Michigan Republican to take helm of House China panel after Gallagher’s departure

Republican Rep. John Moolener (Michigan) will become the next chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) next month, following the resignation of Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.).

Announcing his appointment on Monday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said Moolenaar would be an “extraordinary chair” for the committee.

“Mr. Johnson has earned the respect of colleagues on both sides of the aisle for his leadership experience in the public and private sectors, his academic background, and his principled service to Congress,” Johnson said in a statement shared with The Hill. wrote.

Mr Moolenaar thanked Prime Minister Johnson for his appointment and nodded at Mr Gallagher, who he described as the country’s “incredible leader”.

“I thank the Chair for this appointment and look forward to working with the Ranking Member.” [Raja] krishnamoorthi [D-Ill.], I thank the members of the Select Committee, the House leadership, and the Standing Committees for the coming weeks and months,” he said Monday. “Together, we can help our country prepare for the challenges it faces from the Chinese Communist Party and win the competition against it.”

The committee was established last January and focuses on curbing the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party. He was influential in the recent passage of a House bill regarding TikTok’s potential threats and concerns about Chinese influence on the platform.

The bill, passed by a vote of 352-65 earlier this month, would force ByteDance to sell TikTok within 165 days or risk the app being banned in the United States. The bill now heads to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain fate.

Mr Gallagher announced last week that he would leave the House of Commons on April 19th. Gallagher, who served four terms, announced last month that he would not seek re-election in November, but did not announce his final term in the House at the time. The move leaves the House Republican majority slim and means the conference loses just one vote on legislation without Democratic support.

Mr. Moulenard, 62, is in his first term as a member of the House of Representatives. Last month, he was part of a bipartisan parliamentary delegation to Taiwan, along with Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Krishnamoorthy.