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Investigation Finds Coaches at Government-Run NBA China Academies Complained of Child Abuse

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Long before an October tweet in support of Hong Kong protesters spotlighted the NBA’s complicated relationship with China, the league faced complaints from its own employees over human rights concerns inside an NBA youth-development program in that country, an ESPN investigation has found.

American coaches at three NBA training academies in China told league officials their Chinese partners were physically abusing young players and failing to provide schooling, even though commissioner Adam Silver had said that education would be central to the program, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the complaints.

The NBA ran into myriad problems by opening one of the academies in Xinjiang, a police state in western China where more than a million Uighur Muslims are now held in barbed-wire camps. American coaches were frequently harassed and surveilled in Xinjiang, the sources said. One American coach was detained three times without cause; he and others were unable to obtain housing because of their status as foreigners. . .

In an interview with ESPN about its findings, NBA deputy commissioner and chief operating officer Mark Tatum, who oversees international operations, said the NBA is “reevaluating” and “considering other opportunities” for the academy program, which operates out of sports facilities run by the Chinese government. Last week, the league acknowledged for the first time it had closed the Xinjiang academy, but, when pressed, Tatum declined to say whether human rights were a factor. (Read more from “Investigation Finds Coaches at Government-Run NBA China Academies Complained of Child Abuse” HERE)

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WAR ALERT: Multiple Indicators China Preparing for Imminent Hostile Action, Setting Off Alarm Bells in U.S.

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By Bill Gertz. What intelligence agencies call “indications and warnings” — signs of potential hostile military or other actions against the United States — are being detected from inside China. Analysts suggest these movements reveal Beijing may be preparing for some type of military or covert action. . .

The account @TruthAbtChina on July 25 tweeted video from Beijing and Shanghai showing posters instructing people how to go to underground bunkers if an alarm signals a military attack . . .

Another source in Asia reported that Taiwanese ham radio operators were picking up indicators that China may be preparing to take some type of action against Taiwan’s outer islands, which are closer to the mainland than the main Taiwan island, which sits around 100 miles off the southern coast.

A third indicator comes from a businessman with contacts inside China who says locals there are reporting unusual movements of equipment and shifts in production at some factories away from producing civilian products.

There are also rumors of a major political power struggle in Beijing pitting Chinese President Xi Jinping against political elements behind former Chinese Vice President Zeng Qinghong — an ally of former leader Jiang Zemin and part of the Shanghai political faction. (Read more about China preparing for military action HERE)

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More Reasons China Preparing for Conflict with U.S.

By Alice Su and Tracy Wilkinson. Fears are rising on both sides of the Pacific that the U.S. and China could be headed for a total breakdown of relations and even outright conflict within the next few months.

As the two powers ordered the closure of each other’s consulates in Houston and Chengdu last week amid allegations of espionage, Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo called for the end of “engagement,” a policy that has defined U.S.-China relations for nearly five decades and is considered one of the Republican establishment’s most important foreign policy achievements in recent history. . .

In addition to the consulate shutdowns, the U.S. last week charged two Chinese nationals with hacking for Chinese intelligence agencies and arrested a Chinese researcher who had been hiding in the San Francisco consulate. She was part of a long-standing network of Chinese industrial spies spanning 25 cities, the U.S. Justice Department claimed.

The two countries have also clashed in recent weeks over tech, trade, student and journalist visas, the coronavirus outbreak, the South China Sea, Xinjiang, and Hong Kong. . .

“I am extremely worried about the arrogant inflexibility of China in the South China Sea,” [said Orville Schell, director of the Asia Society’s Center on U.S.-China Relations], pointing also to Xi’s stances on Tibet, Xinjiang, Taiwan and Hong Kong so far. To Xi, those are “core interests,” Schell said: “End of story. Shut up. No negotiation.” (Read more about China preparing for conflict with the U.S. HERE)

Republicans Concerned TikTok Could Be Used by Chinese Government to ‘Manipulate’ U.S. Elections

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Republicans are raising concerns over the expansive reach of Chinese-owned social media app TikTok and its possible effect on this year’s elections.

Sens. Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz, and Marco Rubio signed onto a letter to the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday to highlight the possibility that the social media app could be used to “manipulate” the public.

“TikTok has become a popular forum for Americans—particularly younger Americans—to engage in political conversations,” the GOP members wrote. “I’m greatly concerned that the CCP could use its control over TikTok to distort or manipulate these conversations to sow discord among Americans and to achieve its preferred political outcomes.”

This isn’t the first time that federal lawmakers have called attention to TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company Bytedance and is one of the most downloaded apps in the world, over concerns about the security and privacy data of its U.S. userbase. (Read more from “Republicans Concerned TikTok Could Be Used by Chinese Government to ‘Manipulate’ U.S. Elections” HERE)

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Vatican Computers Hacked in Chinese Espionage Effort; Trump’s Ex-Chief Strategist Says US Should Seize President Xi’s Personal Assets

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By Washington Examiner. Hackers working for the Chinese Communist Party allegedly accessed the private computing network of the Vatican for several months ahead of a September meeting to discuss the appointment of bishops in the Asian country.

Analysts with Recorded Future, a Massachusetts-based cybersecurity company, said they had detected an attack on Vatican computers in which Chinese infiltrators accessed communications between high-ranking officials in the church, who openly discussed upcoming negotiations pertaining to the pope’s role in confirming bishops to the heads of Chinese churches, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

According to a Recorded Future report set for release on Wednesday, the espionage tactics began in early May. The firm outlined how one electronic file was masked in such a way that it appeared as if it was sent from the Vatican to Monsignor Javier Corona Herrera, the head chaplain of the Holy See’s Study Mission in Hong Kong. (Read more from “Vatican Computers Hacked in Chinese Espionage Effort” HERE)

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In Wake of Espionage Effort, Steve Bannon Says Go After Chinese Leaders’ Personal Assets

By Jenni Fink. Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon praised America’s strong response to China on Tuesday and said if he was the one making the call, he’d take it a step further and go after President Xi Jinping.

Bannon told CNBC’s Squawk Box that China as a country and Xi are in the United States’ “gun sights.” Along with backing off support for the Chinese Communist Party, the U.S. should target Xi and those associated with them on a personal level, he said. Bannon also advocated sanctioning Xi and his “henchmen” and seizing all of their assets. . .

Bannon added that it’s “breathtaking” how U.S. strategy morphed into an “alliance of liberty,” bringing in the United Kingdom, India and Japan. Around the world, people are standing up to China, Bannon said, and this will be the “greatest legacy of President Trump’s eight years in White House” . . .

“The truth is that our policies, and those of other free nations, resurrected China’s failing economy, only to see Beijing bite the international hands that were feeding it,” [U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said recently]. “Whatever the reason, today China is increasingly authoritarian at home and more aggressive in its hostility to freedom everywhere else.” (Read more from this story HERE)

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Almost 24 Million People Affected by China Floods

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Torrential rains in China continued this week, threatening even worse floods after almost 24 million people have been impacted by 433 overflowing rivers, with millions evacuated and at least 142 dead as of Tuesday.

The largest of those rivers, the Yangtze, remains the focus of great concern. The third major flood of the year hit the massive Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze on Sunday, pouring 50,000 cubic meters of water per second into its containment systems. An even larger surge was expected by Tuesday evening.

According to China’s state-run Xinhua news service, the Three Gorges Dam has discharged water nine times since July 18. Some residents living below the dam suspect there have been more unreported discharges and worry that officials could decide to vent uncontrollable floodwaters on them if the integrity of the showpiece hydroelectric dam is threatened.

The worst is yet to come, according to a statement from China’s water resources ministry on Tuesday. The ministry described the current flood control situation as “severe” and warned “the new peak may appear later,” with at least three more days of torrential rain on tap.

According to Chinese officials, the water level in the Three Gorges reservoir is currently just under 160 meters, down from a high of 164.18 meters last week. The maximum rated level for the reservoir is 175 meters. (Read more from “Almost 24 Million People Affected by China Floods” HERE)

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USDA Warns Against Mysterious, Unidentified Seeds Mailed from China to Multiple US States; “Possible Bioterrorism”

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By Emily Czachork. Kentucky is one of eight U.S. states where residents have reportedly received parcels containing unlabeled seeds, seemingly sent from China by mail.

Ryan Quarles, commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, issued an alert [Sunday:] “Multiple states have opened investigations,” he wrote on Twitter, before providing residents with instructions should they receive one of the unsolicited parcels.

A photo attached to Quarles’ tweet showed six small seed bags wrapped in clear packaging. One seemed to contain a different variety of seed from the rest. Chinese characters appeared on two mailing labels pictured, as did a description listing the parcels’ contents as “jewelry” in English.

Agricultural departments in Virginia, Washington, Louisiana and Kansas shared nearly identical reports late last week. Each warned of potentially invasive species in its alert notice and encouraged residents to report any related information to the state. Residents in Utah, Arizona and Ohio have reportedly received unlabeled packages with seeds as well. (Read more about the unidentified seeds HERE)

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USDA Warns Against Chinese Seeds

By Thomson/Reuters. The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday warned residents against planting unsolicited packages of seeds arriving from China because they could harm the environment.

At least eight states, from Washington to Ohio, have also told residents in recent days not to put the seeds in the ground, after they arrived apparently from China in the mailboxes of people who did not order them. Officials said the seeds could be invasive species that could threaten crops or livestock.

“At this point in time we don’t have enough information to know if this is a hoax, a prank, an internet scam or an act of agricultural bioterrorism,” Ryan Quarles, Kentucky’s agriculture commissioner, said in a video posted on the department’s website. . .

The Chinese Embassy in Washington, DC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Read more about the unidentified seeds HERE)

China Retaliates, Orders U.S. to Shutdown Consulate

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China ordered the United States on Friday to close its consulate in the city of Chengdu, responding to a U.S. demand for China to close its Houston consulate, as relations between the world’s two largest economies deteriorate.

The order to close the Chengdu consulate in southwestern China’s Sichuan province continued Beijing’s recent practice of like-for-like responses to Washington’s actions.

Beijing had threatened retaliation after the Trump administration this week gave it 72 hours – until Friday – to vacate its consulate in the Texas city, and had urged the United States to reconsider. . .

Senior U.S. officials said on Friday espionage activity by China’s diplomatic missions was occurring all over the United States, but its Houston consulate was one of the worst offenders and its activity went well over the line of what was acceptable.

A senior State Department official also linked espionage activity at China’s Houston consulate to China’s pursuit of research into a vaccine for the new coronavirus. (Read more from “China Retaliates, Orders U.S. to Shutdown Consulate” HERE)

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President Trump Hints at Closure of More Chinese Consulates; China Threatens to Retaliate

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Trump Hints at Closure of More Chinese Consulates as China Fumes

By Al Jazeera. US President Donald Trump has indicated that it was “always possible” he would order the closure of more Chinese consulates in the United States, after the US gave Beijing 72 hours to shut its consulate in Houston further souring ties between the two countries.

Trump, at a White House news conference on Wednesday, noted that a fire had been spotted on the Houston consulate’s grounds after the US Department of State ordered the closure.

“I guess they were burning documents and burning papers,” he said. (Read more from “Trump Hints at Closure of More Chinese Consulates as China Fumes” HERE)

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China Threatens to Retaliate Over U.S. Closure of Houston Consulate

By Newsweek. China’s state-backed Global Times newspaper has taken to Twitter to ask followers where Beijing will retaliate for the U.S. closure of its Houston consulate this week.

The nationalistic newspaper—owned by the People’s Daily which is the Chinese Communist Party’s official publication—asked social media users to suggest which U.S. consulate in China would be ordered closed in response to the shuttering of the Houston facility, which means all staff will be evicted by Friday.

The U.S. order—given to “to protect American intellectual property and American’s private information,” according to State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus—was met with scorn in Beijing.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters Wednesday that the order constituted an “unprecedented escalation” in tensions, warning: “If the U.S. continues to go down the wrong path, we will resolutely respond.” (Read more from “China Threatens to Retaliate Over U.S. Closure of Houston Consulate” HERE)

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Joe Biden Makes Racist Comments While Accusing Trump of Being Racist Towards China; Senate Transcripts: Joe Biden Quoted N-Word 13 Times in 1985 Hearings

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Senate Transcripts: Joe Biden Quoted N-Word 13 Times in 1985 Hearings

By Breitbart. The presumptive 2020 Democrat presidential nominee, former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, used the N-word 13 times in a 1985 hearing series, U.S. Senate transcripts reveal.

Video of one such instance where Biden used the N-word twice when he was quoting someone else already surfaced late last month. The Senate hearing series during which Biden repeatedly used the offensive term was when he was questioning William Reynolds, then-President Ronald Reagan’s assistant attorney general for civil rights, when Reynolds was under consideration for a promotion to be associate attorney general. In particular, Biden was asking Reynolds about his role in providing clearance for a redistricting plan in Louisiana that courts later struck down.

A memo was submitted to Reynolds before he approved the redistricting plan that included a racist quote from someone described as a “key legislator” in defeating the alternative redistricting plan. According to this memo, that legislator, then-Republican Rep. Charles Emile Bruneau of New Orleans, allegedly said he opposed the left’s desired redistricting plan for Louisiana in starkly racial terms. We already have a n***** mayor (in New Orleans), and we don’t need another n***** bigshot,” Bruneau was quoted in that document as saying.

In his line of questioning Reynolds in these 1985 hearings—which stretched over multiple days—Biden repeatedly brought up this exact quote and kept using the N-word. In fact, U.S. Senate transcripts from the time demonstrate that Biden used it a grand total of 13 times.

The first instance occurred during the morning of June 4, 1985, when Biden first used the term twice. A later instance, from the next day, June 5, has already had widely circulating video of Biden reciting the derogatory term from the quote twice. While some people circulating the video left out the context that includes proof Biden was not using the N-word himself but quoting someone else saying it, the mere question as to if that is even acceptable has dogged politicians for some time. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, for instance, faced questions last year over his use of the word in a book in the late 1990s, especially from leftists and Democrats on Twitter:

[Warning: Tweets contain explicit language.]

(Read more from “Senate Transcripts: Joe Biden Quoted N-Word 13 Times in 1985 Hearings” HERE)

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Joe Biden Makes Racist Comments While Accusing Trump of Being Racist

By The Federalist. Former Vice President Joe Biden believes that President Trump is wrong to hold China accountable for COVID-19 and that Trump’s comments on the “Chinese virus” and “Wuhan virus” are harmful because people can’t tell those of Asian origin apart. The presidential candidate made the claims in a virtual town hall event hosted by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) on Wednesday.

“People don’t make a distinction, as you well know, from a South Korean and someone from Beijing” he said while gesturing to members of the town hall. “They make no distinction. It’s Asian.” . . .

Biden has a long history of suspected racism. Whether it was the time he told members of the Asian and Latino Coalition in Des Moines, Iowa that “poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids,” the time he apologized for referring to then Sen. Barack Obama as the “first mainstream African American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” or the time he claimed “You cannot go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin’ Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I’m not joking.” Biden has shown lack of poise when it comes to racist commentary.

More recently, Biden even claimed in an interview with Charlamagne tha god that “you ain’t black” if you vote for Trump. (Read more from “Joe Biden Makes Racist Comments While Accusing Trump of Being Racist” HERE)

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U.S. Orders China’s Houston Consulate to Close, Citing ‘Massive Illegal Spying’; FBI: China Harboring Military-Linked Biologist Fugitive

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By The Federalist. The United States ordered China to shutter its consulate in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday, accusing the communist government of a “marked increase” in spying operations over the past few years.

The U.S. gave Chinese officials at the consulate 72 hours to move out before being evicted. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) suggested that any Chinese agents from the consulate who don’t leave the country within 72 hours would be arrested as spies.

The consulate is one of five in the U.S., not including the Chinese embassy in Washington.

A statement from a State Department spokesperson accused China of having “engaged for years in massive illegal spying and influence operations,” which have “increased markedly in scale and scope over the past few years.”

Additionally, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus told Fox News that the U.S. “will not tolerate the PRC’s violations of our sovereignty and intimidation of our people, just as we have not tolerated the PRC’s unfair trade practices, theft of American jobs, and other egregious behavior.” (Read more from “U.S. Orders China’s Houston Consulate to Close, Citing ‘Massive Illegal Spying’” HERE)

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FBI: China Harboring Military-Linked Biologist Fugitive

By Fox News. The Chinese consulate in San Francisco is harboring a biology researcher who falsely denied connections to the Chinese military to obtain a visa and gain access to the country, according to court documents filed by the FBI.

The filing came as part of a document that cited a slew of other alleged episodes in which Chinese nationals allegedly lied on their visa applications by hiding their military connections.

Tang Juan, a researcher at the University of California, Davis, stated on her J-1 visa application that she “had never served in the military, but open source investigation revealed photographs of her in the uniform of the Civilian Cadre of the PLA [People’s Liberation Army], and that she had been employed as a researcher at the Air Force Military Medical University, which is another name for FMMU [Fourth Military Medical University],” the FBI claimed.

Then, during an interview with FBI agents on June 20, Tang “denied serving in the Chinese military, claimed she did not know the meaning of the insignia on her uniform, and that wearing a military uniform was required for attendance at FMMU because it was a military school.”

The FBI revealed it then executed a search warrant immediately at Tang’s home and found additional evidence of Tang’s PLA affiliation. (Read more from “FBI: China Harboring Military-Linked Biologist Fugitive” HERE)

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