Rubio Reintroduces Bills to Fight Against China in 2023

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) has announced that he has reintroduced eight bills in order to combat the exploitations of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and to protect American companies and consumers from them.

“Our nation needs a strong response to Communist China’s disruptive and exploitative tactics. Too many American families, communities, and critical industries are suffering due to Beijing’s unfair and predatory policies. Congress needs to reverse course and guard the American people from this genocidal regime, not assist in its rise," stated Sen Rubio.

The eight bills include the Accountability in Federal Acquisitions and Contracting (AFAC) ACT, the China Oil Export Prohibition Act, the Countering Corporate Corruption in China Act, the No Chinese Communist SURPRISE Parties Act, the American Financial Markets Integrity and Security Act, the Fair Trade with China Enforcement Act, the TSP Fiduciary Security Act, and the Turn OFF THE TAP Act.

Moreover, in a letter to U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Republican Senators including Rubio, voiced their displeasure with the focus of Secretary Blinken and Secretary Yellen's upcoming meeting with the CCP.

“We write in advance of your upcoming visits to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). We urge you to use the trips to hold the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) accountable for its human rights violations, unfair trade practices, and increasing aggression in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. Anything less would be a concession to our country’s greatest threat,” write the Senators.

Moreover, the Senators are hoping that Secretary Yellen and Blinken will address the CCP’s detainment of American citizens and family members of American citizens rather than just focusing on the economy.

They write that “the CCP continues the horrible practice of wrongfully detaining U.S. citizens and the family members of U.S. citizens, including David Lin, Mark Swidan, Kai Li, Gulshan Abbas, Ekpar Asat, and Zhou Deyong. You must make clear that the United States will not cooperate with a regime that uses hostages as bargaining chips.”

U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Budd (R-NC), Rick Scott (R-FL), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), John Hoeven (R-ND), and Bill Hagerty (R-TN) signed the letter alongside Rubio.

Rubio himself has also been very critical of the CCP and their relationship with companies like ByteDance (the parent company of TikTok). ByteDance recently struck a deal with JPMorgan Chase to further “develop in-app payment technology for its products.”