Politics

by Jason Hopkins and Philip Lenczycki (INVESTIGATIVE GROUP) Numerous Chinese government-linked entities have bankrolled a nonprofit accused of offering tips on how to evade federal immigration authorities, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation found. House Republicans recently launched an investigation into the Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC) — a New York-based nonprofit that’s been awarded over $1.4 million in tax-payer dollars since 2022 — after an undercover video surfaced purportedly showing CPC staff coaching illegal immigrants on how to avoid Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) apprehension. A review of CPC’s financial records discovered Chinese government-linked sources have been pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into the nonprofit in recent years, raising concerns of potential foreign obstruction of U.S. immigration enforcement. “I’m deeply concerned that Americans’ hard-earned taxpayer dollars were potentially used by an NGO [non-governmental organization] to help illegal aliens subvert our nation’s laws,” Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, a Republican from Tennessee, told the DCNF. “Even more troubling is the Chinese-American Planning Council’s alleged ties to the [CCP] — a regime we know is committed to undermining U.S. sovereignty,” Green continued. “This Committee will continue investigating suspicious activities by NGOs to protect taxpayer dollars from supporting those who make a mockery of our laws.” (MORE NEWS: Complicit? California Democrats Send Another Child Sex Trafficking Bill Into Oblivion – LGBTQ Concerns Raised) CPC has received as much as $445,969 in donations from sources with ties to the Chinese government since 2018, according to financial records reviewed by the DCNF. State-run enterprises such as Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and Bank of China as well as other entities connected to the Chinese Community Party (CCP) have provided financial assistance to CPC in recent years, records show. Additionally, CPC also appears to have significant financial and personnel links to a New York-based nonprofit, which, in turn, has extensive ties to Beijing and a CCP influence and intelligence arm. CPC did not respond to multiple requests for comment. ‘If ICE Comes To The Door…’ Founded in 1965, CPC serves to promote the interests of Chinese-American, immigrant and low income communities across New York City, according to its website. The organization bills itself as the country’s largest Asian American social services group and claims to provide more than 50 “high-quality” programs at numerous sites across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. The House Homeland Security Committee announced on April 16 that it would begin investigating CPC for potentially using federal funds to facilitate illegal immigration. In an April letter first obtained by the DCNF, Green and Oklahoma GOP Rep. Josh Brecheen demanded CPC president Wayne Ho hand over documentation related to his group’s immigration seminars, funding grants and other related material. The investigation is in response to undercover footage obtained by Muckraker.com, which allegedly shows CPC’s chief policy and public affairs officer, Carlyn Cower, and other staff  directing audience members on best practices to avoid ICE apprehension during a March 8th CPC seminar in New York City. (MORE NEWS: ‘Will Be Punished’: Consequences Arrive Early For Canadian Voters After Doubling Down On Wokeism) To avoid ICE, Cowen recommended “hardening your physical space,” “identifying a list of individuals authorized to respond if ICE comes to the door” and “training everybody who’s going to be involved,” footage shows. Another speaker at the event directed individuals to “not open the door at all.” While state and local officials are not required to assist ICE with its mission, individuals are prohibited by law from getting in the way or otherwise impeding immigration enforcement actions. Immediately upon being sworn into office, Attorney General Pam Bondi ordered funding to be pulled from sanctuary cities — and called for the Department of Justice to investigate NGOs receiving federal grant money. The Trump administration has made clear it will not tolerate any obstruction of justice, and followed through on this position with the recent arrest and indictment of a Wisconsin judge for allegedly helping an illegal migrant in her courtroom evade an ICE agent. A main concern for House Republicans is whether CPC has been facilitating illegal immigration all while raking in thousands of dollars in federal grants. Around 55% of CPC’s total revenue comes from federal and state government grants, according to the House Homeland Security Committee. The New York City-based group has been awarded more than $1.4 million in direct federal grants from the Department of Health and Human Services since 2022, and may have received more federal funding awarded through New York State. The CCP Orbit’ A review of CPC’s annual reports show it not only received U.S. federal tax dollars, but also large sums of cash from Chinese government sources. The Bank of China, a state-owned banking corporation based in Beijing, gave CPC as much as $9,999 in 2020 and up to that same amount in 2024, the nonprofit’s annual reports show. CPC also received donations from Chinese state-run Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) in 2018, 2019 and 2023, amounting to as much as $19,997, the nonprofit’s annual reports show. The Hong Kong-based Bank of East Asia has also donated to CPC every year since at least 2018, having possibly doled out as much as $45,000, according to CPC’s financial records. Top executives for the bank, such as co-chief executives Adrian David Li Man-kiu and Brian David Li Man Bun, have both served as delegates to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) at either regional or national levels, according to their English language profiles on the bank’s website. CPPCC “delegates attend a high-profile annual meeting to receive direction from the CCP regarding the ways its policies should be characterized” and “serve as proxies for CCP interests,” according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. The Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, a NYC-based health services provider catering to the local Asian-American community, has likewise donated large sums to CPC in recent years, according to a review of CPC’s annual reports. Since 2018, the health center contributed as much as $229,993 in donations to CPC, its records show. However, Charles B. Wang — a Chinese-American billionaire and major donor to the health center — frequently met with CCP influence and intel leaders in China, state-run media reports reveal. A DCNF translation of Chinese government records reveal Wang served as an “executive…