Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks had some thoughts about Nancy Pelosi’s so-called America Competes Act. What he calls the “America CONCEDES Act. ”
After directing my staff to comb through the 2,900 page bill that dwarfs even Biden’s BBB Act, we have come to the conclusion that this bill appears to have been written to help China. The provisions tucked into this bill are so harmful to the United States or leave us so vulnerable to China’s malign activity, we have no other choice but to believe that the Democrats wrote this bill to concede to China.
Here are their observations.
1. Invites more malign CCP actors into the country: Creates a new visa cap carveout program that would be even less secure than the existing visa programs that already riddled with fraud. Shockingly, an unlimited number of members of the Chinese Communist Party are eligible to take advantage of the new visa program to carry out their malign activity here in the States (page 1689).
2. Ties our hands behind our back: The bill urges the US to abide by the dangerous and short-sighted Paris Climate Agreement which would cripple our economic output and does almost nothing to stop China’s much more rampant pollution (page 1323).
3. Provides more opportunities for China to steal our intellectual property: The bill directs the US and the People’s Republic of China to work together and undertake ‘parallel initiatives’ on research, development, finance and deployment (pg. 1340).
4. Distracts our military from focusing on China: The bill would direct the US Armed Forces to train to combat climate change events (pg. 1396).
5. Lets China off the hook for their role in the pandemic: The only mention of the investigation into COVID origins is a meaningless requirement that mandates Biden give a report to Congress (page 995). No independent investigation, no sanctions, no punishment.
6. Pads China’s coffers: Under this bill, China will be eligible for financial assistance from the World Banks Group and Asian Development Banks if assistance will contribute to “fighting climate change” (page 1480).
7. Wastes taxpayer dollars on issues completely unrelated to China:
• $8 billion for the UN Green Climate Fund (page 1392)
• $2 million a year in foreign aid to countries to combat climate change (page 1375)
• $22 million to investigate a residential building collapse (page 191)
• Establishes a new federal program to study plumbing (page 227)
• Establishes a Coral Reef Task Force (page 1645) and gives $6 million to the NOAA to create
a National Coral Reef Management Fellowship (page 1653). In fact, it’s so focused on coral
reefs that “coral reefs” is mentioned more times than the word “China.”
• Includes the Marine Mammal Research and Response Act that mandates financial and
regulatory “support” to protect marine mammals.
8. Includes policies inspired by divisive & anti-American Critical Race Theory: Provides $5 million to create a Chief Diversity Officer at the National Science Foundation (page 328) and direct the NSF to ensure diversity, equity and inclusion in the technology sector (page 318).
9. Adds fuel to inflation fire: Costs $250 billion and there’s no design to pay for the bill, so much of it will be added to our national debt.
10. Turns a blind eye to Confucius Institutes: The bill fails to ban federal funding for colleges and universities that host Confucius Institutes, a tool of the Chinese Communist Party to steal our intellectual property and censor our campuses (page 1967).
11. Allows China a global platform for their propaganda: The bill does not call for moving the International Olympic Games outside of China instead opting for a weak slap on the wrist aka a “diplomatic boycott” (page 1249)
So, at the very least, it is a giant climate bailout that favors China over you, which makes no sense. China is the biggest polluter globally and a rising military power that is not shy about it.
The Congressional Democrat response to this is to make it harder for the US to compete, to make it easier for China.
That and whatever other garbage is buried inside. I’m sure there’s more.
So, how do we think our all-Democrat Delegation will respond to this? I didn’t look to see if any votes have been cast, but I feel confident we can guess the answer.
They will all support China over America.
