The report released by Axios states
“ Through campaign fundraising, extensive networking, personal charisma, and romantic or sexual relationships with at least two Midwestern mayors, Fang was able to gain proximity to political power, according to current and former U.S. intelligence officials and one former elected official.”
Fang :
Fang helped place at least one intern in Swalwell’s office, according to those same two people, and interacted with Swalwell at multiple events over the course of several years.
What happened: Amid a widening counterintelligence probe, federal investigators became so alarmed by Fang’s behavior and activities that around 2015 they alerted Swalwell to their concerns — giving him what is known as a defensive briefing.
Swalwell immediately cut off all ties to Fang, according to a current U.S. intelligence official, and he has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
Fang left the country unexpectedly in mid-2015 amid the investigation. She did not respond to multiple attempts by Axios to reach her by email and Facebook.
Between the lines: The case demonstrates China’s strategy of cultivating relationships that may take years or even decades to bear fruit. The Chinese Communist Party knows that today’s mayors and city council members are tomorrow’s governors and members of Congress.
In May 2019, the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force quietly added a unit aimed at countering China’s political influence in the United States. In an exclusive interview, an FBI official reveals for the first time the bureau’s approach to countering China’s interference in local and state politics.
Surely not Pete Bootjudge! 😜
As in Mayor “Mr. Popular” Pete??? 😉
https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/3913352/posts?page=1
Exclusive: Suspected Chinese spy targeted California politicians
AXIOS ^ | Axios Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian, Zach Dorfman of the Aspen Institute
Posted on 12/8/2020, 9:57:07 AM by Red Badger
A suspected Chinese intelligence operative developed extensive ties with local and national politicians, including a U.S. congressman, in what U.S. officials believe was a political intelligence operation run by China’s main civilian spy agency between 2011 and 2015, Axios found in a yearlong investigation.
Why it matters: The alleged operation offers a rare window into how Beijing has tried to gain access to and influence U.S. political circles.
While this suspected operative’s activities appear to have ended during the Obama administration, concerns about Beijing’s influence operations have spanned President Trump’s time in office and will continue to be a core focus for U.S. counterintelligence during the Biden administration.
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re: Axios report
makes you wonder why the DJT admin waited so long to leak this..
I can’t imagine they weren’t aware of it...
and if so, why was DJT so chummy with China until the plague?
Were we coordinating with Xi to remove the DS?