Bipartisan bill seeks to block China, Qatar funding to American universities

INTERMEDIATE: A bipartisan group of lawmakers is trying to limit foreign influence in American education by targeting universities’ financial ties to rival countries.

The package would prevent government funding for colleges that operate “branch” campuses in rival countries or accept funding for research in critical fields such as artificial intelligence, biotech and quantum computing. China, for example, has been a major source of foreign influence in American education through its Confucian classes, which like Oklahoma have attacked.

At the federal level, Rep. Elise Stefanik, RN.Y., has taken a leading role in defending education on issues ranging from outside influence to anti-Semitism on campus; referring to the popularity of the case after which the former president of UPenn resigned amid pressure over his responses to it.

Stefanik has also come out in front of efforts to protect education, telling Fox News Digital that he is part of a bicameral, bipartisan group focused on keeping outside influence away from America’s growing minds.

“I introduced the No Hostile State Campuses Act with Senator Rick Scott, and this is part of a broader effort to reform higher education that I have been leading in Congress,” Stefanik said in an exclusive interview.

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“One of the challenges I have seen is the impact of foreign enemies fueling tensions in our higher education campuses. Part of this comes from money coming in from other countries, but also the presence of branches in these foreign countries.”

He mentioned that his country of New York has large universities that operate branches in China, but he said that the problem extends beyond the Empire State to other top schools in Chicago, Washington and other places.

Stefanik added that Confucius Institutes and classrooms were recently banned by the national security bill, and that just as that effort was bipartisan, so was his second education security bill this week.

The Defending American Research Act prevents any higher education institution from receiving federal research funding for five years if it receives funds from certain foreign countries including Qatar, Venezuela, Turkey and North Korea.

In Stefanik’s book, “Poisoned Ivies,” he noted that he delves into the dangerous aspects of today’s campus life, from outside influence to religious intolerance.

“[Ours] It was the most watched case in the history of Congress. It led to the resignation of many university presidents, but more importantly, it started an earthquake in higher education reform. There have been seismic changes at the highest levels, in the marketplace, as you see parents and students voting with their wallets and feet, as it changes,” said Stefanik, adding that many young Americans are seeking a college education in southern schools where the liberal influence of the northeast and west coast is largely muted.

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A Chinese flag flies near the Capitol dome in Washington, DC, amid a new law aimed at recruiting former Chinese government officials. (Douglas Rissing/Getty Images)

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, DN.J., joined Stefanik in the effort, and Scott told Fox News Digital that America “has enemies” and should “start acting like one” when it comes to their influence on higher education.

“Countries like Communist China and terrorist-supporting Qatar should not be able to use American colleges and universities as spying centers, steal critical research, and spread anti-American propaganda, but we’ve been allowing them to do that for years,” said Scott.

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“This legislation is critical to America’s national security and the future of our higher education system — nothing is for sale.”

Although this list includes the most obvious entries like North Korea, Cuba and China, Qatar is also included, as it remains a neutral or cooperative partner in the country’s security issues such as the evacuation of people from Afghanistan and the conflicts in Iran.

However, Stefanik said that when it comes to its influence on US education, his research has led him to “millions of dollars” from Doha that appear to support anti-terrorist interests and “professors who support terrorism” at other universities including his own state.

“I think that is one of the major ways in which we should reverse this influence of other countries that really originates from the establishment of these higher education institutions,” he said.

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Other nations listed on both bills include the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation.

The collective hope of the bill’s sponsors is that their measures will provide the necessary power to force American universities to cut ties with opposing governments or jeopardize their core mission.