FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., wants to narrow in on China’s influence in the U.S. in a new bill he is introducing Thursday that prohibits Chinese migrants with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from obtaining asylum.
Rubio’s No Asylum for CCP Spies Act, obtained first by Fox News Digital, would only grant asylum to nationals if they have: publicly renounced their CCP or totalitarian alliance; can prove their membership was by force or when the migrant was younger than 16 years old; or solely for the purpose of obtaining employment or food rations; or the Pentagon determines the migrant is not a danger to national security.
"The American people are facing the repercussions of the Biden Administration’s open border policy, which is creating chaos and putting our communities at risk," Rubio, a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee, told Fox News Digital in a statement.
He added, "We don’t know who’s illegally entering our nation. This presents an opportunity for the Chinese Communist Party to further take advantage and threaten our democracy and national security interests."
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So far in fiscal year 2023, U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered nearly 40,000 Chinese nationals on both the southern and northern borders, far surpassing the approximately 23,500 and 27,800 encountered in fiscal years 2021 and 2022, respectively.
In July, more than 6,000 crossed the border, just two months after the COVID-19-era rule that allowed for expelling illegal migrants quickly – known as Title 42 – expired.
"Much of the increase in migration from China is certainly a result of President Biden’s failed border policies," Rubio’s office noted. "With that, the CCP has proven savvy in their attempts to pervert American generosity, especially as it relates to visas, and inconsistencies within current U.S. asylum law are likely to be exacerbated and exploited as a result of increased Chinese migration."
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The bill's sponsors include GOP Sens. Roger Marshall of Kansas, Rick Scott of Florida, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Mike Braun of Indiana, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, and Bill Hagerty and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee.
The House will introduce companion legislation authored by Republican Reps. Mark Green of Tennessee, Troy Nehls of Texas and Byron Donalds of Florida.
The bill comes just a day after a coalition of Republican senators wrote a letter to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to express concern about the thousands of Chinese nationals crossing the border. Rubio also signed that letter.
"This trend poses a significant threat to our national security and warrants immediate attention and action from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)," the GOP leaders wrote.
