Marc Molinaro: “You pronounced my name better than my own grandmother. Mr. Chair, the underlying bill, the Protect America's Innovation…”

“You pronounced my name better than my own grandmother. Mr. Chair, the underlying bill, the Protect America's Innovation and Economic Security from CCP Act of 2024, importantly counters the Chinese Communist Party's illegal and grossly unethical practice of stealing trade secrets, economic espionage, and hacking against American companies. The bill does this, as we note, by establishing a special office at the Department of Justice whose sole purpose is to identify and prosecute those who engage in this illegal behavior. The office will also work to protect critical infrastructure in the United States against external threats from China. The bill also requires a report from the Attorney General to Congress. My amendment includes in this report an assessment of the economic loss to the United States as a result of hacking and trade secret theft by China. We currently don't have an accurate number as to how much economic damage the Chinese Communist Party has caused the United States through economic espionage, hacking, and intellectual property theft. My amendment will allow us to quantify the true monetary toll China is causing to our economy and our businesses and allow us to see how impactful this underlying legislation really is. The United States is the biggest economy in the world because we encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. China doesn't and instead relies on stealing our innovations, our ideas, for their benefit.…”