Ed Markey

The Chinese Government is undertaking coercive activities across the board, economically, militarily, and politically.

China has become a significant strategic challenge that demands our attention.

Congress should call upon Commerce, Treasury, and other departments and agencies to develop tools to retaliate against Chinese firms and the interests of relevant government officials.

To avoid these outcomes, the central aims of U.S. strategy in the near-term should be to enhance U.S. competitiveness.

The United States, on balance, is losing this competition in ways that increase the likelihood not just of the erosion of U.S. power.

The United States and China are now locked in a high-stakes geopolitical competition.

I am encouraged to hear that the bipartisan Asia Reassurance Initiative Act will be marked up by the full committee.

The greatest economic coercion strategy we can place on China is helping to build free-market trade agreements and free-market economies in Asia whose standards are so high that a statist CCP will not be able to join.

So should the United States abandon the rules-based international system?

I think that the fundamental assessment from my point of view is that U.S. alliances in Asia are fundamental to our power, our access, and our interests in the region.

So we do not want to over-hype that, though, because we clearly have a far superior military right now.

Well, we do not want to over-hype that threat, though, that we are the world power and they are the rising power and that they would overtake us.

But at the same time, only 39 percent see China's military power as a critical threat facing the United States of America.

A recent survey conducted by the Chicago Council of Global Affairs said that China is a rising military power.

Beijing is no longer content just to exert its influence behind closed doors.

We discussed how predatory loans contained within its Belt and Road Initiative threatened to bury countries in debt and undermine their sovereign decision-making.

China's concerted efforts to institute economic security and domestic policies that advance its interests alone are significant and demand our attention.

I just urge you to have this process happen in the sunlight and not in the shadow of President Trump's tall tales about NEPA.

We cannot live in a land of make believe while making new rules.

Despite NEPA's importance and the long record that shows how important this law is, President Trump just continues to insist on telling exaggerated stories about NEPA.

President Trump has conducted a full blown assault on facts throughout his Administration but he has been most erratic when it comes to questions of science and environmental protection.

You can do two things. One is to update the Citizens Guide to the National Environmental Policy Act...

I think at the end of the day, the 4.6 years is the average. We know it is a little bit over or a little bit under, but it is not 20 to 25 years.

From my perspective, I just think our policy should be based upon expertise and not upon exaggeration.

I think limiting judicial review and limiting the ability of citizens to hold their government accountable... is an important tool for species recovery.