This DOJ speech from Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen is the kind of nonsensical virtue signaling you expect from a San Fran or New York politician, not a key figure justifying an end to the China Initiative which began to cut off the PRC’s spy program in America. The early sign that this was coming came when the Biden DOJ began dropping prosecuting of academics who lied about their ties to Communist China. Now the DOJ is making it official.

Against this backdrop, the department announced the “China Initiative” in 2018. The idea behind the initiative was to develop a coherent approach to the challenges posed by the PRC government. The initiative effectively focused attention on the multi-faceted threat from the PRC. But it has also engendered growing concerns that we must take seriously.

I want to take this opportunity today—discussing our approach to nation-state threats overall—to also address the China Initiative directly.

We have heard concerns from the civil rights community that the “China Initiative” fueled a narrative of intolerance and bias. To many, that narrative suggests that the Justice Department treats people from China or of Chinese descent differently. The rise in anti-Asian hate crime and hate incidents only heightens these concerns. The Department is keenly aware of this threat and is enhancing efforts to combat acts of hate. 

Investigating China’s espionage program is not a hate crime and has nothing to do with the mostly black attacks on Asians.

There are also increasing concerns from the academic and scientific community about the department’s pursuit of certain research grant fraud cases. We have heard that these prosecutions — and the public narrative they create — can lead to a chilling atmosphere for scientists and scholars that damages the scientific enterprise in this country.

The only country they damage scientific enterprises in is Communist China. But the Biden admin just announced an open door for China’s Thousand Talents spy campaign.

I began my career as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division. The department is committed to protecting the civil rights of everyone in our country. But this erosion of trust in the department can impair our national security by alienating us from the people we serve, including the very communities the PRC government targets as victims. Our reputation around the world for being a country dedicated to civil rights and the rule of law is one of our greatest strengths.

This is the same bill of goods they sold us with fighting Islamic terrorism. Now fighting Chinese espionage is a hate crime.

Make no mistake, we will be relentless in defending our country from China. 

Every time a partisan hack precedes a statement with, “make no mistake”, what follows is the opposite of what he’s saying. This time it’s no different.

But so long as 10% is reversed for the big guy.