On the recordJuly 14, 2017
I would like to also thank Chairman Thornberry and Chairman Sessions for making my amendment in order and allowing floor consideration. Mr. Chairman, my amendment is simple. It prohibits telecommunications companies that provide material support for North Korea cyber attacks from contracting with our Defense Department. While my amendment is simple in nature, it strikes at the heart of what I believe to be the cornerstone of North Korea policy. For far too long, China has enabled the North Korean Government to pursue nuclear development, global provocation, and egregious human rights violations. The Chinese Government is simply not a good faith partner on the issue of North Korea. For example, there have been multiple public reports indicating that China's largest government-affiliated telecommunications firm, Huawei, has been subpoenaed by the Commerce Department as part of an ongoing investigation into whether it broke our export control laws by conducting business with North Korea. Additionally, earlier this year, a similar Chinese Government- affiliated firm, ZTE, was hit with a record-breaking billion-dollar fine in connection with comparable North Korea-related export violations. Mr. Chairman, my amendment is one of many steps that our Congress needs to take to demonstrate to China we will no longer tolerate its alliance and partnership with North Korea. I urge my colleagues to support my amendment.
