The new committee was formed in the 118th Congress for the specific purpose of investigating and developing policy to address the United States' economic, technological, and security competition with the Chinese Communist Party.
McCarthy's nomination comes after an underwhelming performance in the midterm election. This led to a search among conservatives for a challenger. The vote puts McCarthy in line to be the next speaker of the House, only if he wins at least 218 votes in the full House of Representatives.