Senator Ted Budd | Senator Ted Budd Official photo
Senator Ted Budd | Senator Ted Budd Official photo
U.S. Senator Ted Budd, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has put forward the Military Installation Retail Security Act. This proposed legislation seeks to prevent the Department of Defense from creating, renewing, or extending retail agreements with businesses owned or managed by hostile nations on U.S. military installations. The bill mandates an evaluation of all retailers on these bases to check for connections to China, Russia, Iran, or North Korea.
Senators Tom Cotton and Rick Scott have allied with Senator Budd in this initiative. Concurrently, Congressman Pat Harrigan presented similar legislation to the House of Representatives.
Senator Budd emphasized the importance of the bill, stating, “Adversarial nations have no place owning and operating businesses on U.S. military bases, all the while gaining personal identification information of American citizens, just to turn a profit.”
Senator Cotton further supported this sentiment, saying, “We shouldn’t be allowing Chinese-affiliated companies in the United States, let alone on our military bases.”
Senator Scott commented on the broader implications by expressing, “The Military Installation Retail Security Act will close the loopholes that allow these bad actors to gain footholds within our military communities.”
In the House, Congressman Harrigan identified GNC as a potential security concern, as it is owned by the Chinese Communist Party and operates over 80 stores on U.S. military bases. He remarked, “It’s a direct threat to our national security... I’m glad to have Senator Budd step in to help drive this forward.”
Retail establishments on military bases have direct access to service members and their families, presenting risks such as potential unauthorized surveillance. The Chinese-owned Harbin Pharmaceutical Group, which acquired GNC in 2020, currently runs more than 80 stores on these bases.
GNC, once a family-owned business in Pittsburgh, serves significant military populations, like the troops at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
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