Honorary Chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action Jenny Beth Martin told Newsmax Friday that it "certainly seems" like the White House is being run out of Beijing, given the Biden administration's delayed response to the Chinese spy balloon last week.
"It certainly seems that way when we look at what happened last week with the balloon and knowing that so many Chinese nationals are coming in through the border, not through proper legal channels," Martin said during an appearance on Newsmax's "The Chris Salcedo Show." "It's very, very concerning. It alarms me to think of what else they may just acquiesce to with China over the next 18 to 20 months, while [President Joe] Biden is still in power."
According to a report from the New York Post, the number of Chinese nationals illegally crossing into the United States during the last three months of 2022 spiked by more than 700% compared to the same period a year earlier. U.S. Customs and Border Protection apprehended 1,862 Chinese nationals at the southern border during the last quarter of 2022, compared to 229 detained during those same months in 2021, according to agency data.
"It's incredibly important that we do secure our border so that we have an idea of who is coming here in our country, and we make sure they're not spies or not people who are working for foreign governments trying to harm our country and to harm our national security," Martin said.
Martin said that one bright spot in the current political landscape is the Republican majority in the House of Representatives.
"I think that one of the most important things that we have from the elections last fall is that now we have oversight," she said. "When you have one party that controls both chambers of Congress and the White House, there is not a lot of opportunity for oversight.
"But with divided government, you're able to have that," she continued. "I'm so thankful for these hearings and what the House Republican leadership and the entire House Republican conference has committed to when it comes to exercising their oversight power of the Biden administration."
Martin added that it was important to understand how abuses of power occurred so the responsible parties can be held accountable, "because we have to clean it up."
Responding to the news of a leaked FBI memo that revealed the agency was targeting traditional Catholics, Martin said, "This is proof positive that we cannot trust Democrats running our government.
"Back when the Tea Party was originally targeted by the IRS, I think that there had been fewer groups who were targeted by the government — though, of course, different groups have been targeted by the government over the years; and it's completely wrong, no matter who it's happening to," she said. "What's happening to Catholics and Christians in this country with the FBI is absolutely abhorrent. It is unconstitutional; it is wrong; and it goes against everything that this country stands for."
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