Senior Democrats took $2.6M from employees at now labeled Chinese military firms: Report

WASHINGTON, DC: Senior Democrats, including former President Joe Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, received millions of dollars in campaign donations from employees at three companies that the Pentagon has now designated as "Chinese military companies," according to a new review of federal campaign finance records.

The report, published by Fox News Digital, found that executives, lawyers, lobbyists, and other employees at Alibaba, Baidu, and BYD donated roughly $2.6 million to Democratic political committees between 2020 and 2024. The designation does not amount to sanctions or make the donations illegal, but it has renewed scrutiny over political fundraising from individuals connected to firms now viewed by the Defense Department as supporting China's military-civil fusion strategy.

Who received the donations?

The Department of War on June 8 designated Alibaba, Baidu, and BYD as 'Chinese military companies,' meaning that the three firms, in the eyes of the US government, are assisting the People’s Liberation Army through its military-civil fusion strategy or other means.

Senior employees at these companies, including executives, have donated roughly $2.6 million to Democratic political committees since 2020, a Fox News Digital review of campaign finance filings has found.

Notable individuals and organizations that received contributions from top staffers at these firms include Sen. Adam Schiff, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, former President Joe Biden, Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and the Democratic National Committee. 

The review included direct contributions, earmarked contributions, and donations to joint-fundraising committees reported in campaign finance filings. It did not identify corporate donations from Alibaba, Baidu, or BYD to the federal committees.

The review found the largest chunk of the money, about $850,000, came from employees at the three companies linked to Joe Biden over the four years.

The Democratic National Committee reportedly received about $500,000, and committees tied to Kamala Harris took in about $140,000. Five-figure checks also flowed from employees tied to the firms to the Democratic organizations in the states.

Newsom, per state campaign finance records, accepted $50,000 from an executive at BYD, an electric-vehicle manufacturer that his administration later awarded a contract. 

"American politicians should no longer accept campaign cash from any Chinese companies. Politicians who have been taking campaign cash from companies like Baidu, Alibaba, and BYD now realize they were supported by blacklisted Chinese military companies," Michael Lucci, CEO of the national security organization State Armor, told Fox News Digital. 

"The reason the Pentagon's list of sanctioned CCP companies keeps expanding is that the Chinese Communist Party imposes a 'civil-military fusion' mandate upon all Chinese companies, forcing them to assist in modernizing China's military to defeat America."

Various state Democratic parties also received five-figure support from employees at Baidu, BYD, and Alibaba.

Why the Pentagon's designation matters now

Pentagon officials are legally required to release a list of what it determines to be Chinese military companies every year. The first such list was released in June 2021 under President Joe Biden.

The Pentagon’s 1260H list identifies Chinese companies the Defense Department says are "Chinese military companies" operating directly or indirectly in the United States.

Required by the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, the list is intended to warn US businesses and investors about firms tied to China’s military-civil fusion strategy, though inclusion does not automatically trigger sanctions.

Campaign finance’s latest revelations were cited by national security advocates as a reason to increase scrutiny of political donations tied to employees of companies with alleged links to China’s military complex.

But critics say the firms were not formally added to the Pentagon’s list until this month, even though questions about some of their ties to Beijing have been publicly circulating for years.