The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for records on ties that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, the Democratic Party’s vice presidential nominee, has to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Chairman James Comer (R-KY) announced the subpoena on Monday, one day before Walz is expected to appear for his vice presidential debate against his rival, Sen. J.D. Vance. The top House lawmaker cited whistleblower disclosures causing concern.
“The Committee has learned of a non-classified, Microsoft Teams group chat among DHS employees — titled ‘NST NFT Bi-Weekly Sync’ — that contains information about Governor Walz that is relevant to the Committee’s investigation,” he said in a cover letter.
Comer added that his committee “has also learned that further relevant information regarding Governor Walz has been memorialized in both classified and unclassified documents in the control of” the Homeland Security Department (DHS).
Vice President Kamala Harris, who replaced President Joe Biden atop the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential ticket after he was pressured to step aside by allies amid concerns about his age and health, picked Walz to be her running mate in early August.
Later that month, Comer declared his panel would be investigating Walz over his “extensive” ties to entities linked to the CCP, expanding an inquiry already looking at the Biden administration and China’s efforts to meddle in the affairs of the United States.
Teddy Tschann, a spokesperson for Walz, said in a statement reported by The Washington Post that his boss and Harris would “ensure we win the competition with China, and will always stand up for our values and interests in the face of China’s threats.”
He also claimed “Republicans are twisting basic facts and desperately lying to distract from the Trump-Vance agenda: praising dictators, and sending American jobs to China,” referring to former President Donald Trump, the GOP’s presidential nominee.
Comer’s subpoena demands records from the Microsoft Teams group chat “NST NFT Bi-Weekly Sync” from July 1, 2024, to present, and all Intelligence Information Reports and Regional Intelligence Notes from November 2023 to present related to Walz.
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A deadline of October 7, roughly one month before the November election, for the DHS to provide the documents was listed in the subpoena. The Daily Wire has reached out to DHS seeking comment on the demands and will update this report if it responds.
If a governor or VP pick is compromised by the CCP, it would “strongly suggest that there are alarming weaknesses in the federal government’s effort to defend the United States from the CCP’s political warfare that must be urgently addressed,” Comer wrote.