This week, U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., the first Green Beret to serve in Congress, introduced a bill “to prohibit the Department of Defense from establishing or maintaining a Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) program at any private school owned by a subsidiary company of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).”
Waltz introduced the bill on Monday. U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Penn., is co-sponsoring the bill.
“Firms with direct ties with the CCP are buying up American private schools. It is troublesome that our government has been supporting some of these schools financially,” said Waltz. “Our legislation would ensure that the Pentagon will no longer provide funding to these schools.”
“As a former teacher and ROTC cadet, I was greatly disturbed to learn that there were American private schools with ties to the Chinese Communist Party running JROTC programs,” said Houlahan. “I’m proud of our JROTC programs and how they shape the next generation, but we must ensure they remain representative of our nation and its values.”
The bill was sent to the U.S. House Armed Services Committee. So far, there is no companion measure over in the U.S. Senate.