The timing of this is interesting, given that China is now considering giving weapons to Russia for use in Ukraine.
It seemed that from 2020 until recently, the intelligence community was trying to lower tensions with China. That's shifted now with China's increasing support Russia's war in Ukraine and China's increasing pressure in Taiwan.
It's now in the US's interests to try and isolate China geopolitically. So, we're shooting down balloons and blaming them for Covid, rather than turning a blind eye.