China and Trump targeted in House hearing on foreign influence in US non-profits

Beijing came under sharp criticism on Tuesday at a highly contentious US Congressional hearing on the influence of foreign funds in US politics – but so did US President Donald Trump.

The hearing by the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, which shapes tax and tariff legislation, comes amid deep partisanship and Trump’s declining popularity ahead of a November midterm election.

“Tax-exempt organisations funded by foreign donors are exploiting very lucrative US tax benefits to incite violence and unrest in our communities and destabilise our political process,” said Jason Smith, chairman of the committee, a Republican from Missouri. “Many of these tax-exempt groups also have documented ties to hostile foreign governments, like the Communist Party.”

Republicans called out, among others, the “Singham Network”, an informal complex of non-profit organisations, media outlets and think tanks funded by Neville Roy Singham, an American millionaire and former software entrepreneur based in Shanghai.

Specifically, they accused it of donating US$20 million to the People’s Forum, a New York-based civic group, to support protests and support left-wing causes and push pro-Beijing narratives and anti-US propaganda. The Forum did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Democrats countered that removing malign foreign influence was desirable, but Tuesday’s hearing was more about targeting progressive groups selectively, rather than dealing with more obvious targets.

South China Morning Post