Since winning the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, Republican lawmakers have been focused on passing meaningful bipartisan legislation, and on taking on the Democratic colleagues and the Biden administration.
In one of his weekly legislative wrap-up addresses, Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) discussed the threat from China and on curbing President Joe Biden's Executive Orders.
"This week in Congress, I introduced two bills to push back on the Chinese Communist Party. I’ve also got updates on the discharges from Lake Okeechobee and efforts to curb Joe Biden’s inflationary executive orders," Rep. Mast tweets.
This week in Congress, I introduced two bills to push back on the Chinese Communist Party. I’ve also got updates on the discharges from Lake Okeechobee and efforts to curb Joe Biden’s inflationary executive orders.
Check out the latest #WeekInReivew:https://t.co/iOUqmWLeqN
— Rep. Brian Mast (@RepBrianMast) March 4, 2023
China
Rep. Mast begins the video warning of China and their plans to surpass the United States, saying "China has one goal: overtake the United States of America."
"China has one goal: overtake the United States of America. Whether it's economically, or militarily, or technologically, Xi Jingping is determined to make his nation number one, and see America fall. They're willing to work Russia, Iran, anybody that they can to make that happen," says Rep. Mast.
For instance, the Chinese government seeks to buy up tech necessary to build undersea telecom cables; or the American companies that own those cables.
To this end, Mast introduced the Undersea Cable Control Act to prevent just that, and it passed in the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Additionally, after the Dept. of Energy confirmed COVID-19 likely came from a Wuhan lab leak despite efforts to label those who said so "conspiracy theorists," Mast has introduced a resolution that would halt payment on debt owed to China that is equal to our pandemic response, since "China needs to be held responsible, they need to pay up."
"China needs to be held responsible, they need to pay up. It's not likely that they're going to pay up with a yen, a pound sterling, an ounce of gold bullion, a dollar, a Euro, or anything else. And if President Biden won't make them, then Congress needs to," says Mast.
Executive Orders
After discussing discharges of Lake Okeechobee halting due to toxic algal blooms, Mast moves on to reining in President Biden's use of executive orders, appropriately named the "Rein In Act."
"We passed a bill called the Rein In Act. And it's a simple piece of legislation. It's designed to put a check and balance on the Administration that's been spending your money like it grows on a tree. Now since taking office, President Biden has issued more than 100 executive orders totaling more than $1.5 trillion."
As such, the Rein In Act "requires that the Administration publish the inflationary impact of executive orders before enacting an executive order."
"The Rein In Act requires that the Administration publish the inflationary impact of executive orders before enacting an executive order. This bill passed and is now headed for the Senate, and then hopefully to the President's desk. And when something becomes law, it's not like when a bureaucrat does it; that means Joe Biden has to adhere to what that law is, and when the next President is a Republican President, that Republican President will have to adhere to what that law is. The American people deserve to know how the decisions made in the White House will affect their bottom line. And I'm proud that the House Republicans have again delivered on our commitment to America making government accountable," Mast concludes.
