Republicans slam Kamala Harris’ claim spy balloon won’t impact Chinese relations

Republicans are criticizing Vice President Kamala Harris for downplaying the impact a Chinese spy balloon recently shot down by the US military has had on Washington’s relationship with Beijing.

The suspected surveillance device was shot down by US warplanes off the coast of South Carolina on February 4, after passing through several US states at an altitude low enough to be seen with the naked eye, alarming to millions across the country.

It comes at a time of historically tense diplomatic relations between the United States and China.

When asked if the balloon incident affects that relationship, Harris said political: ‘I don’t think so, no.

“We believe that everything that has happened in the last week and a half is very consistent with our stated approach,” Harris explained.

In this US Navy handout, Sailors prepare material recovered in the Atlantic Ocean from a high-altitude balloon for transport to federal agents at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek.

He said that approach was a goal for “competition, but not conflict or confrontation.”

“What an incredibly incompetent thing to say,” Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) wrote on Twitter Wednesday in response to Harris’s response about the balloon.

‘The CCP spies on Americans without fear of repercussions, & [Harris] Are you acting like it’s no big deal?

He accused the Biden administration of pursuing an “appeasement” policy with the increasingly authoritarian government in Beijing, which he said was “creating chaos.”

“Kamala Harris said the Chinese spy balloon that flew over our country and spied on the Americans does not affect our relations with China,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) wrote.

“It looks like the Biden administration won’t get tough on communist China.”

Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) also expressed outrage over Harris’ interview.

“This administration has no desire or strategy for dealing with China. It’s scary,’ Crenshaw said Wednesday.

Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott called Harris’ comments “incompetent”

Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn said the administration “will not get tough on China”

The balloon was first detected over US airspace on January 28, then briefly entered Canadian territory before returning to the US.

President Joe Biden had given the order to shoot it down when it was over the continental United States, but was warned not to do so for fear that Americans would be injured by falling debris.

Republicans have accused the White House of not acting quickly enough, but Pentagon officials have said they gained valuable intelligence on Beijing’s vast surveillance program as the balloon passed across the country.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled his planned diplomatic trip to China amid the furor that ensued.

The Senate is scheduled to receive a classified briefing on the suspected spy balloon on Wednesday afternoon.

On Tuesday, lawmakers were informed about the demolition of four objects in eight days.

The Beijing device was the first incident, but little has been discovered about the last three objects since.

The White House announced Friday that the US military had shot down an unknown object over Alaska. Then US aircraft were used in the NORAD shootdown of another object over the Yukon desert on Saturday.

Another unknown device that briefly closed airspace over Montana on Saturday night was shot down on Sunday over Lake Huron in Michigan.