue that the move risks eroding America's technological advantage and undermining long-term national security, noting that China is unlikely to create a domestic equivalent, at least not anytime soon. 2027.
Although the defense bill passed the House of Representatives, it faced opposition from several Republicans who criticized the bill. authorization additional security assistance to Ukraine and other foreign countries, the absence of provisions banning central bank digital currency and the inclusion of some DEI Provisions.
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