Rep. Judy Chu and different Home Democrats have fired again after a Republican congressman questioned her loyalty to the U.S. utilizing what they are saying is anti-Asian rhetoric.
On Wednesday, Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) appeared on a Fox Information present to debate President Biden’s appointment of Dominic Ng to guide the nation’s commerce curiosity in Asia. Home Republicans, together with Gooden, have written to the FBI with claims that Ng ought to be investigated for potential ties to the Chinese language Communist Celebration.
Chu, together with different Home Democrats, defended Ng’s appointment and expressed outrage at their colleagues’ makes an attempt to undermine it primarily based on the allegations of right-wing shops “with intensive histories of spreading misinformation.” The conservative information outlet the Every day Caller printed a narrative that alleged Ng had ties to Chinese language intelligence teams and may need violated the Espionage Act. The outlet printed related claims about Chu.
“I feel that Judy Chu must be known as out,” Gooden stated throughout the interview. “I query her both loyalty or competence. If she doesn’t understand what’s happening, then she’s completely out of contact with one in every of her core constituencies.”
Chu, who represents California’s twenty eighth District, primarily based within the San Gabriel Valley, known as Gooden’s feedback on Fox Information questioning her loyalty to the U.S. “completely outrageous.”
“It’s primarily based on false data unfold by an excessive, right-wing web site,” Chu stated in a press release. “Moreover, it’s racist. I very a lot doubt that he could be spreading these lies had been I not of Chinese language American descent.”
Chu took workplace in 2009, changing into the primary Chinese language American girl elected to Congress. Earlier than that, she was a member of the Monterey Park Metropolis Council. She served three phrases as mayor and was later elected to the state Meeting.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance), who represents California’s thirty sixth District, additionally fired again, saying that he served within the army to defend Gooden’s “proper to say silly, racist s—.”
“Attacking the loyalty of Asian People like @RepJudyChu is a racist trope that has harmed Asian People all through US historical past,” Lieu stated on Twitter. “Cease harming People of Asian descent.”
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) stated Gooden’s “slanderous accusation of disloyalty” aimed toward Chu was “harmful, unconscionable and xenophobic.”
Gooden’s workplace didn’t reply to a request for additional remark. However in a response to Jeffries, Gooden accused the Home minority chief and Chu of “taking part in the race card in a sick show of disloyalty to our nation.”
Different Home Democrats, together with Rep. Adam B. Schiff, denounced Gooden’s feedback as “xenophobic and racist.” Members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus put out a press release saying Gooden’s feedback mirrored racist profiling of Chinese language People by right-wing extremists that was “extremely harmful.”
The present controversy comes amid an increase in violence towards Asian People. Through the pandemic, Asian People in California noticed triple-digit proportion will increase in hate crimes.
“After centuries of being focused for not being ‘American sufficient’ and seen with suspicion primarily based on trying ‘overseas,’ any such insinuation and concern mongering solely additional endangers our communities,” the caucus members stated. “We hope Republican Home management will be a part of us in condemning these sorts of assaults on Chinese language People, elected or in any other case.”
In a press release, the Democratic Congressional Marketing campaign Committee defended Chu’s “transformative contributions to the nation and her group” and questioned why California Republican Reps. Michelle Metal and Younger Kim, two of the primary Korean American ladies elected to Congress, had not defended Chu.
“Their shameful silence comes at a time when anti-Asian hate continues to threaten communities and Republicans proceed to weaponize harmful misinformation for self-serving energy,” the committee stated in a press release.
Final yr whereas campaigning for reelection, Metal confronted accusations of “McCarthyism” after working adverts about her Democratic opponent that used closely doctored photographs and movies to tie him to the Chinese language Group Celebration.
