Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) spoke today before the House Committee on Rules in opposition to H.R. 4521, the America Concedes Act.
Excerpts and highlights from her prepared remarks:
BEATING CHINA AT THEIR OWN GAME
“This isn’t just a missed opportunity to boost American competitiveness, it will actively set us back in our goal to beat China and win the future.
“The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) tries to compete with the United States and other free market economies by cheating, stealing, and using their centrally controlled economy to pick winners and losers through massive government subsidies.
“Instead of embracing free markets and American innovation and ingenuity, this legislation tries to copy China’s own dangerous path of centralized industrial policy and massive government handouts that benefit the ruling party’s political allies.
“We cannot, and should not even try, to beat the CCP at their own game.
“This isn’t the American way.
“We have done more to raise the standard of living, lift people out of poverty, cure diseases, and spur technological innovation than any other country in the history of the world.
“We’ve done so by creating an environment built on freedom, free markets, human rights, and respect for human dignity.
“Where success isn’t contingent on the approval or direction of the federal government.
“Where hard work, creative thinking, and risk-taking are rewarded.
“Where an idea can become a million, billion, or even trillion-dollar company.
“The approach of the America Concedes Act ignores this recipe for success and instead attempts to cover up the many crises created by the Biden-Harris administration and this Democratic Congress through more wasteful spending.”
DEMOCRATS’ DESTRUCTIVE AGENDA
“Virtually every piece of the Democrats’ radical agenda from the last year under one-party rule hurts America’s ability to compete globally.
“Their war on American energy has set back our energy independence and harmed our economic and national security, while making us more dependent on China.
“Their record amount of government spending has created rampant inflation and made everything more expensive.
“A trip to the store means Americas are paying more for beef, eggs, chicken, and other groceries—that is if the shelves are stocked.
“Their regulatory agenda has made doing business in America even harder.
“Speaker Pelosi’s drug pricing control scheme will destroy American medical innovation.
“Their radical environmental agenda will make it impossible to have a domestic source for the critical minerals and chemicals needed for advanced manufacturing and make it even harder to build in the USA.
“And their push over the last two years to keep our schools closed will set back an entire generation of Americans.
“If the Democrats truly wanted to make America more competitive, they would abandon their destructive agenda and work with us to reform our burdensome permitting, licensing, and regulatory regimes.
“These are the reforms we need to truly unleash a new era of American innovation.
“Sadly, Speaker Pelosi has chosen to double down on a reckless tax and spending spree that will benefit the Left’s political allies, lead to rampant waste, fraud, and abuse, and increase our dependence on China.”
ENERGY AND COMMERCE PROVISIONS
“While there are some bipartisan provisions from the Energy and Commerce Committee, the main provisions in E&C’s title are extremely problematic.
“Like many other parts of the bill, the Democrats have inserted labor requirements into a previously bipartisan program that would help spur development and deployment of advanced communications infrastructure.
“Instead of helping us beat China in 5G and close the digital divide, these new requirements will make it harder and more costly to deploy next generation communications, further ceding leadership to the CCP.
“A new grant and loan guarantee program at the Department of Energy ignores the mistakes of the past, and instead doubles down on the failures that led to the Solyndra fiasco.
“This $3 billion ‘Domestic Solar Manufacturing Program’ has even less controls on waste, fraud, and abuse than the program that led to Solyndra.
“This is a supercharged Solyndra.
This bill also doesn’t prevent these taxpayer funds from being used to purchase materials and parts from China, who remains dominant in the critical minerals and materials needed for renewable technologies.
“Again, the Democrats are picking winners and losers through their rush to green, which is only going to end up emboldening the CCP.
“Finally, the brand new $45 billion ‘Supply Chain Resiliency Program’ is nothing more than a slush fund for the Democrats’ special interests.
“This expansive new program will prioritize labor unions, Blue State mayors and governors, and other Democratic political allies over the businesses and entities that can actually make our supply chains more resilient.
“It also allows these taxpayer funds to go to other countries, including an ambiguous category of ‘key international partners’ that isn’t defined.
“This ambiguity would give the administration tremendous leeway to direct funds to foreign countries who may not have America’s best interests at heart.
“After the disastrous withdrawal in Afghanistan, pacifying Putin by approving the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and working to appease the Ayatollah for the failed nuclear deal with Iran, I do not trust the Biden-Harris administration to decide what constitutes a ‘key international partner.’”
COMMAND AND CONTROL
“The America Concedes Act is the completely wrong approach.
“I encourage my colleagues to abandon Speaker Pelosi’s plan for more reckless spending and command and control that will surrender America’s competitive edge to China.
“Let’s work on a real solution to make America more competitive to win the future and offer a better life for all.”
