Pelosi says Russia poses bigger election threat than China, Iran
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says Russian election inference is more serious than China, Iran; reaction and analysis on 'Outnumbered.'
China's state-affiliated media are openly rooting for a Joe Biden victory in November, fueling warnings by U.S. intelligence officials of Beijing's plan to interfere in the upcoming election on his behalf.
But unlike Russian meddling in 2016, a new article published on the website of China's state-run tabloid Global Times that deemed Biden "smoother to deal with" than President Trump garnered little attention in the U.S., conservative commentator Ben Shapiro observed Thursday.
CHINA'S ANTI-TRUMP ELECTION MEDDLING RAISES NEW ALARM
"It seems like it should be a big story that Chinese media are openly pushing for Biden, and that intelligence suggests the Chinese government wants to interfere in the election on China's behalf," Shapiro wrote on Twitter. "But Orange Man Bad, so I guess not."
The article argues that "Many Chinese analysts predict that China will need to deal with Biden in at least the next four years," quoting foreign policy experts who claim the consensus is shared "around the world."
"For China, because Biden was vice president during Obama's term, and had a lot of prior experience dealing with Chinese leaders, we would expect to facilitate more effective communication with Biden if he wins," the author claims.
Earlier this week, Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe told Fox News that China poses “a greater national security threat” to the United States “than any other nation,” warning of “election influence and interference.”
ODNI 'PRIMARILY CONCERNED' WITH CHINA, IRAN, RUSSIA 'SEEKING TO COMPROMISE' 2020 ELECTION
While Russia was widely seen as favoring now-President Trump and seeking to sow general chaos in America during the 2016 campaign, China seems to have the singular goal of a Trump loss in November. Yet congressional Democrats like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, who ever since 2016 have issued dire warnings about Russian meddling, have not been quite so vocal about China’s potential to interfere in the 2020 election.
Pelosi, D-Calif., last week said the threats of interference from Russia and China are “not equivalent,” while urging the intelligence community to put out more information about Russian efforts and claiming Moscow is “actively 24/7 interfering in our election.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Ratcliffe said the threat from China is actually significant, and he is “committing the IC [intelligence commuity] resources needed to fully understand the threat posed by China and provide U.S. policymakers with the best intelligence to counter China’s broad and deep malign activities.”
Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report.