House Science, Space and Technology Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Chairman Mike Haridopolos, R-Fla., posed the issue during a hearing Thursday as a question for the future.

"Will humanity carry forward the American values of economic and political freedom, or those of the Chinese Communist Party? For generations the United States led humanity into space with unmatched ingenuity and without a true rival," Haridopolos asked.

During the hearing, witnesses warned of China's expanding space program. Members of both parties cast the moment as a "defining challenge," arguing that U.S. leadership in space is at risk as Beijing accelerates its push for dominance.

According to Dean Cheng, senior fellow at The Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, "From the [Chinese Communist Party's] perspective, space contributes to all aspects of comprehensive national power - military, economic, diplomatic, political, scientific and technological, even cultural."

Committee leaders said China is executing a long-term, whole-of-government strategy to surpass the United States across civil, commercial and military space capabilities. They pointed to Beijing's plans to land astronauts on the moon by 2030, establish a lunar research base by 2035 and return Mars samples years ahead of NASA.

China has already accomplished a number of historic firsts, including landing and collecting samples from the far side of the moon.

"China has maintained a continuous human presence on its own space station since 2021 where their astronauts serve in six month rotations. In the coming years, China intends to deploy its own space based Internet service and expand its global alternative to GPS [global positioning system]," Haridopolos said.

Lawmakers framed the stakes in stark terms, comparing today's competition to the 20th-century space race and even centuries-long rivalries between global powers.

According to Haridopolos, China seeks not just to match the United States, but "to out pace, out maneuver and ultimately defeat our nation."

Ranking members echoed that assessment, noting that China's space advances are tightly linked to national pride, geopolitical signaling and military advantage.

"The threat to American space systems is not simply anti-satellite weapons, but also jamming and cyber attacks," Cheng said.

Along with the other witnesses Cheng highlighted China's growing arsenal of counterspace weapons, precision navigation systems and technologies such as in-orbit refueling and satellite capture. These capabilities are directly linked to strengthening the People's Liberation Army.

The witnesses reinforced the urgency, describing China's methodical planning, rapid industrial capacity, and fusion of commercial and military space sectors.

"Military-civil fusion is about creating a fused national industrial base that can serve both military and civilian demands," Cheng said.

While China still lags the United States in launch scale, witnesses said, it is closing the gap and leveraging long-term stability and strategic focus. They urged Congress to bolster U.S. science and research investment, strengthen partnerships and fully commit to maintaining American leadership in what they described as a generational contest.

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