Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act of 2019

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of my Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act, which I was pleased to introduce with the support of my good friend, Chairman Engel.

Promoting American business abroad means promoting American leadership, prosperity, and our values. It has always been, and should remain, a key component of global diplomacy.

The very first edition of the Foreign Service Journal, then called American Consular Bulletin, published in March of 1919, included a letter from the editor that stated: ``The Consular Service was organized by our Government for the purpose of furthering the interests of American businesses abroad.''

This legislation makes the promotion of U.S. economic interests a principal duty of our missions abroad and requires economic and commercial training for our diplomats.

It also directs our foreign missions to promote trade agreements and establish points of contact who can assist American businesses interested in entering those foreign markets.

Promotion of American businesses abroad has never been more important. As transitioning economies work to expand their wealth and capacity, they look to America to bring expertise, financing, and ingenuity.

If America does not step up its economic engagement in the world, this vacuum will be filled by others, with a potentially devastating impact on American national security.

While I speak, China is aggressively filling that void. However, its approach does not respect the rights of workers, the environment, or even the sovereignty of other nations.

China's Belt and Road Initiative is ensnaring developing nations into Chinese debt traps from which they may never escape. This effort is also leading to a new Chinese adventurism, complete with military outposts and expanded leverage in various countries.

Ground zero for this competition in the developing world is Africa. I have spent much time with African Governments and business leaders. All have told me that America is just not there to compete. I applaud the administration for its new Prosper Africa efforts and know that this legislation is key to its success.

I can think of no better antidote to combat this predatory influence than unleashing the vitality of American values through our private sector. I naturally think of the world-class tech and energy companies in my own district and home State of Texas.

Creating more international opportunities for American businesses will help push back on growing Chinese influence across the globe.

It is time for America to fully wake up and get on the field, or we may ask ourselves later why we did not do more to contain the Chinese threat.

For these reasons, the Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act is a critical initiative that deserves our unanimous support.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to just, again, thank Chairman Engel for his support of this bipartisan bill, which was adopted unanimously at our committee markup last month.

American businesses represent ingenuity, industry, and opportunity. Unlike our strategic competitors, they do not go overseas pushing large, government-subsidized construction projects that involve massive debt or giving up control of strategic infrastructure.

They seek only access to markets and a fair playing field, which allows the kind of win-win partnerships that are the genius of the free enterprise system.

In this era of strategic competition, supporting their access to these economies abroad should be a priority of American diplomacy. The stability that we help provide with our enterprise will help bring us and the world security as well. That is the aim of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1704) to foster commercial relations with foreign countries and support United States economic and business interests abroad in the conduct of foreign policy, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1704, the Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act of 2019.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank first Mr. McCaul for his hard work on this legislation.

I am proud to be supporting this legislation, this bipartisan measure, which makes better use of State Department resources to increase exports of American-made goods and American-provided services and, in turn, creates more jobs for American workers.

This important bill supports the 277,000 small and medium-sized businesses that are trying to sell U.S.-origin goods and services across the globe.

They need help understanding the overseas market, locating customers for U.S.-origin products, dealing with local imports and customs rules, and arranging financing for their export sales. All these efforts support U.S. jobs. Economic officers in our embassies and at the State Department in Washington can help exporters deal with these challenges.

This piece of legislation improves the State Department's training program for economic officers, affirms a long-standing directive to U.S. Ambassadors to include commercial and economic issues in their portfolios, and strengthens coordination between the State Department and the Commerce Department by consolidating data on overseas markets.

These efforts fortify the key role of our State Department, provides critical confirmation to U.S. exporters, and makes more efficient use of public funds.

H.R. 1704 is a critical bill that will not only spur exports and job growth but will ultimately improve the lives of the American people.

Our sponsors and I would also like to clarify the requirements under section 9 of H.R. 1704 to ``initiate and pursue negotiations with countries to establish international standards for government-supported quality infrastructure investment overseas'' are intended to be fulfilled within the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development.

This bill does not direct or authorize the Secretary of State to initiate or pursue negotiations in the World Trade Organization or amend any multilateral or plurilateral WTO agreements.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this measure, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important measure, H.R. 1704, to fully and efficiently use the resources we already have to increase exports and create jobs and, in turn, improve the lives of the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I missed votes on Tuesday, May 7, Thursday, May 9, and Friday, May 10. Had I been present, I would have voted as follows:

Roll Call Vote Number 185 (Passage of H. Res. 273): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 186 (Passage of H.R. 1704, the Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 189 (Ordering the Previous Question): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 190 (Passage of H. Res. 357): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 191 (Passage of H. AMDT. 199 to H.R. 986 offered by Rep. Anthony Brown): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 192 (Passage of H. AMDT. 203 to H.R. 986 offered by Rep. George Holding): NO;

Roll Call Vote Number 193 (Passage of H. AMDT. 207 to H.R. 986 offered by Rep. Tom Malinowski): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 194 (Passage of H. AMDT. 208 to H.R. 986 offered by Rep. Susan Wild): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 195 (Adoption of Motion to Recommit to H.R. 986): NO;

Roll Call Vote Number 196 (Passage of H.R. 986, the Protecting Americans with Preexisting Conditions Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 197 (Passage of H. AMDT. 209 to H.R. 2157 offered by Rep. Ed Perlmutter): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 198 (Passage of H. AMDT. 210 to H.R. 2157 offered by Rep. Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 199 (Passage of H. AMDT. 214 to H.R. 2157 offered by Rep. Jared Huffman): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 200 (Passage of H. AMDT. 216 to H.R. 2157 offered by Rep. Lizzie Fletcher): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 201 (Adoption of Motion to Recommit to H.R. 2157): NO; and

Roll Call Vote Number 202 (Passage of H.R. 2157, the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2019): YES.