The US House of Representatives passed a bill on 21 July calling on the government to disclose the US-held assets belonging to top Chinese Communist Party officials if China invades Taiwan.
The Taiwan Conflict Deterrence Act, introduced in February by House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain and Representative Brad Sherman, passed by unanimous voice vote. It targets members of the CCP Politburo Standing Committee and Central Committee members.
The legislation requires the US Department of the Treasury to submit a report to Congress detailing the assets held by these officials, including the amount, nature of the assets, and the names of associated financial institutions. It also mandates briefings on how the assets were acquired and whether any illicit or corrupt means were involved.
The bill was widely mocked on Chinese media. It’s as if China would not dare to invade Taiwan if their corrupt officials were exposed. The bill was also mocked by Chinese people, not because they trust their leaders, but because the people are powerless to overthrow their leaders even if their “crimes” were exposed and scrutinised by all and sundry. But there’s more.
The bill also authorises the Treasury Secretary to block CCP officials from accessing funds in US financial institutions. Now that’s the only part that’s going to hurt.
The department’s website and social media platforms must publish the reports in Chinese and English. The bill prohibits major financial transactions between US institutions and immediate family members of the listed officials. Why should they worry? It’s not that Chinese netizens would have access to the website or their social media account. Even those who know about it may not care and those who care are powerless. The bill is quite farcical but not in the way the Chinese media described it.
