Owens Statement on the America CONCEDES Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04) released the following statement on his vote against Speaker Pelosi’s America CONCEDES Act.

“Congressional Democrats’ $325,000,000,000 America CONCEDES Act helps China and hurts America. Instead of protecting U.S. interests, accelerating American innovation, and addressing generational threats to our national security, this 3,000-page package appeases our biggest adversary and spends money we do not have on programs with no relevance to China. Most shocking is the failure to include any meaningful accountability measures in response to the CCP’s long history of genocide, human rights abuses, and slave labor.

“To that end, I introduced an amendment requiring the Secretary of State to submit to Congress a determination on whether the CCP United Front Religious Work Bureau meets the criteria for sanctions, only to see it blocked by Democrats.

“Sadly, the majority is not interested in holding the CCP accountable, and this toothless, partisan bill is proof.”

Background on the CONCEDES Act:

• Authorizes $8 billion to pour into an unaccountable U.N. climate slush fund, which has already awarded $100 million to China.
  • It does not guarantee the $8 billion won’t be used to purchase things like solar panels or batteries, whose supply chains in China are tainted by genocide.
  • Democrats rejected attempts to prohibit the Chinese Communist Party from accessing the billions of dollars they want to pour into the Fund.
• Gives unions unfair advantages over small businesses and independent workers by adding Davis-Bacon provisions to previously bipartisan policies.
• Tries to appease Chairman Xi by omitting the word “genocide” from provisions on human rights in Xinjiang, despite the House having voted twice to call it genocide.
• Covers up for the Biden Administration’s giveaway of $40 billion in no-strings-attached IMF money to the CCP last spring, and their support for $130 billion more last summer.
• Authorizes $2 billion annually with no sunset for a “new” International Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation, and Security Program, essentially doubling up on programs and activities already being conducted by State and USAID.
• Creates “Climate Change Officers” within the Foreign Service, weakening our diplomats’ focus on core U.S. national interests.
• It includes no measures to hold Communist China accountable for their covering up COVID-19 or ongoing genocide against religious minorities in their country.
• Grants the Department of the Treasury unchecked authority to block Americans’ digital currency payments worldwide
• Provides no resources to enforce our sanctions laws or increase our military strength, including omitting provisions on export controls, security assistance to allies facing CCP aggression, and failing to curtail CCP military modernizations and weapons development.
• It includes millions to study coral reefs.

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