Michigan Republican to take helm of House China panel after Gallagher’s departure

Republican Rep. John Moolenaar (Mich.) will serve as the next head of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) following the departure from Congress of Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) next month.  

Announcing his appointment Monday, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Moolenaar will be “an exceptional chairman” for the committee. 

“His leadership experience in the private and public sectors, his academic background, and his principled service in Congress have earned John the respect of his colleagues on both sides of the aisle,” Johnson wrote in a statement shared with The Hill. 

Moolenaar thanked Johnson for the appointment and nodded to Gallagher, whom he called an “incredible leader” for the country. 

“I am thankful to the Speaker for this appointment, and I look forward to working with Ranking Member [Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.)], the members of the Select Committee, House leaders, and the standing committees in the weeks and months ahead,” he said Monday. “Together, we can help our country prepare for the challenges we face from the Chinese Communist Party and win the competition against the CCP. “

The committee, formed in January of last year, is focused on curbing the threat of the Chinese Communist Party. It had an influential voice in the recent passage of a House bill regarding the potential threat of TikTok and concerns about China’s influence on the platform. 

The bill passed in a 352-65 vote earlier this month and would force ByteDance to divest itself of TikTok within 165 days or risk the app being banned in the U.S. The bill now heads to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain fate. 

Gallagher announced last week he would depart from the House on April 19. The four-term lawmaker announced last month he would not seek reelection in November but did not announce his final day in the lower chamber at the time. The move will leave the House GOP with a razor-thin majority, meaning the conference can only lose one vote on bills that do not have any Democratic support.

Moolenaar, 62, is in his first term in the House. Last month, he was part of a bipartisan congressional delegation to Taiwan alongside Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi.