Former Arcadia, California, Mayor Eileen Wang has agreed to plead guilty to acting as an illegal foreign agent for China, according to court documents unsealed this week. The felony charge alleges Wang promoted the interests of the People's Republic of China (PRC) under the direction of Chinese officials from late 2020 to 2022. She resigned from her position hours after the plea agreement was made public by the Department of Justice. Wang faces a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Wang and a man named Yaoning 'Mike' Sun ran a website called U.S. News Center, which targeted the area's large Chinese diaspora. Federal prosecutors say the platform disseminated pro-China propaganda at the behest of PRC government officials while concealing their ties to the Chinese government. The city of Arcadia, with a population of roughly 55,000, has an Asian-majority population of about 59%, with over 46% of residents saying they are foreign-born.
Broader Context and Implications
The case is part of a broader pattern of alleged Chinese influence operations in the U.S. The Department of Justice has indicted local and state officials in California, New York, and elsewhere for working with the Chinese government. Former and current members of the U.S. military, including pilots, have also been indicted for providing secrets and training to the PRC. The House Select Committee on China recently reported that one of its staff members was offered $10,000 to provide inside information about the committee's work, which the staffer declined and reported to the FBI.
Diverse Perspectives
Some experts argue that China's spy efforts are part of a long-term strategy to infiltrate American institutions. Former Defense Intelligence Agency officials David Shedd and Andrew Badger have argued that China's geopolitical rise is due, in part, to state-sponsored industrial espionage. They say the U.S. needs an 'urgent wake-up call' to address the threat. Others, however, suggest that the U.S. has been slow to appreciate the scale and sophistication of China's espionage efforts.
Legal and Political Reactions
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli stated that 'individuals in our country who covertly do the bidding of foreign governments undermine our democracy.' The plea agreement is seen as a success in the U.S.'s efforts to defend against China's influence operations. Meanwhile, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley warned that if the Chinese Communist Party is brazen enough to target congressional staff, similar activities are likely occurring in boardrooms, universities, and defense contractors.