Dan Newhouse: “The reality that we face is simple: The CCP, the Chinese Communist Party, is planting roots in our homeland and working…”

“The reality that we face is simple: The CCP, the Chinese Communist Party, is planting roots in our homeland and working around the clock to infiltrate our institutions. In the last decade, Communist China's investment in U.S. ag land has grown tenfold. That is a dangerous trend that we cannot overstate, but today, we are taking an important step in keeping them out. My bill to add the Secretary of Agriculture to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is critical in keeping the CCP off of American soil. Mr. Speaker, food security, as you have heard many times, is national security. This legislation strengthens the safety of our supply chains and opens a door to new reporting mechanisms that USDA can use to keep us safe from this threat. {time} 1230 With an already flawed foreign purchase reporting system within USDA, we must be sure our ag land is protected from nefarious actors. As chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus, I hear from farmers and ranchers across the country who are concerned by the reality that not only is the CCP in our backyard, but we cannot accurately say where. Additionally, Mr. Speaker, my bill guarantees that the Secretary of Agriculture can accurately monitor and report purchases not just for land, but also for biotechnology, transportation, storage, and processing. This bill is a first step.…”