Republican senator says he’s critical of China, but his massive stock ventures signal otherwise

Harry Wilmerding, DCNF

A Republican senator critical of China and companies doing business there recently bought and sold stock and options of a Chinese e-commerce giant, according to his financial disclosures.

Republican Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville and his wife made three purchases of Alibaba stock in December 2021, according to financial disclosures filed Wednesday. The purchases were valued at as much as $250,000. Tuberville also sold Alibaba stock worth up to $100,000 in December, according to the disclosures.

Tuberville’s trading activity with Alibaba dates back at least to the summer of 2021, according to his disclosures. Meanwhile, the Alabama Republican is among China’s harshest critics in Congress, according to CNBC.

The senator introduced an act in May 2021 seeking to prohibit Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) funds from being invested in companies based in China. The TSP is a retirement fund program used by millions of military and civilian employees.

“We’ve seen it time and again – Chinese companies don’t play by the rules, committing intellectual property theft and disregarding basic regulatory standards at the expense of investors,” Tuberville said when introducing the act.

Just a day before introducing the act, Tuberville said that Americans need to learn how “the Chinese Communist Party is coming after us, not just with missiles and military might, but with plans to subdue the American spirit.”

“The Chinese Communist Party has continually spied on its citizens, violently suppressed dissent and systematically persecuted religious and ethnic minorities to the point of genocide,” he said.

Tuberville then praised President Joe Biden in June 2021 for issuing an executive order that allowed the U.S. to prohibit investments in Chinese companies that pose a risk to the U.S and its allies.

“This Executive Order is a step in the right direction … Chinese companies routinely violate U.S. sanction laws and actively enable the Chinese Communist Party’s military expansion and persecution of religious minorities,” Tuberville said at the time.

Alibaba’s co-founder, Jack Ma, has been a member of the Chinese Communist Party since the 1980s, CNBC reported.

“Senator Tuberville has long had financial advisors who actively manage his portfolio without his day-to-day involvement,” Tubeville’s spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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