CNN correspondent says confronting Huawei is ‘rare point of agreement’ between GOP, Democrats

CNN’s chief national security correspondent, Jim Sciutto, said in an interview that aired Tuesday on Hill.TV’s “Rising” that confronting Chinese telecom giant Huawei is a rare point of agreement between Republicans and Democrats.

“On China, the president has been willing to confront its bad trade practices, which include the theft of national security secrets to a degree that previous presidents have not,” Sciutto, who previously served as chief of staff to former U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke, told hosts Jamal Simmons and Saagar Enjeti. 

“There’s no firewall between Chinese state enterprises or Chinese private-sector companies and the government. They work for the country’s interests, and by law, they’re required to play ball on these issues,” he continued. “So those security concerns are genuine, and to confront the Huawei issue is the great thing to do and you hear this from Republicans and Democrats.” 

“It’s a rare point of agreement both on the national security front, but also the trade front,” he said. “There’s no question that China’s a bad trade actor. They cheat. They disadvantage U.S. and western companies in China in a way that we do not disadvantage them.”

President Trump signed an executive order earlier this month to block foreign tech companies, like Huawei, from doing business in the U.S. if they are deemed a national security threat. The administration delayed the order for 90 days.

Sciutto is promoting his new book, “The Shadow War: Inside Russia’s and China’s Secret Operations to Defeat America,” which details how the two countries have used online attacks against the U.S.

— Julia Manchester