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Rep. Young Kim’s campaign is donating $5,200 it received from Chinese-American media mogul James Su after his Southern California home and office were searched by the FBI in a reported foreign-influence probe.
Kim’s campaign said the money will be donated to organizations supporting victims of human trafficking and prostitution.
“Given those reports, we are donating the funds to organizations that support victims of human trafficking and prostitution, including women like those Congressman Calvert solicited while serving in Congress when he was supposed to be fighting for Californians,” Chris Pack, a Spokesperson for the Kim campaign told the California Post.
“Since 2018, Young has raised more than $30 million from nearly 200,000 donors. The $5,200 in question were made years ago, and the campaign had no knowledge of the allegations now being reported against him,” Pack added.
Su, who owns a major Chinese-language media company in the US, gave Kim $2,700 in 2018 and another $2,500 in 2021, according to Federal Election Commission records first reported by Politico’s California Playbook.
The businessman has also been photographed with Kim at an event in 2018.
The FBI searches of Su’s Ontario-area home and office in late July were reportedly connected to a federal investigation into possible foreign influence.
Su has not been charged with a crime in connection to the probe.
Su’s media company registered as a foreign agent after a Reuters investigation reported that it was backed by a Chinese state-run radio organization.
The controversy is also adding fuel to an increasingly bitter Republican battle between Kim and Rep. Ken Calvert, who are now competing for the same congressional seat following California’s redistricting.
Calvert’s campaign seized on the contribution issue and accused Kim of failing to address concerns about Su until the payments attracted public scrutiny.
“It is deeply concerning that Young Kim took thousands of dollars from a registered Chinese foreign agent who is running a Chinese Communist Party media outlet. She didn’t return the money because it was the right thing to do but because she got caught and the media started asking questions about her ties to Su,” Calvert campaign spokesman Calvin Moore said.
“Voters deserve an explanation as to why she turned a blind eye to foreign influence for years, and what other questionable cash she might be hiding,” he added.
Young camp defender her from Calvert’s accusations.
“In her short time in Congress, Young Kim has quickly established herself as one of the leading critics of the Chinese Communist Party and has even been targeted by the CCP and threatened with arrest,” pack said.
“It’s laughable that 32-year, do-nothing incumbent Ken Calvert would suggest otherwise,” he told the Post.
The Post has reached out to Su for comment.
The dispute comes as Kim and Calvert face off for the Republican nomination in California’s newly redrawn 40th Congressional District.
Calvert finished first in the June all-party primary with 75,811 votes, or 34.9%, while Kim received 44,818 votes, or 20.6%. The top two finishers advance to the November general election regardless of party affiliation.
The redistricting has forced the two Republican incumbents into a head-to-head contest after previously representing neighboring districts in parts of Orange and Riverside counties.
The race has already featured sharp attacks from both campaigns, with each seeking to portray the other as insufficiently conservative and out of step with President Trump.
The broader California congressional map is also a major battleground as Democrats seek to regain control of the House. A redistricting plan backed by Democrats is expected to create opportunities for the party to gain several seats in November.
The FBI raids have also put a renewed spotlight on Su’s political donations, including contributions to other California Democrats.
He has given Rep. Judy Chu $25,800 over the years, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Chu said she was waiting for additional information from federal investigators before deciding how to handle Su’s contributions.
“These investigations must be taken with the utmost seriousness, because we cannot allow corruption and illegal foreign influence to infect the government and media,” Chu said.
Su, meanwhile, remains under federal scrutiny but has not been charged in connection with the FBI investigation.
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