Facing intense scrutiny from American lawmakers, TikTok has been assembling a powerful influence machine in the nation’s capital. Our review of existing reporting and public LinkedIn profiles shows that TikTok has hired more than two dozen well-connected D.C. power players, many of whom have close ties to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The CFIUS is in charge of negotiating the terms of — and overseeing — Project Texas, which is the data security plan TikTok hopes will stave off a nationwide ban. And in addition to those with CFIUS ties, TikTok has hired former staffers of Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Pete Buttigieg, Kevin McCarthy, Paul Ryan, John McCain, Adam Schiff, and Jeff Flake.

The CFIUS is an “interagency panel, comprising 16 U.S. government departments or agencies and chaired by the Treasury.” In addition to the Treasury, the panel includes the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Defense, State, and Energy, as well as the Office of Management & Budget and the National Security Council — all of which once employed people now working for TikTok:

TikTok employees with ties to the Department of the Treasury (CFIUS Chair)