On the recordMay 20, 2020
last week I came to the floor of the Senate to talk about how the tragic spread of the coronavirus around the world underscored the need for us to focus on the persistent challenge of China not playing by the rules. In the case of coronavirus, that was about China not telling the World Health Organization, not telling other countries, and not telling their own people what was happening in terms of the coronavirus and not taking steps to stop international travel early on. That wasn't playing by the WHO rules--the World Health Organization rules--and the result has been devastation. It has meant the spread of the virus. So much of that devastation we have seen around the globe, in my view, could have been avoided had they played by the rules. Unfortunately, not playing by the rules applies to China in many other areas too. We have talked a lot about trade on the floor of the Senate, to be sure that there is a level playing field between China and the United States and making sure they play by the international trading rules. But here is another one where China and the Chinese Communist Party have not played by the rules, and that is with regard to obtaining our intellectual property, our innovation, and our research.…
