70 House GOP members urge Trump admin on Chinese-vape crackdown

By Fox News · Fox News

Congressional Republicans are urging the Trump administration to make illegal Chinese-made e-cigarettes a bigger trade and law-enforcement priority, framing the issue as both a public health concern and a politically advantageous one for the 2026 midterms. "As trade discussions with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) advance, it is critical that the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Department of the Treasury confront the ongoing exploitation of our trade system," Rep. Mike Carey, R-Ohio, wrote in a joint letter from 70 House Republicans to USTR Jamieson Greer and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent . "Any new trade agreement with China should require the Chinese government, through its oversight of e-cigarette exports, to take decisive action to curb the influx of illegal, youth-oriented e-cigarettes that openly flout U.S. and Chinese law." A crackdown on unauthorized imported vapes allows Republicans to combine anti-China messaging, child-protection rhetoric and law-and-order enforcement in one issue, a GOP operative working on the 2026 midterms told Fox News Digital on Thursday. TOM COTTON DEMANDS FDA PROBE INTO ILLEGAL CHINESE INGREDIENTS IN US WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS That makes it especially attractive in battleground districts, where candidates often look for broad, cross-pressured themes that can win over independents and soft partisans on an 80-20 issue in battleground districts . "Cracking down on illegal Chinese vapes is not only smart policy – it's what voters want, and members of Congress are right to act on it," the operative wrote in a statement. Rep. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, warned this week that unapproved devices from China were appearing in Iowa communities. "Illegal Chinese vapes designed to hook kids on nicotine are showing up in Iowa communities, and the FDA never approved any of them," Nunn wrote on X . "As a dad of six, I'm fighting back." AS TRUMP TOUTS TARIFF WINDFALL, BATTLEGROUND STATES SHOULDER BILLIONS IN COSTS Federal and state auth…