• U.S. intelligence has determined that the spy balloon found in U.S. airspace was part of a larger Chinese surveillance program operating around the world.
• President Joe Biden issued an executive order in May 2021 to improve the nation’s cybersecurity.
• U.S. intelligence was able to detect the balloon due to the enhanced surveillance of the Biden administration.
• Republicans have complained that Biden didn’t shoot the balloon down earlier, but defense officials said they were collecting intelligence from the device.
• Biden said the balloon did not change the developing patterns between the U.S. and China.
• The U.S. has signed a deal with Japan and the Netherlands to limit exports of semiconductor technologies to China.
• The Republican House has come up with 17 new bills to counter China.
• The Australian Lowy Institute has assessed that China’s isolation because of Covid has set it back, permitting the U.S. to retain its position as the key player in Asia.
• The Senate and the House will receive classified briefings on the balloon and Chinese intelligence this week.
• House speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) complained by tweet that Biden hadn’t mentioned China in the first hour of his State of the Union address.
Published February 9, 2023
Visit Letters from an American to read Heather Cox Richardson’s original post February 8, 2023
