HUAWEI IN THE DEM DEBATE

Three candidates in Tuesday’s Democratic presidential primary debate in Charleston, S.C., said they would not allow Chinese companies to build critical infrastructure in the U.S.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) all said yes when they were asked by the CBS News moderators if they would bar Chinese companies from building critical infrastructure, although the discussion moved quickly into releasing tax returns.

Sixteen infrastructure sectors are classified as critical by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Act of 2018, including energy, financial services and communications.

Although the Democratic White House hopefuls didn’t highlight a specific sector, Congress and the White House have been actively debating how to deal with Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei.

The company, which is the world’s largest producer of telecom equipment, is heavily involved in the worldwide move to fifth generation (5G) wireless technologies.