Gingrich Wants Clinton To Delay China Trip
Speaker proposes a new select committee to investigate sale of missile technology
WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, May 19) -- House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Monday President Bill Clinton should delay a planned trip to China until he clears the air about tainted campaign contributions and the export of sensitive satellite technology to China in 1996.
"I do not believe this president can go to China unless he
clears up, in public, everything about Chinese illegal campaign
funds and everything about national missile secrets going to
China," Gingrich said.
Clinton is due to go to China late next month to meet with President Jiang Zemin.
But revelations last week about suspect campaign contributions from Democratic fund-raiser Johnny Chung have put a question mark over the China visit, and brought renewed GOP criticism of the Democrats' fund-raising during the last presidential election cycle.
Gingrich announced Tuesday he would propose a new House select committee to look into what he said are national security issues regarding the sale of U.S. missile technology to China.
Gingrich said Rep. Chris Cox (R-Calif.) would chair the committee, which needs to be approved by the House.
The committee would have "nothing to do with campaign finance" and could be at work by June, Gingrich said.
The Justice Department is looking at whether two defense contractors working with China on commercial satellite ventures, Loral Space and Communications Ltd. and Hughes Electronics, may have violated security laws by providing China with a report on a 1996 accident in which a Chinese rocket carrying a U.S.-built satellite exploded.
At issue is whether the information provided might have helped China improve its ballistic missile arsenal.
In a statement Monday, Loral denied either it or Hughes
made its own investigation to determine the cause of the
launch failure. It said a review by several satellite companies,
requested by insurance companies, provided no secret or classified
information to the Chinese.
The Clinton Administration has said the exports were approved
under strict security provisions that protect sensitive
information.
And Clinton has denied that campaign contributions played any role in the conduct of American policy toward China.
"All the foreign policy decisions we made were based on what we believed ... were in the interests of the American people," Clinton said over the weekend.
The Chinese government has expressed concern that the controversy will damage relations between the two nations.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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