Who We Are
Led by Ambassador Joseph Cella who countered the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) influence abroad and saw the immediate need to do the same in the U.S. the Secure Our States Coalition is a 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to strengthening the resilience of state and local leadership against the PRC’s strategic efforts to influence U.S. policies and weaken our nation. Our organization, composed of former members of Congress, State Department officials, and distinguished military veterans, is committed to minimizing U.S. economic dependency on China, disrupting spionage activities, and dismantling the influence of theChinese Communist Party (CCP) at state, local, and federal levels. We aim to inform citizens about the malign activity of the CCP and empower them to confront and counteract these influences effectively.
What We Do
The People’s Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party are waging a whole-of-government campaign to strategically exploit political and economic vulnerabilities at the U.S. state and local levels to establish dependencies and gain influence. It’s our goal to stop them.
Citizen Education and Mobilization
It’s Beijing vs. Main Street, and we are committed to giving local activists the educational, political, and policy tools they need to mobilize against pro-China initiatives in their towns and states.
Policy Engagement & Advocacy
The Secure Our States Coalition leverages decades of high-level governmental experience to assist local and state lawmakers in countering PRC/CCP influences through strategic legislative support as well as providing on-the-ground insights to Congress and the Executive Branch about the PRC’s subnational incursions.
Strategic Due Diligence
The PRC/CCP has a history of employing shell companies to facilitate strategic investments at the state level, effectively masking their direct participation in business ventures. Recognizing this tactic, SOS stands ready to assist state and local entities through strategic due diligence reports.
Leadership
Joseph James Cella, Founder and Executive Director
Ambassador Cella served as the United States Ambassador to Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga, and Tuvalu from 2019-2021. Cella remains engaged with the growing threat of China to the Indo-Pacific and the United States, delivering remarks, writing, conducting media interviews, and advising policy makers. In 2023 he co-founded the citizen-led Michigan-China Economic Security and Review Group and serves as its Director. He has over twenty-five years of experience in public service, the private sector, and non-profit work. He has advised Members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. Cella has launched, helped to establish, and served on the boards of several non-profit organizations, and operated as a confidential advisor to various public officials, religious leaders, and business leaders. He is the Founder and Principal of the Pontifex Group, a consulting firm whose practice areas include public policy, public and media relations, marketing, crisis management, and institutional launching and growth. Over the years, Cella has served in managerial, senior leadership, and volunteer positions in several political campaigns on the federal, state, and local levels. He is the Founder of the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, which has welcomed presidents, chief justices, prominent religious leaders, and other distinguished speakers and guests from around the World. He is a co-founder of In Defense of Christians and Fidelis (Catholic Vote) and worked with over a dozen other nonprofit organizations, including Hillsdale College, where he earned his B.A. Cella recently received The Hillsdale College Distinguished Alumnus Award in recognition of outstanding professional achievement in the field of American Diplomacy. Cella served as the Catholic Liaison for the 2016 Donald J. Trump for President Campaign and managed the campaign’s Catholic Advisory Group. He also served on the Presidential Transition Team. He and his wife, Kristen, have seven children—four boys and three girls—ranging in age from 20 years to 6 years old. Cella and his family were the largest family to serve in an ambassadorial posting overseas in the history of the State Department. The Cella Family live on a small farm in Michigan.
