Two US business groups were chastised by House legislators on Tuesday for “unconscionably” charging $40,000 for tickets to dine at the table with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a meal held during the Communist leader’s visit to the US for the APEC summit, according to The New York Post.
Following Xi’s meeting with President Biden on Wednesday, the US-China Business Council and the National Committee on US-China Relations, two groups for US businesses doing business with Beijing, will host Xi for a $2,000-per-plate dinner with corporate executives from the US.
“It is unconscionable that American companies might pay thousands of dollars to join a ‘welcome dinner’ hosted by the very same CCP officials who have facilitated a genocide against millions of innocent men, women, and children in Xinjiang,” the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) wrote in a letter to the hosting associations.
The House panel also said that the organizations that host the head of the main US enemy should be closely examined for their influence on US-China ties. The group works on strategies to manage the rivalry and tensions between Washington and Beijing.
“USCBC and NCUSCR’s decision to profit from selling access to the senior-most CCP official responsible for the Uyghur genocide raises serious questions about whether these organizations are playing responsible roles in the bilateral relationship,” the letter reads.
The associations were urged by the select committee to provide a “complete list of individuals, companies, financial institutions and other entities that have purchased tickets to the CCP dinner” in their letter. Additionally, a separate list of people who paid the $40,000 to dine at Xi’s table was requested.
On X, the social network previously known as Twitter, Gallagher claimed the business community “needs to remove its golden blindfolds and understand that doing business with the CCP risks the safety of their employees, their shareholders, investors and the savings of millions of Americans.” Forty thousand dollars “may buy you a meal with Xi, but it can’t buy you a conscience”.
