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REPORT: Forced Chinese Labor Corporations Tied to Democrats

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By Poring Studio @ Shutterstock.com

Tristan Justice reports at The Federalist on donations given to Democrats by companies that may be employing forced labor in their factories in China. He writes:

House Democrats shot down a GOP motion earlier this month that sought to bar corporate cooperation with Chinese slave labor.

The Motion to Recommit proposed by Kentucky Republican Rep. Andy Barr amending a Democrat bill on corporate disclosure would have required businesses to report to the Treasury Department if they discover a supplier or other business partner was found using forced labor.

Two-hundred and seventeen Democrats rejected the measure and the amendment failed. A look at their corporate donors might reveal why.

Slave Labor Profits to Campaign Coffers

In March last year, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) published a report credibly accusing 82 major brands of profiting, either directly or indirectly, from Chinese slave labor by minority Uyghur workers from the northern Xinjiang province. According to the report, investigators estimate more than 80,000 Uyghurs were taken from their native provinces to work in factories across China between 2017 and 2019, with thousands more sent straight to concentration camps.

Using open-source Chinese-language documents, satellite imagery, academic research, and on-the-ground reporting, ASPI linked 82 brands with forced labor operations among 27 factories across nine Chinese provinces. A Federalist analysis drawing on financial disclosure reports published in OpenSecrets found at least 44 of the 80 companies named made U.S. campaign contributions in last year’s election cycle.

A vast majority went to Democrats, who raked in three-quarters of all federal donations from companies credibly accused of harnessing Chinese slave labor, while less than 12 percent flowed to Republicans. Of the nearly $40 million that went to congressional candidates between the two major parties, Democrats took home more than 85 percent, as opposed to Republicans, who received less than 15.

Meanwhile, 39 out of the 42 companies that made donations gave more than half to Democrats, with nearly a dozen skyrocketing contributions in last fall’s contest compared to previous cycles. Apple and Nike, for example, which deployed high-powered Washington lobbyists to fight the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act barring importing products from Chinese slave labor, each spiked their donations to Democrats by more than 400 percent in a year Republicans embraced a tough stance on China.

The chart from OpenSecrets below outlines Apple’s contributions to federal candidates, showing the company’s affiliates gave upwards of $7.5 million to Democrats in 2020 as opposed to less than $2 million in 2018.

Nike’s contributions graph shown below, again from OpenSecrets, shows the company’s affiliates gave more than $1.2 million to Democrats in 2020, a jump from less than $300,000 in 2018. The company also plummeted in contributions to Republicans at the same time, giving nearly $700,000 to Republicans three years ago and giving less than $150,000 to GOP candidates in 2020, a more than 350 percent decrease.

Nike, headquartered in Oregon, has shown particular loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to retain access to its lucrative Chinese markets. Just last week, the company’s Chief Executive Officer John Donahoe declared Nike “a brand that is of China and for China.”

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E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zildjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com To sign up for my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, click here.