The proposed change to the tax code is meant to dissuade American businesses and funds from supporting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which lawmakers and the intelligence community have increasingly warned is a national security risk in recent years.

“For too long, Americans investing in China’s military-industrial complex have been given unfair tax breaks that allow them to profit from funding our adversary,“ Moolenaar stated in the announcement. ”Our nation’s tax code should be incentivizing investment in the United States, not collaboration with the CCP.”

Capital gains tax policy allows for the deferment of paying taxes for profit on an investment. It’s meant to encourage investment, and currently has no location-based restriction. The bill, titled the Patriotic Investment Act, targets investments with ties to the CCP, and specifically notes it doesn’t apply to Taiwan.

Chinese investments would instead be taxed at the highest income rate. If the bill is passed into law, companies would have six months to divest from China before the new rate kicks in, and can pay in three installments.

“The Capital gains tax rate was meant to encourage investment in American innovation, not fund an oppressive communist regime,“ Rubio stated. ”But Wall Street continues to give money to our adversaries and reap rewards from the American tax system. Enough is enough.”

In addition to national security concerns, the lawmakers noted that the CCP pours “hundreds of billions of dollars” into enterprises to maintain its military, which aids its persecution of ethnic and religious minority groups via torture and slave labor, and violates international trade rules in a way that has “dismantled” American industries, businesses, and jobs.

The bill comes a day after Moolenaar previewed the action at a talk at the American Enterprise Institute, calling divestment from the CCP a “No. 1 priority.”

China, the world’s second largest economy, is currently facing an economic crisis, with record levels of foreign investment pulling out.

Still, its economy is deeply intertwined with international supply chains, and Chinese companies, most of which have CCP ties, still supply critical components to American companies, even in competitive industries.

When the White House earlier this week proposed a ban on Chinese software and firmware for connected vehicles, the Commerce Department noted that implementation would need to be delayed until 2027 because American manufacturers have said that they do not know where all of their parts components originate and the new due diligence processes will be complex.

In the chip industry, the United States has taken many steps to block China’s access to advanced semiconductors, but China is still a top exporter of larger chips, and American companies still depend on them.

In the RealClear Politics piece, Mr. Cortes wrote that he had believed Republican voters were ready to move on from former President Donald Trump this election cycle, and “I now believe I was wrong.”

Mr. Cortes was an advisor in President Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns.

In May 2023, he announced his endorsement of Mr. DeSantis in a Newsweek editorial, writing that the “America First movement” was bigger than President Trump.

He made a case for Mr. DeSantis as “the best possible option to win the presidency in 2024” with few references to President Trump, but he later criticized the former president on social media.

As the spokesman of Never Back Down, Mr. Cortes was asked about Mr. DeSantis’s stalling poll numbers contrasting with President Trump’s consistent lead. His comment about the governor being “way behind” in the polls during a Twitter spaces event kicked off a spate of coverage about Mr. DeSantis’s embattled campaign.

In October, Mr. Cortes left his position as a spokesperson for Never Back Down but did not withdraw his support for the governor.

“Those of us who backed Ron DeSantis—or the other Republican candidates—should read the room,” he wrote in his new op-ed.

He pointed to President Trump’s victory streak in the polls and most recently in Iowa and said it was time to “coalesce and unite” behind the GOP voters’ favorite.

“We do not have the luxury of further internal strife and instead must gird for an epic battle this autumn against our opponents who are inflicting daily damage upon America,” Mr. Cortes wrote, echoing President Trump’s victory remarks after Iowa, where he called for unity and praised his GOP rivals for a change.

He inferred that voters want Trump because they “admire the resilience of this outsider who is so reviled by the ruling class” and see him as their champion, referencing the spate of legal cases against President Trump as examples of corruption.

Mr. Cortes wrote that time spent attacking President Trump “only dilutes the power of our cause” as the general election draws near.

Mr. Cortes urged unity against a second term for President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris, pointing to the border crisis and inflation.

“At such a flashpoint in history like this one, political unity among conservatives is an imperative,” he wrote.

“How do we save America? It is time to unify behind former President Trump as he leads the battle against the ruling class and the oligarchs intent on destroying the American way of life.”

Mr. Cortes “pledged” to campaign for President Trump as he “proudly did in 2016 and 2020.”

Trump should promise to nominate RFK Jr as CIA Director when elected. #Checkmate

— JD Rucker (@JDRucker) July 1, 2023

I’ve seen many Republicans and even full-blown conservatives embrace RFK Jr all the way, as in hoping that he can be the next president. On the issue of the Covid-19 “vaccines,” he’s the best on either side of the aisle. He’s strongly opposed to aid for Ukraine, has shown support for the 2nd Amendment, and has called out the likes of Bill Gates and Klaus Schwab over climate change despite being an environmentalist himself. But as the article below by Catherine Yang highlights, conservatives must know that RFK Jr is still a Democrat and holds many positions that run contrary to ours. Keep that in mind before becoming a “RFK Republican.” Here’s Catherine’s article…

Republicans took to Twitter to applaud the Supreme Court while Democrats chided President Joe Biden for not doing more after Friday’s ruling striking down the president’s debt forgiveness program.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who has announced his intent to run against Biden in the 2024 primaries for the Democratic presidential candidate, joined voices criticizing Biden after the ruling.

“The unfortunate SCOTUS ruling striking down President Biden’s #studentloan forgiveness program was the predictable result of Biden’s failure to bring Congress together on this issue of crucial importance to young Americans,” Kennedy wrote on Twitter. 

“President Biden knew his plan wouldn’t survive a legal challenge. His plan gave the appearance of action, while accomplishing nothing. This is an issue of grave importance to our country. As President, I will galvanize public support to pressure Congress to put down their partisan positions and legislate meaningful relief to the tens of millions of Americans who are drowning in student debt.”

Kennedy also addressed the costs of higher education, including a way to provide it at no cost to students.

“I will also take steps to reduce education costs for students. When I was their age, a college education cost about one-seventh of what it is today. A young person could work their way through college and graduate debt-free. If we devoted even a fraction of our military budget to higher education, it could be virtually free to all (as it is in many other countries),” he continued.

Kennedy has called for de-escalating the war in Ukraine, saying the United States has had many opportunities to do so.

“Funding higher education is not an entitlement program, it is an investment in America’s future, just as with infrastructure and environment. Let’s invest in America’s young people instead of in the forever wars,” he continued.

A June 10–13 poll (pdf) showed Kennedy had the highest favorability rating among presidential candidates at 49 percent, exceeding both Biden and Trump.

He has highlighted these numbers, including 20 percent of Democrats in New Hampshire, in his campaigning while acknowledging that he might not have the traditional support from the Democratic Party or donors. Some have speculated that his favorability will drop as Democrats come to familiarize themselves with his platform.

Earlier this week, Ray Buckley, chairman of the N.H. Democratic Party, posted a letter asking Kennedy to cancel his speech at a local libertarian event, PorcFest.

“We must express our serious disappointment and grave concerns about your planned participation in this event,” he wrote.

Kennedy responded in the negative on Twitter: “The Democratic Party Bosses who promote censorship, who have stripped New Hampshire of its rightful First in the Nation primary status, who have shut down debate, who refuse to campaign in New Hampshire, are in no position to tell me who to talk to. I’m going to speak at Porcfest because I believe in freedom, unity, healing the divide, and truth.#LiveFreeorDie.”

Article cross-posted from our premium news partners at The Epoch Times.