WASHINGTON – Today on the floor, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) discussed the urgent national security threats posed by continuing to turn a blind eye to outbound investment in countries of concern like China and urged his colleagues to take swift action before the end of the year by supporting including his provisions with Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) in the government funding bill. Excerpts of Sen. Cornyn’s remarks are below, and video can be found here.

“No one can claim to be serious about the China threat while turning a blind eye toward outbound investment transparency.”

“I’m disappointed that the House and the Senate have, so far, failed to take action on this matter that is of critical importance to our strategic competition with the Chinese Communist Party.”

“We simply cannot wait another year to address this issue.”

“It’s simply foolish for the United States to help China to modernize its military and create this very dangerous scenario by investing in technologies that could be used, ultimately, to kill American soldiers.”

“We are feeding the hand that is preparing to bite us, and the truth is, addressing outbound investment transparency will only become more painful if we wait.”

“I remain optimistic that progress will be made on this critical matter before the end of the year.”