Democrats Denounce Rep. Lance Gooden For Questioning The Loyalty Of Rep. Judy Chu Following Rumors Of Ties to China’s Communist Party - Vanity Fair

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Judy Chu U.S. representative for California's 28th congressional district addresses the media at a press conference at...

“I very much doubt that he would be spreading these lies were I not of Chinese American descent,” Rep. Chu blasted back.

By Kelly Rissman

February 25, 2023

A number of Democrats have flocked to California Rep. Judy Chu’s defense after her “loyalty” to the United States was called into question by Texas Rep. Lance Gooden.

“Gooden’s slanderous accusation of disloyalty against Rep. Chu is dangerous, unconscionable and xenophobic,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement lambasting Gooden on Thursday. “Look in the mirror, Lance. You have zero credibility."

Jeffries came to Chu’s defense after Gooden’s remarks on Fox News on Wednesday: “I think that Judy Chu needs to be called out.” The Texas Republican said, “I question her either loyalty or competence. If she doesn’t realize what’s going on, then she’s totally out of touch with one of her core constituencies.”

The first Chinese American woman elected to Congress, Chu blasted Gooden on MSNBC on Thursday, saying: “Rep. Gooden’s comments on Fox News questioning my loyalty to the USA is absolutely outrageous.” She added, “It is based on false information spread by an extreme, right-wing website. Furthermore, it is racist. I very much doubt that he would be spreading these lies were I not of Chinese American descent."

“It perpetuates the stereotype that Asian Americans are foreigners in their own land, no matter how many generations they’ve been in this country—or are like me and were born and raised in this country,” Chu said.

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Gooden’s comments were made after a swirl of unsubstantiated information surfaced regarding Chu’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party, as reported in the conservative outlet The Daily Caller. After the GOP questioned President Joe Biden’s appointee to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Advisory Council, Dominic Ng, six Republican lawmakers (including Gooden) wrote a letter to the FBI, claiming that Biden “appointed an individual with existing Chinese Communist Party ties.” In response to the unsubstantiated allegations, leaders of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) wrote a statement defending Ng, arguing that he “has undergone an extensive vetting process and sworn an oath to support and defend the Constitution and serve the American public.” Chu is the chair of CAPAC, prompting Gooden’s attack.

Gooden responded to comments made by both Chu and Jeffries in an email: “Rather than following facts that indicate the presence of Chinese espionage, Chu and Jeffries are playing the race card in a sick display of disloyalty to our nation.”

Along with Jeffries, several fellow Democrats have defended Chu while calling Gooden racist.

Hillary Clinton tweeted on Saturday: “The attacks on Rep. Judy Chu are false, racist, and xenophobic. All people of conscience should stand together to say so.”

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Illinois Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi “Congressman Gooden’s comments questioning Congresswoman Chu’s loyalty to the United States and suggesting that she’s ‘standing up’ for the Chinese Communist Party are baseless and completely unacceptable. There is simply no place for such accusations, and I completely reject them. These comments only feed the scapegoating and targeting of Chinese Americans, further endangering them and all Asian Americans.”

California Rep. Ted Lieu, a former active duty officer in the US Air Force and Colonel in the Air Force Reserve, tweeted about his experience as an Asian American serving in the military: “Dear @Lancegooden: I served in the US military (unlike you) to defend your right to say stupid, racist shit. Attacking the loyalty of Asian Americans like @RepJudyChu is a racist trope that has harmed Asian Americans throughout US history. Stop harming Americans of Asian descent.”

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California Rep. Adam Schiff also tweeted in support of Chu: “Questioning @RepJudyChu’s loyalty to the United States is xenophobic and racist. Shame on you, @LanceGooden. And on @FoxNews for airing such hate. We cannot allow anti-Asian bigotry to go without condemnation.”

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“At a time when anti-Asian hate continues to threaten communities, it’s critical that we condemn these racist and xenophobic attacks immediately and hold our fellow colleagues accountable to rid our politics of such dangerous statements and hatred,” Washington Rep. Suzan DelBene said in a statement on Friday.

On Thursday, CAPAC issued a statement: “Insinuating that Chair Chu is disloyal to the United States because she is Chinese American is categorically wrong. This type of racist targeting and profiling of Chinese Americans by right-wing extremists is not only xenophobic, it is incredibly dangerous. After centuries of being targeted for not being ‘American enough’ and viewed with suspicion based on looking ‘foreign,’ this type of insinuation and fear mongering only further endangers our communities.”

Gooden’s comments come just one week after the United States marked exactly 81 years since the country incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II.

President Biden issued a statement on February 19 to mark “the wrongful incarceration of 120,000 Americans of Japanese descent [that] tore families apart.” The statement continued, “The incarceration of Japanese Americans reminds us what happens when racism, fear, and xenophobia go unchecked. As we battle for the soul of our nation, we continue to combat the corrosive effects of hate on our democracy and the intergenerational trauma resulting from it.”