House Republican calls on Biden to boycott Beijing Olympics

By Dominick Mastrangelo - 02/23/21 07:40 AM EST
 
House Republican calls on Biden to boycott Beijing Olympics
© © Getty Images

The leading Republican on the House Homeland Security Committee wants President BidenJoe BidenHouse Democrat threatens to vote against party's spending bill if HBCUs don't get more federal aid Overnight Defense & National Security — The Pentagon's deadly mistake Haitians stuck in Texas extend Biden's immigration woes MORE to boycott next year's Winter Olympics in Beijing. 

“The actions taken by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) are antithetical to the values of both the United States and its allies around the world,” Rep. John KatkoJohn Michael KatkoEmboldened Trump takes aim at GOP foes McCarthy-allied fundraising group helps Republicans who voted to impeach Trump Bipartisan House group introduces legislation to set term limit for key cyber leader MORE (R-N.Y.) wrote in a letter to the president obtained by ABC News. “Participation in an Olympics held in a country who is openly committing genocide not only undermines those shared values but casts a shadow on the promise for all those who seek free and just societies.”

The Chinese government has been widely criticized by the international community for its oppression of minority Muslim Uighurs the country's Xinjiang region. The backlash follows a report in January detailing a mass government sterilization campaign against ethnic minorities there. 
 
“Mr. President, the evidence is clear — the CCP is deliberately and systematically working to eliminate an entire population within its own borders,” Katko said. 
 
He added that the U.S. "simply cannot in good faith participate in an Olympic Games in a country that is committing genocide and continuously attempts to manipulate and lie to the global community about such atrocities." 
 
Former Secretary of State Mike PompeoMike PompeoChristie, Pompeo named co-chairs of GOP redistricting group America needs a new strategy for Pacific Island Countries Harris to hold fundraiser for McAuliffe ahead of Virginia governor's race MORE announced the day before Biden was sworn in the U.S. would officially designate the situation in Xinjiang as genocide. Canada has made a similar designation. 
 
Biden administration officials are reportedly reviewing the merits of the U.S. designation.  
 
“What is happening with the Uighurs is horrendous and we have to recognize it for what it is,” Linda Thomas-GreenfieldLinda Thomas-GreenfieldRepublicans press Biden administration to maintain sanctions against Taliban The Hill's Morning Report - Presented by National Industries for the Blind - Biden travels west as Washington troubles mount Mass incarcerations — the American prison industrial complex MORE, Biden’s pick to represent the U.S. at the United Nations, told a Senate panel last month. “I lived through and experienced and witnessed a genocide in Rwanda, so I know what it looks like. And I know what it feels like. And this feels like that. We just have to call it for what it is.”

Biden has made no public statements about the allegations against the Chinese government since taking office.

Tags Linda Thomas-Greenfield Mike Pompeo John Katko Joe Biden Chinese Communist Party Genocide Olympics