On another subject, Madam President, dealing with my oversight work, on March 10 of this year, I came to the floor about my February 11, 2021, oversight letter to the Biden administration's…
On another subject, Madam President, dealing with my oversight work, on March 10 of this year, I came to the floor about my February 11, 2021, oversight letter to the Biden administration's Department of Homeland Security. That letter discussed the administration's withdrawal of what has been called the Confucius rule associated with the country of China and probably more closely related to the Communist Party of China. The rule that was withdrawn was proposed in the Trump administration, and it would have required educational institutions to just simply disclose their financial connection to the Communist Chinese Government, including its Confucius Institutes.
The substance of the rule is common sense, especially in light of the clear propaganda threat that the regime of China presents to us. It is common sense, so why wouldn't the Biden administration continue with it?
In my letter, I ask Secretary Mayorkas two very simple questions:
One, does the Biden Department of Homeland Security consider Confucius Institutes to be an extension of the Chinese Government? If not, why not?
Second question: Does the Biden Department of Homeland Security consider Confucius Institutes to be purveyors of Communist Chinese propaganda? If not, why not?
When I took to the floor on March 10, the Biden administration had failed to respond. As of today, still no response. These are very easy questions for the administration. The failure to answer in light of the ongoing threat is very troubling.
Just the other week, the Justice Department indicted an American professor on two counts of wire fraud and one count of making a false statement for concealing support he received from the Chinese Government. The indictment tells me this administration has concerns about China and our universities, or this action would not have been taken.
During the course of my oversight activities, I have looked at both threats to taxpayer-funded research and threats that Confucius Institutes pose to our educational institutions. Simply put, these are real concerns.
With respect to threats to taxpayer-funded research, we must protect our intellectual property and research. The Chinese are stealing our intellectual property every day. We all know that.
We spend billions of dollars and expend a great amount of effort to bring innovations to this country and, in turn, the world. We must protect our American investments from Chinese espionage and theft.
Likewise, we must guard against the propaganda spread by Confucius Institutes, which are extensions of the Communist regime.
One member of the Communist regime said this:
The Confucius Institute is an appealing brand for expanding
our culture abroad. It has made an important contribution
toward improving our soft power. The ``Confucius'' brand has
a natural attractiveness. Using the excuse of teaching
Chinese language, everything looks reasonable and logical.
Now, I want to quote the Chinese Minister of Propaganda, who said to his fellow ministry workers:
[C]oordinate the efforts of overseas and domestic
propaganda, [and] further create a favorable international
environment for us.
With regard to key issues that influence our sovereignty
and safety, we should actively carry out international
propaganda battles against issues such as Tibet . . . Taiwan,
human rights.
Our strategy is to proactively take our culture abroad. We
should do well in establishing operating overseas cultural
centers and Confucius Institutes.
Why would any American doubt China's purpose for Confucius Institutes based upon the quote of that Minister? Yet, even with this very clear threat, the Biden administration is silent on the proposed rule other than their getting caught retracting that Trump rule. What more does this administration need before they get the picture?
Given the administration's failure to act, I have introduced a bill, S. 1369, that would make the rule that they have withdrawn now a law. My bill, which is cosponsored by Senators Blackburn, Tillis, and Hawley, would require U.S. educational institutions to disclose their financial connections with the Communist Chinese regime. My bill would accomplish these measures by requiring schools to disclose those connections as part of their certification and recertification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program. That program provides approvals to schools to enroll nonimmigrant students. If the schools want visas for these foreign students, they will first have to disclose their ties to the Chinese Government.
The centerpiece of the bill I just described is disclosure and transparency, and we all know that transparency brings accountability. We the people absolutely have a right to know if our educational institutions are tied to the hip with China, especially in light of that regime's using money to gain leverage over many of them, which brings me, then, to a greater point. American educational institutions ought to stand up to the Communist regime instead of doing their bidding for the millions of dollars they receive.
China is a national security threat. They are a propaganda machine, and we know they will stop at nothing in their attempt to dominate the world.
It is time for the Biden administration to step up to the plate and protect our American interests and American institutions. If they don't let that rule of the previous administration stay in place or put it back in place, I would urge my colleagues to join my transparency bill.
