Sam Gejdenson: “Let me just say again, we have taken a spying case that started in the 1980s and we are trying in the process, I am…”

“Let me just say again, we have taken a spying case that started in the 1980s and we are trying in the process, I am fearful, of destroying the future economic and military strength of the country. All these amendments are well-intentioned. But the reality is that most of this technology is not exclusively American, that American industry that has led the world with modern technology will not continue to do so if we unilaterally stop selling things, especially when they are generally available. There are tens of companies that have most of these products. And if we continue to look through this in the same way we looked at machined tools, we will do to the computer industry and to other high-tech industries what we did to the machine tool industry. Some of the same Members here would not allow American machine tool companies to sell abroad for fear it would end up in Russia's hands. What happened? The American machine tool industry continued to degrade to the point where the Defense Department wanted Japanese machines. And when the Soviets in those days were looking for a machine tool to create the kind of quality they needed for their submarine program, they bought a Toshiba. So let us not sit here and believe that we exist in a vacuum of total control of this technology. What we are going to set up with this stampede before any of the committees of jurisdiction have dealt with the issues is create the only restrictive process in the world.”