Key facts
- Incoming House Democrats are weighing whether to disband or reshape the select committee on China, sources told Nikkei Asia.
- Some lawmakers are considering using the panel to investigate Trump's personal and cabinet-level dealings with China, per Nikkei Asia.
- Representative Ro Khanna is expected to chair the panel if Democrats retain it, Nikkei Asia reported.
- A Jeffries spokesperson said China-related oversight will be an important priority next Congress regardless of committee structure.
- Chairman John Moolenaar said Republicans want to keep the panel's bipartisan mandate as-is, in a statement to Semafor.
- The bipartisan panel was established in 2023 under GOP House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to examine US competition with China.
Incoming House Democrats are debating whether to disband or reshape the chamber's select committee on China, with some lawmakers considering using the panel to investigate President Donald Trump's personal and cabinet-level dealings with China, sources told Nikkei Asia in a report published November 10, 2026.
One option under discussion is broadening the committee's focus beyond China to other foreign actors, according to people familiar with the situation cited by Semafor. Decisions on the panel ultimately rest with Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who has said the caucus will discuss future steps. A Jeffries spokesperson said oversight of China-related matters will be an important priority next Congress regardless of committee structure.
A complication is that the panel's current top Democrat, Representative Ro Khanna of California, likely plans to run for president, Semafor reported. If he runs, Democrats might have to switch chairs midway through Congress. The last Democrat to serve as its ranking member, Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, stepped down when he launched an unsuccessful Senate bid.
The bipartisan panel was established in 2023 under GOP House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and examines US competition with China, including technology transfers and export controls. Republicans appear to want to keep it as-is. Chairman John Moolenaar, Republican of Michigan, said in a statement to Semafor that the challenges the nation faces are becoming more urgent given technology competition in AI and what he called the CCP's growing coercion targeting America's allies and partners.
Democrats flipped the Senate and House of Representatives in the midterm elections, The Guardian reported, giving them majorities in both chambers for the final two years of Trump's presidency.