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Nikki Haley’s campaign has accused Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis of hiding evidence about his state’s economic development drive in China after a state agency appeared to remove listings for a satellite office in Hong Kong from its website.
It comes after Haley and DeSantis, both candidates for the Republican Party nomination, traded their Chinese archives, in a growing feud expected to continue in the next debate on November 8.
Tuesday has the Washington Examiner published a report on the feud, noting that DeSantis chaired the public-private economic development partnership Enterprise Florida, now called Select Florida, which sought Chinese investment in the state.
By Thursday morning, Select Florida’s website had removed a 146-page page Report 2020 which mentioned China 75 times, as well as a map showing an international satellite office in Hong Kong The messenger.
“Ron DeSantis has been recruiting Chinese companies to Florida for years,” a spokesperson for Haley said in a statement. “Now that he is running for president, he is doing everything he can to hide all the evidence. The more Ron DeSantis loses, the more he lies.”
Nikki Haley’s campaign has accused Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis of hiding evidence about his state’s economic development drive in China after a state agency appeared to remove listings for a satellite office in Hong Kong from its website.
The map identifying a satellite office in Hong Kong was removed from Select Florida’s website between Wednesday and Thursday, according to a new report
Spokespeople for DeSantis’ campaign and administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment from DailyMail.com Thursday evening.
However, the administration told The Messenger that the changes to the website were part of a larger overhaul resulting from the state law that disbanded Enterprise Florida and created Select Florida in its place.
It said it had removed some items from Select Florida’s website that were “outdated information on a website for an organization the governor had abolished, so it was updated accordingly.”
DeSantis’ office said Select Florida’s predecessor cut ties with China-related companies this year, “after realizing that companies had infiltrated the Hong Kong Stock Exchange with investments from the Chinese military.”
“Governor DeSantis and his administration have unpacked the educational, economic, contractual, intellectual, and security issues related to China since he took office in 2019,” the administration said.
“As most states are discovering, the scope of covert Chinese interests has been expanding for decades, and unraveling these ties will require a sustained effort.”
DeSantis and Haley, who are running a distant second and third behind Donald Trump in the Republican Party primaries, have clashed repeatedly over China in their bid to stand out ahead of next week’s debate. week in Miami.
By Thursday morning, Select Florida’s website had removed a 146-page report from 2020 (seen in part above) that mentioned China 75 times
The feud began after DeSantis’ campaign and super PAC hit out at Haley over her record on China during her tenure as governor of South Carolina.
Never Back Down, the super PAC backing DeSantis, released a 30-second spot this week accusing Haley of making “dangerous judgment” on China while she was governor, the second such attack ad in recent weeks.
“Nikki Haley spent her governorship recruiting Chinese companies to South Carolina, calling them a friend, and failing to take corrective action to protect her state from the threat of the CCP,” a spokesperson for DeSantis told the Examiner.
“As president, Ron DeSantis will ensure that America wins and China loses. Nikki Haley’s past actions indicate that she would continue to roll out the red carpet for the CCP, which means disqualification for anyone running for president.”
A spokesperson for Haley fired back, saying, “Every governor who ran for president tried to recruit Chinese companies to their state.”
“Nikki Haley did it ten years ago. Ron is now aggressively recruiting Chinese companies. The facts are clear. Ron DeSantis is lying about his record because he’s losing. That’s sad.’
The third Republican primary debate will take place in Miami next Wednesday.
NBC News will host the event at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County and broadcast it from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET.