Thread by @mpukita

1) MCCONNELL CORRUPTION & CONFLICTS

I want to summarize what I read in Peter Schweizer's book, "Secret Empires" about Mitch McConnell @LeaderMcConnell.

I honestly believe for most people, even those who pay close attention to politics, this will blow your minds.

Let's go ...

2) Senator Mitch McConnell @LeaderMcConnell & his wife, Elaine Chao @ElaineChao, benefit from close ties to the Chinese military-industrial complex.

Chao's family has reaped large profits from its ties to the Chinese government & the Communist Chinese Party (CCP)

3) No wonder Mitch McConnell @LeaderMcConnell is rarely critical of Beijing as he & his extended family make large sums of money off the Chinese.

McConnell is now top US Senator. Chao was a Presidential Cabinet Member twice. Under Bush & Trump.

They are consummate "insiders".

4) The McConnell-Chao conglomerate made their money fast.

In 2004 their net worth was estimated to be $3.1M based on public disclosures.

Just 10-years later that estimate rose to between $9.2M & $36.5M.

5) I'll be adding to this thread over the next few days, as I get time.

6) Where did the sharp increase come from? In 2008 the couple got a gift from Elaine Chao's father James.

The Chao family's wealth comes from Foremost Group, a shipping company, that Elaine Chao's father James founded & (as of the publishing of the book) still owns.

7) As of 2019 public estimates show Foremost Group to be valued at ~$1.2B.

The company has come under scrutiny due to perceived conflicts of interest involving Elaine Chao – daughter of its founder & sister of its current CEO – and Mitch McConnell.

8) The conflict stems from Elaine Chao's role as Secretary of Transportation – which regulated US-registered cargo vessels – during the administration of President Donald Trump.

Can there be any clearer example of a conflict of interest?

9) As McConnell & Chao have risen in political prominence, so has the value of Foremost. Foremost has developed strong relationships with the Chinese government.

McConnell's father-in-law & sister-in-law have served on the board of directors of a Chinese military contractor.

10) Another of McConnell's sister-in-laws was appointed to be on the board of the Government-controlled Bank of China. She was only the second foreign national to be named to that board.

Foremost has done significant business with China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC).

11) While Foremost is a US company, most of their ships were built by Chinese shipyards, and financed by the Chinese government. Their crews are predominantly Chinese.

But, when Chao was Sec. of Transportation she said US ships crewed by Americans are a security imperative.

12) Foremost's cargo ships have done considerable business with Chinese government-owned businesses.

Elaine Chao joined the Reagan administration as a White House Fellow & later headed the US Maritime Commission.

Chao & McConnell married in 1992.

13) The Chinese representative to the United Nations, a Chao family friend, attended their wedding. Mitch McConnell's ties to the CCP therefore go back to AT LEAST 1992. That's 30 freakin' years people!

14) In December 1993 McConnell traveled to Beijing where he met privately with many of the leadership in the CCP. This was not a congressional trip. It was not arranged by his senate office. The trip was arranged by his father-in-law James Chao.

15) It came as the result of an invitation from CSSC. The Chinese State Shipbuilding Corporation. McConnell met with the CCP Leader, who went to university with James Chao, as well as China's Vice Premier.

Business? Politics? Or both, as appears to be typical in DC & Beijing?

16) After this, both McConnell & Chao had several additional opportunities to meet with the Chinese Premier.

Additionally, CSSC played a big part in the growth & profit generated by Foremost.

This is collusion with the Chinese to weaken the USA & line the pockets of the family.

17) The Chaos-McConnells, through Foremost, went into & are in business with China.

The Chinese have the power to damage Foremost & therefore the wealth of the McConnells-Chaos.

Any wonder why Mitch McConnell is so silent on China? Any wonder why China gets away with so much?

18) McConnell's perspective on China is public record & has evolved since the late 80s.

In '89 McConnell gave a hardline speech at the University of Louisville about the Tiananmen Square Massacre.

And, he was the only GOP Senator to criticize Bush's covert mission to China.

19) In '91, when democratic & free Hong Kong was set to be put back under China's control in '97, McConnell sponsored the "US Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992", designed to send a clear message to China to leave in place the free market freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kong. A tough stance.

20) But then McConnell's views on China softened.

Timing seems perfect. Remember, McConnell married Chao in '93.

He made media rounds as the '97 Hong Kong handover neared, messaging he felt China would be more likely to become like Hong Kong (after handover) than the reverse.

21) He went on MSNBC saying the US should be "ambiguous" about whether we would support Taiwan if the Chinese were to attack the island nation.

He opposed the "Taiwan Security Enhancement Act" of 1999 which had broad GOP support.

Quite a change, don't you think?

22) In 2000, McConnell co-sponsored S2277, a bill to remove requirements on China to show annual progress toward improving civil rights or lose its trade status, which Congress put in place after the Tiananmen Square Massacre.

So much for the civil rights of the Chinese people.

23) In September '11 the Senate introduced S1619, the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act. It penalized countries like China that manipulated their currency to give themselves an unfair advantage vis-a-vis other countries in international trade.

McConnell fought it.

24) Harry Reid, the Senate Leader at the time, used the "nuclear option" to change Senate rules & get the bill passed. McConnell voted against it.

McConnell uses the excuse that he's been a consistent "free trader" when he helps China. However, his actions do not support this.

25) He voted to penalize Japan for currency manipulation & unfair trade practices to benefit their automotive industry.

26) He supported trade restrictions on Burma due to their civil rights record.

He supported protection of Kentucky's tobacco industry during the Trans Pacific Partnership negotiation.

Actions don't square with words when it comes to Mitch McConnell, @LeaderMcConnell.

27) Let's look at Elaine Chao, @ElaineChao. She's been criticized for being "soft" in China.

Here's some evidence that this criticism is warranted.

28) Remember the 2008 Beijing Olympics? When 8 Americans were arrested protesting the Chinese occupation of Tibet?

Chao (@ElaineChao) was the leader of the US contingent to that Olympics.

There, she lauded progress by China, completely neglecting to talk about the protesters.

29) Chao was gushing about China.

anneapplebaum.com/2008/08/26/sho…

30) Elaine Chao was basically a butt-kisser of the CCP during her tenure in the Bush administration.

When a petition was filed under Section 301 of the "US Trade Act of 1974" in protest of the labor practices of the Chinese, Chao opposed it.

31) What is Elaine Chao's true allegiance?

In 2013, Chao accompanied her father to China as a private citizen, where he gave a speech at Peking University titled, "American in Spirit Chinese at Heart".

Elaine Chao answered questions from students after the speech.

32) Not once did she mention human rights or freedom of speech.

In early July of 2000, the Chinese language newspaper Sing Tao published a five-part feature on Elaine Chao, using her Chinese name "Chao Hsiao-lan".

33) The answers Chao gave reveal just how closely she identifies with & supports the Chinese communist regime.

She said in the interview that she "in no way" agreed with the Cox Report.

34) According to Wikipedia, "[The report] is a classified U.S. government document reporting on the People's Republic of China's covert operations within the United States during the 1980s and 1990s. The redacted version of the report was released to the public on May 25, 1999."

35) You can download the report here:

china.usc.edu/cox-report-1999

36) Chao also stated U.S. media & Hollywood demonize China & that it's unfortunate the Republican Party has Christian & religious critics of China.

She suggested China should understand it's in a PR war & should improve its PR by cultivating contacts with Congress & journalists.

37) It's odd how few in DC know about the financial ties between the McConnell-Chao dynasty & China. It's even odder how mainstream media ignores them too.

Shipping industry publications typically explain Foremost as having strong ties to both the US & China governments.

38) Summarizing the growing relationship between the Chao Family (including Foremost Group) & the Chinese government (CCP) is challenging because the ties are significant & often buried or obscured.

39) For example, the Chaos (through Foremost) are big clients of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), buying some of the world's largest cargo vessels (too big to transit the Suez Canal). They've spent $100s of millions if not billions with these Chinese state companies.

40) Their crews are predominantly Chinese.

They base their vessels out of Chinese ports.

They provide shipping of raw materials into & out of China.

They service many state-owned Chinese companies.

Family members sit on boards of state-owned Chinese companies.

41) These board seats are obscured by the Chaos using their Chinese names when listed as board members of these state-owned Chinese companies.

One such company is designed to attract foreign investment in China's arms industry, CSSC Holdings, an offshoot of CSSC.

42) Thus, the Chaos sit on the board of a company closely tied to the CCP and the Chinese military-industrial complex.

For example, another subsidiary of CSSC builds submarines.

Remember, the Chinese are racing to build a Navy bigger than ours - and are just about there.

43) The money flowing from the Chinese government to the Chao family is more than just from the shipping business.

Elaine Chao has spoken many times at the behest of the Chinese government for large fees.

44) Chao did not disclose these fees on McConnell's annual Senate Financial Disclosure forms. It's known that she has been paid as much as $50,000 for a speech.

Repeated questions to Chao about these speeches and the fees have gone unanswered.

45) These questions are legitimate. Like Bill Clinton raked in enormous speaking fees while Hillary was Secretary of State, so is Elaine Chao while Mitch McConnell is in Senate leadership.

46) While she is languished with speaking fees each rivaling the annual household income of average Americans, Mitch McConnell sits in Senate leadership shaping, guiding, directing, and controlling legislation effecting China.

47) Elaine Chao @ElaineChao is either a pro at pushing ethics limits or a master at covering up unethical & corrupt activities.

While Wikipedia is not an unimpeachable source of truth, it's a great starting point to analyze her long list of conflicts:

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elaine_Ch…

48) Chao served as President Trump's Secretary of Transportation until resigning on January 7, 2021, a day after the J6 protests. Her resignation letter stated:

“Yesterday our country experienced a traumatic and entirely avoidable event as supporters of the president ...

49) ... stormed the Capitol building following a rally he addressed. As I’m sure is the case with many of you, it has deeply troubled me in a way that I simply cannot set aside,”

Chao later met with the J6 Committee.

50) Wrapping this up, I find it impossible for Mitch McConnell to be uncompromised by the family connections, business entanglements, & money involved with his & Elaine's connections with China, inarguably the #2 enemy of America behind the mainstream media.

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