Press Releases
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and John Thune (R-SD), ranking member of the Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications, Media and Broadband, announced six new bipartisan co-sponsors for the Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act, legislation that will comprehensively address the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries by better empowering the Department of Commerce to review, prevent, and mitigate information communications and technology transactions that pose undue risk to our national security.
U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) have signed on to the bill in the last week. This announcement brings the total number of cosponsors to 18 – nine Democrats and nine Republicans. The legislation has also been endorsed by the White House.
“We are pleased by the growing support for our sensible, bipartisan bill to establish a comprehensive, risk-based approach to tackle technology threats from countries like China and Russia,” said Sens. Warner and Thune.
The Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act would:
- Require the Secretary of Commerce to establish procedures to identify, deter, disrupt, prevent, prohibit, and mitigate transactions involving information and communications technology products in which any foreign adversary has any interest and poses undue or unacceptable risk to national security;
- Prioritize evaluation of information communications and technology products used in critical infrastructure, integral to telecommunications products, or pertaining to a range of defined emerging, foundational, and disruptive technologies with serious national security implications;
- Ensure comprehensive actions to address risks of untrusted foreign information communications and technology products by requiring the Secretary to take up consideration of concerning activity identified by other government entities;
- Educate the public and business community about the threat by requiring the Secretary of Commerce to coordinate with the Director of National Intelligence to provide declassified information on how transactions denied or otherwise mitigated posed undue or unacceptable risk.
“The technology challenges that we face require a strong approach to protect Americans online from our foreign adversaries,” said Sen. Luján. “I’m proud to co-sponsor the bipartisan RESTRICT Act to improve the federal government’s capabilities to address growing technology threats to our national security.”
“Beyond the piecemeal attempts we have seen in the past, the RESTRICT Act provides a holistic approach to dealing with current and emerging technologies emanating from our foreign adversaries that pose an undue risk to the national security of our country. I was proud to join my colleagues on Day One of this legislation, which establishes a clear plan to address these risks and threats,” Sen. Capito said.
“As a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, America’s national security is one of my top priorities,” said Sen. Kaine. “That’s why I’m proud to cosponsor the RESTRICT Act. This comprehensive legislation would help address 21st century technological threats posed by foreign adversaries, who may seek to manipulate Americans’ personal data, or track U.S. military personnel, assets, or their families, among other dangerous steps. There is bipartisan agreement on the need to counter these threats and it’s time to turn that agreement into action.”
“Digital security is national security, and much like foreign purchases of land in the U.S., we ought to carefully scrutinize the technology products we use daily and store our personal data. This bill will establish a process to quickly identify and respond to foreign technology while making the public aware of the real threats they face,” said Sen. Cramer.
“The risks are unacceptable—foreign powers exploiting tech platforms like TikTok and Huawei to undercut our national security must be stopped,” said Sen. Blumenthal. “The reasons for passing the RESTRICT Act are real and urgent—preventing espionage and privacy invasion. This bipartisan measure should command broad support.”
A two-page summary of the bill is available here. A copy of the bill text is available here.
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) led a bipartisan group of senators in urging the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to reevaluate the risks associated with the use of drones manufactured by Shenzhen DJI Innovation Technology Co., Ltd. (DJI), a company with deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
In 2022, DJI was officially identified as a “Chinese military company” by the Department of Defense following several warnings about its risks, including a 2017 intelligence bulletin warning that DJI was likely providing sensitive U.S. infrastructure and law enforcement data to the Chinese government. Despite this action, the use of DJI drones remains common throughout the country. In 2021, it was reported that DJI controlled almost 90% of the consumer drone market in North America and over 70% of the industrial market. And in 2019, it was reported that 73% of public safety organizations are flying the company’s aircrafts.
“[T]he widespread use of DJI drones to inspect critical infrastructure allows the CCP to develop a richly detailed, regularly updated picture of our nation’s pipelines, railways, power generation facilities, and waterways,” the senators wrote in a letter to CISA Director Jen Easterly. “This sensitive information on the layout, operation, and maintenance of U.S. critical infrastructure could better enable targeting efforts in the event of conflict.”
CISA has previously taken action to warn against the purchase and use of DJI aircrafts. In 2019, CISA published an “industry alert” underscoring the federal government’s “strong concerns” with Chinese drones and warning entities to be “cautious” in purchasing them. However, since this alert more information regarding the severity of the threat has come to light, and the senators are asking for a complete analysis of the security risks posed by DJI drones to be conducted and made publicly available.
In addition to Sens. Warner and Blackburn, the letter was signed by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), John Thune (R-SD) Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Rick Scott (R-FL), Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), Todd Young (R-IN), JD Vance (R-OH), Ted Budd (R-NC), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Mike Braun (R-IN), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), and Jerry Moran (R-KS).
Sen. Warner is a strong supporter of the domestic production of unmanned systems, including driverless cars, drones, and unmanned maritime vehicles. Earlier this year, he introduced the Increasing Competitiveness for American Drones Act, legislation that will clear the way for drones to be used for commercial transport of goods across the country. As Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, he has led efforts in Congress to shore up U.S. national and cybersecurity against hostile foreign governments through unmanned air systems. Last month, Sen. Warner introduced legislation to prohibit the federal government from purchasing drones manufactured in countries identified as national security threats, such as the People’s Republic of China.
A copy of the letter can be found here and below.
Dear Director Easterly:
We write today regarding the cybersecurity risks posed by the widespread use of drones manufactured by Shenzhen DJI Innovation Technology Co., Ltd. (“DJI”) to operators of critical infrastructure and state and local law enforcement in the United States. In short, we believe that given the company’s identified connections to the Chinese Communist Party (“CCP”), the use of its drones in such sensitive contexts may present an unacceptable security vulnerability. We ask that the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) evaluate this concern and make the results of its evaluation available to the public through the National Cyber Awareness System.
China’s efforts to modernize the capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army (“PLA”), including through their “Military-Civil Fusion” strategy – which systematically blurs the lines between PLA and civilian science and technology research and development efforts – are well documented. In October 2022, the Department of Defense identified DJI as a “Chinese military company” operating in the U.S. under Section 1260H of the William M. (“Mac”) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. Identification of this relationship between DJI and the PLA suggests a range of risks to U.S. operators of the technology, including that sensitive information or data could wind up in PLA hands. Indeed, Huawei, another entity identified under Section 1260H, has been credibly accused by the Department of Justice of misappropriating intellectual property and trade secret information from U.S. companies.
Yet, despite these risks, the use of DJI drones remains widespread throughout the U.S. In 2021, it was reported that DJI controlled almost 90% of the consumer market in North America and over 70% of the industrial market. And in 2019, it was reported that 73% of public safety operations are flown by the company’s aircraft. As a result, the CCP may have access to a variety of proprietary information. For example, a 2017 Department of Homeland Security assessment warned that Chinese companies had used grape production information gathered by a DJI drone purchased by a California wine producer to inform their own land purchasing decisions. Even worse, the widespread use of DJI drones to inspect critical infrastructure allows the CCP to develop a richly detailed, regularly updated picture of our nation’s pipelines, railways, power generation facilities, and waterways. This sensitive information on the layout, operation, and maintenance of U.S. critical infrastructure could better enable targeting efforts in the event of conflict.
We appreciate that CISA has addressed this risk in the past, most notably in a 2019 “Industry Alert,” stating the federal government’s “strong concerns” with Chinese drones and warning entities to be “cautious” in purchasing them. However, over the past four years more information regarding the scope of the problem has become available—including the official identification of DJI as a Chinese military company by the Department of Defense.
We therefore ask that CISA revisit its analysis of the security risks posed by the use of DJI-manufactured drones and release the results of that analysis publicly through the National Cyber Awareness System.
###
Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Tackle National Security Threats from Foreign Tech
Mar 07 2023
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and John Thune (R-SD), ranking member of the Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications, Media and Broadband, led a group of 12 bipartisan senators to introduce the Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act, legislation that will comprehensively address the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries by better empowering the Department of Commerce to review, prevent, and mitigate information communications and technology transactions that pose undue risk to our national security.
“Today, the threat that everyone is talking about is TikTok, and how it could enable surveillance by the Chinese Communist Party, or facilitate the spread of malign influence campaigns in the U.S. Before TikTok, however, it was Huawei and ZTE, which threatened our nation’s telecommunications networks. And before that, it was Russia’s Kaspersky Lab, which threatened the security of government and corporate devices,” said Sen. Warner. “We need a comprehensive, risk-based approach that proactively tackles sources of potentially dangerous technology before they gain a foothold in America, so we aren’t playing Whac-A-Mole and scrambling to catch up once they’re already ubiquitous.”
“Congress needs to stop taking a piecemeal approach when it comes to technology from adversarial nations that pose national security risks,” said Sen. Thune. “Our country needs a process in place to address these risks, which is why I’m pleased to work with Senator Warner to establish a holistic, methodical approach to address the threats posed by technology platforms – like TikTok – from foreign adversaries. This bipartisan legislation would take a necessary step to ensure consumers’ information and our communications technology infrastructure is secure.”
The RESTRICT Act establishes a risk-based process, tailored to the rapidly changing technology and threat environment, by directing the Department of Commerce to identify and mitigate foreign threats to information and communications technology products and services.
In addition to Sens. Warner and Thune, the legislation is co-sponsored by Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Susan Collins (R-ME), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), and Mitt Romney (R-UT).
The Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act would:
- Require the Secretary of Commerce to establish procedures to identify, deter, disrupt, prevent, prohibit, and mitigate transactions involving information and communications technology products in which any foreign adversary has any interest and poses undue or unacceptable risk to national security;
- Prioritize evaluation of information communications and technology products used in critical infrastructure, integral to telecommunications products, or pertaining to a range of defined emerging, foundational, and disruptive technologies with serious national security implications;
- Ensure comprehensive actions to address risks of untrusted foreign information communications and technology products by requiring the Secretary to take up consideration of concerning activity identified by other government entities;
- Educate the public and business community about the threat by requiring the Secretary of Commerce to coordinate with the Director of National Intelligence to provide declassified information on how transactions denied or otherwise mitigated posed undue or unacceptable risk.
“We need to protect Americans’ data and keep our country safe against today and tomorrow’s threats. While many of these foreign-owned technology products and social media platforms like TikTok are extremely popular, we also know these products can pose a grave danger to Wisconsin’s users and threaten our national security,” said Sen. Baldwin. “This bipartisan legislation will empower us to respond to our fast-changing environment – giving the United States the tools it needs to assess and act on current and future threats that foreign-owned technologies pose to Wisconsinites and our national security.”
“There are a host of dangerous technology platforms – including TikTok – that can be manipulated by China and other foreign adversaries to threaten U.S. national security and abuse Americans’ personal data. I’m proud to join Senator Warner in introducing bipartisan legislation that would put an end to disjointed interagency responses and strengthen the federal government’s ability to counter these digital threats,” said Sen. Fischer.
“Over the past several years, foreign adversaries of the United States have encroached on American markets through technology products that steal sensitive location and identifying information of U.S. citizens, including social media platforms like TikTok. This dangerous new internet infrastructure poses serious risks to our nation’s economic and national security,” said Sen. Manchin. “I’m proud to introduce the bipartisan RESTRICT ACT, which will empower the Department of Commerce to adopt a comprehensive approach to evaluating and mitigating these threats posed by technology products. As Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, I will continue working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get this critical legislation across the finish line.”
“Foreign adversaries are increasingly using products and services to collect information on American citizens, posing a threat to our national security,” said Sen. Moran. “This legislation would give the Department of Commerce the authority to help prevent adversarial governments from introducing harmful products and services in the U.S., providing us the long-term tools necessary to combat the infiltration of our information and communications systems. The government needs to be vigilant against these threats, but a comprehensive data privacy law is needed to ensure Americans are able to control who accesses their data and for what purpose.”
“We shouldn’t let any company subject to the Chinese Communist Party’s dictates collect data on a third of our population – and while TikTok is just the latest example, it won’t be the last. The federal government can’t continue to address new foreign technology from adversarial nations in a one-off manner; we need a strategic, enduring mechanism to protect Americans and our national security. I look forward to working in a bipartisan way with my colleagues on the Senate Select Intelligence Committee to send this bill to the floor,” said Sen. Bennet.
“Our modern economy, communication networks, and military rely on a range of information communication technologies. Unfortunately, some of these technology products pose a serious risk to our national security,” said Sen. Gillibrand. “The RESTRICT Act will address this risk by empowering the Secretary of Commerce to carefully evaluate these products and ensure that they do not endanger our critical infrastructure or undermine our democratic processes.”
“China’s brazen incursion of our airspace with a sophisticated spy balloon was only the most recent and highly visible example of its aggressive surveillance that has targeted our country for years. Through hardware exports, malicious software, and other clandestine means, China has sought to steal information in an attempt to gain a military and economic edge,” said Sen. Collins. “Rather than taking a piecemeal approach to these hostile acts and reacting to each threat individually, our legislation would create a wholistic, government-wide response to proactively defend against surveillance attempts by China and other adversaries. This will directly improve our national security as well as safeguard Americans’ personal information and our nation’s vital intellectual property.”
"Cybersecurity is one of the most serious economic and national security challenges we face as a nation. The future of conflict is moving further away from the battlefield and closer to the devices and the networks everyone increasingly depends on. We need a systemic approach to addressing potential threats posed by technology from foreign adversaries. This bill provides that approach by authorizing the Administration to review and restrict apps and services that pose a risk to Americans’ data security. I will continue to push for technology defenses that the American people want and deserve to keep our country both safe and free,” said Sen. Heinrich.
“The Chinese Communist Party is engaged in a multi-generational, multi-faceted, and systematic campaign to replace the United States as the world’s superpower. One tool at its disposal—the ability to force social media companies headquartered in China, like TikTok’s parent company, to hand over the data it collects on users,” said Sen. Romney. “Our adversaries—countries like China, Russia, Iran—are increasingly using technology products to spy on Americans and discover vulnerabilities in our communications infrastructure, which can then be exploited. The United States must take stronger action to safeguard our national security against the threat technology products pose and this legislation is a strong step in that direction.”
A two-page summary of the bill is available here. A copy of the bill text is available here.
###
WASHINGTON – Today, Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) appeared on FOX News Sunday to discuss the how the U.S. needs to tackle rising threats posed by the Communist Party of China.
On the how the United States needs to address the rise of the Chinese Communist Party on the world stage:
“We have never had a potential adversary like China. The Soviet Union, Russia, was military or ideological, China is investing in economic areas. They have $500 billion in intellectual property theft, and we are in a competition not just on a national security basis but on a technology basis. That's why national security now includes telecommunications, satellites, artificial intelligence, quantum computing. Each of these domains, we have got to make the kind of investments to stay ahead. I think we are starting that in a bipartisan way. We did the CHIPS bill to try to bring semiconductor manufacturing back, we have kicked out Huawei out of our telecom systems. This week, I have a broad bipartisan bill that I am launching with my friend John Thune, the Republican lead, where we are going to say, in terms of foreign technology coming into America, we’ve got to have a systemic approach to make sure we can ban or prohibit it when necessary.”
On the influence of TikTok:
“Listen, you have 100 million Americans on TikTok, 90 minutes a day…They are taking data from Americans, not keeping it safe, but what worries me more with TikTok is that this could be a propaganda tool. The kind of videos you see would promote ideological issues. If you look at what TikTok shows to the Chinese kids, which is all about science and engineering, versus what our kids see, there’s a radical difference.”
On China’s support for Putin’s war in Ukraine:
“…if China moves forward to support Russia in Ukraine, I can't understand some of my colleagues who are willing to say, ‘I don't really care about Ukraine, but I'm concerned about China.’ Well, China and Russia, these authoritarian regimes, are linked, and we have to make sure Putin is not successful in Ukraine and that Xi doesn't further his expansion plans around Taiwan.”
Video of Sen. Warner on FOX News Sunday can be found here. A transcript follows.
FOX News Sunday
SHANNON BREAM: Joining is now, Virginia Democratic Senator Mark Warner, Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, welcome back. This week, you all have a hearing on worldwide threat assessments. You will have the DNI, the director of the CIA there. You have long been warning about China on multiple fronts. Do you think that we have lost valuable time in assessing the threat accurately? Will you talk about that this week?
SENATOR MARK WARNER: Well I think for a long time conventional wisdom was, the more you bring China into the world order, the more they’re going to change. That assumption was just plain wrong. China even changed their laws in 2016 to make it explicitly clear that every company in China, their first obligation is to the Communist Party. So we have never had a potential adversary like China. The Soviet Union, Russia, was military or ideological, China is investing in economic areas. They have $500 billion in intellectual property theft, and we are in a competition not just on a national security basis but on a technology basis. That's why national security now includes telecommunications, satellites, artificial intelligence, quantum computing. Each of these domains, we have got to make the kind of investments to stay ahead. I think we are starting that in a bipartisan way. We did the CHIPS bill to try to bring semiconductor manufacturing back, we have kicked out Huawei out of our telecom systems. This week, I have a broad bipartisan bill that I am launching with my friend John Thune, the Republican lead where we are going to say, in terms of foreign technology coming into America, we’ve got to have a systemic approach to make sure we can ban or prohibit it when necessary.
BREAM: Does that mean TikTok?
SEN. WARNER: That means TikTok is one of the potentials. Listen, you have 100 million Americans on TikTok, 90 minutes a day. Even you guys would like that kind of return, 90 minutes a day. They are taking data from Americans, not keeping it safe, but what worries me more with TikTok is that this could be a propaganda tool. The kind of videos you see would promote ideological issues. If you look at what TikTok shows to the Chinese kids, which is all about science and engineering, versus what our kids see, there’s a radical difference.
BREAM: We will watch that, because that's a bipartisan offering potentially this week. This past week we got information, it was revealed that both the Department of Energy and FBI believe that the origins of COVID were most likely a leak from the Wuhan Institute for Virology. This is something that early on this was called a conspiracy theory, you were racist if you talked about it. The Senate has actually unanimously passed a measure that would call on this administration to declassify information that we have about the origins. The White House won't say whether the president will veto it or not if it gets to his desk. Do Americans, worldwide, do people not have a right to see that information?
SEN. WARNER: Shannon, here is again an example of what we are dealing with, with the Communist Party in China. If this virus had originated virtually anywhere else, we would have had world scientists there. The Chinese Communist Party has been totally opaque about letting in outside scientists to figure this out. Now, you’ve still got of some parts of the intelligence community that think it originated in a wet market, others saying that it could have gotten out from a lab, although I would say that one entity says it came from one lab in Wuhan, another said from another. At the end of the day, we’ve got to keep looking and we've got to make sure, in terms of future pandemics, that we can have access to the source of where these diseases originate a lot earlier on in the system. We’re three and half later, we still don't have access to Wuhan.
BREAM: They're not going to cooperate with that, especially if they assess internally they were at fault. How do they pay for this? Now, billions probably trillions in damages and losses for people, millions and millions of lives. How do they pay?
SEN. WARNER: Well I think again, this is where we’ve got to have that united front of countries all around the world, that there has to be consequences. There has to be consequences potentially in terms of sanctions, it’s one of the reasons why, if China moves forward to support Russia in Ukraine, I can't understand some of my colleagues who are willing to say, “I don't really care about Ukraine, but I'm concerned about China.” Well, China and Russia, these authoritarian regimes, are linked, and we have to make sure Putin is not successful in Ukraine and that Xi doesn't further his expansion plans around Taiwan.
BREAM: Well, we know that even if they are not sending bullets over to Russia, they are buying up copious amounts of Russian oil. They are sending dual-use products that could actually be used on the battlefield. Xi doesn't seem very worried about the warnings from the U.S. at this point. They haven't even acknowledged or apologized for the balloon that went across America, we think capturing information as it went. It Xi afraid of this administration? To our warnings mean anything?
SEN. WARNER: Well I think Xi, as Putin thought, thought that with the invasion of the Ukraine, that the West would basically throw in the towel. The fact that we’ve not, the fact that you've got, for example, the German chancellor here just this past week, Germany’s dramatically increasing their defense budget. The fact that we've got nations like Finland and Sweden trying to join NATO. I think Putin made a major miscalculation and I do think Xi is watching the West stand up against Putin and is taking some lessons from that.
BREAM: You're just back from India, among many other countries you visited. They abstained from the U.N. vote that condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and called for an end to this. How important is it, a critical place like India, that they choose a side, and with the West?
SEN. WARNER: I think it’s time. Look, India is a great nation, as a matter of fact, I’m chair of the India Caucus, I'm a big supporter of India. India is now a major, major power. Fifth-largest economy in the world, and a place where remarkable things are happening. My message to the Indians has been, we understand that you have historic ties to Russia, and you still get a lot of your arms, but you cannot be a world leader, and attempt to be a moral world leader, without picking a side. And in this case, I think the younger Indians get that. Some of the older generation, I think we still have work to do.
BREAM: Okay, let's turn to continued funding for Ukraine. Another $400 million was announced on Friday. There are questions, there'll be more requests from Congress no doubt in the coming weeks about that. While there is strong support, here across the U.S. and across the West, the polls show that it's pulling back a little bit. Here's the reality from one analyst, “funding for the Ukrainian government has not demanded any tough bureaucratic trade-offs between funding priorities. It's not requiring bouncing needs for Ukraine against a domestic spending.” We’ve hit our ceiling, we have some kind of negotiation that’s got to happen very shortly. There are competing needs and they are very real, so where do we assess our financial commitment?
SEN. WARNER: Well Shannon, let's look at this. We have allocated $113 billion to Ukraine. We have actually only given them actually less than half of that, and on the military side, about $30 billion of roughly $60 billion. We’ve still got some runway to go there. But I think we need to keep that commitment, and the truth is the Russian army is being chewed up by the Ukrainians. We spent $800 billion a year on defense, in most of my lifetime to prevent Russia from exploiting that. We are having Ukrainians do that right now, in a sense, for us. I think we need to continue that. I think we will see the vast majority of members of Congress in both parties, there are some loudmouths on both sides that are pulling back, but if we are going to keep in this competition against Russia and China, Putin cannot be successful. At the same time, we have to realize as we look at China that national security is no longer simply tanks and trucks and guns and ships. It's also telecom and AI and quantum computing and advanced synthetic biology. We have to make investments in those domains, as well, which is both an economic investment and I believe, national security investment.
BREAM: Speaking of another national security interest, Iran, this report on their nuclear capabilities came out this week and it’s kind of getting lost in all the other foreign policy headlines, but basically what the International Atomic Energy Agency told us is that they have hit 84% as far as enriching uranium. They said that’s just short of the 90% that you would need for a weapon. Britain, France, and Germany say they want to censure Iran over this. The U.S. is kind of hesitant. The reporting is that the Biden administration doesn’t want to go there. Are we now then softer on Iran's new program then Europe?
SEN. WARNER: I do not believe that. We have made it explicitly clear – and I was just in Israel recently with a group of senators – that we agree with Israel. Iran cannot be a nuclear power. I think, that has been our policy it will continue to be our policy. There are two steps in this process, one is the enrichment issue, and I believe we will be tougher than the Europeans. We always historically always have been –
BREAM: So then why are we against censuring, reportedly?
SEN. WARNER: We have already sanctioned and censured more Iranian companies by far than our European friends. But there is also a question around delivery systems. Again, I think we and our Israeli friends are following this very closely. Again, we will not allow Iran to become a nuclear power.
BREAM: I've got to hit this, Havana Syndrome. The reporting out this week, an assessment from several intelligence agencies that they don't think – that it's unlikely there was a foreign adversary carrying out these attacks, whatever they were, where our people, diplomats or Intel officers around the world in U.S. missions have suffered really debilitating symptoms from this. Senator Rubio, your colleague tweeted this: “The CIA took the investigation of Havana syndrome seriously. But when you read about the devastating injuries it's hard to except that it was by AC units and loud cicadas. Something happened here and just because we don’t have all the answers doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.” Will you continue trying to pursue answers?
SEN. WARNER: Absolutely. First of all, the most important thing is anyone who got sick, whatever the source was, whether they are CIA, DoD, State Department officials, we owe them the world's best health care and I think we are providing that now. Initially frankly, under the last administration, this whole issue was attempted to be swept under the rug. We are now making sure that health care is provided. I know how, particularly the CIA, how extensive the investigation has been. And I've made very clear to them, if they need to continue that investigation, if new facts come to light, they ought to pursue that. But at this moment in time, I know how thorough they have been, and they have not found the evidence that I think perhaps they thought they would have found. We've got to follow the facts. At the end of the day that's what we owe the members of this intel community, who protect our nation, and that means giving them the health care. If it ends up sensing some other source then what has been discovered so far, we have to pursue it.
BREAM: Senator, Chairman, thanks for coming back to Fox News Sunday.
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued a statement after the Department of Commerce released the first Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for CHIPS Act incentives, welcoming the announcement:
“The projects that will be made possible by the CHIPS Act will strengthen our national security and create good-paying manufacturing jobs here in the United States. With limited funding available, I urge the Department of Commerce to be strategic in selecting projects in order to ensure that funding advances U.S. economic and national security objectives.”
Nearly everything that has an “on” switch – from cars to phones to washing machines to ATMs to electric toothbrushes – contains a semiconductor, but just 12 percent of these ‘chips’ are currently made in America. The CHIPS and Science Act includes $52 billion in funding championed by Sen. Warner to manufacture chips here on American soil – a move that will increase economic and national security and help America compete against countries like China for the technology of the future.
Sen. Warner, co-chair of the Senate Cybersecurity Caucus and former technology entrepreneur, has long sounded the alarm about the importance of investing in domestic semiconductor manufacturing. Sen. Warner first introduced the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Act in June 2020 along with Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX).
###
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), along with U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor (D-FL-14) and Mike Levin (D-CA-49), reintroduced the Safeguarding Against Fraud, Exploitation, Threats, Extremism and Consumer Harms (SAFE TECH) Act to reform Section 230 and allow social media companies to be held accountable for enabling cyber-stalking, online harassment, and discrimination on social media platforms.
“For too long, Section 230 has given cover to social media companies as they turn a blind eye to the harmful scams, harassment, and violent extremism that run rampant across their platforms,” said Sen. Warner, a former technology entrepreneur and the Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. “When Section 230 was enacted over 25 years ago, the internet we use today was not even fathomable. This legislation takes strides to update a law that was meant to encourage service providers to develop tools and policies to support effective moderation and allows them to finally be held accountable for the harmful, often criminal behavior that exists on their platforms.”
“Social media platforms allow people to connect all across the world—but they also cause great pain and suffering, being used as a tool for cyberbullying, stalking, spreading hate, and more. The way we communicate as a society has changed drastically over the last 25 years, it’s time for our laws to catch up,” said Sen. Hirono, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “The SAFE TECH Act targets the worst abuses perpetrated on internet platforms to better protect our children and our communities from the very real harms of social media.”
“We need to be asking more from big tech companies, not less. How they operate has a real-life effect on the safety and civil rights of Americans and people around the world, as well as our democracy. Our legislation will hold these platforms accountable for ads and content that can lead to real-world harm,” said Sen. Klobuchar.
“Congress has acted in the past to ensure that social media companies don’t get blanket immunity after hosting information on their websites aimed at facilitating human or sex trafficking,” said Sen. Kaine. “I’m fully supportive of using that precedent as a roadmap to require social media companies to moderate dangerous content linked to other crimes—like cyber-stalking, discrimination, and harassment—in a responsible way. This is critical to keep our communities safe.”
“Section 230’s blanket immunity has prioritized Big Tech over Americans’ civil rights and safety. Platforms’ refusal to be held accountable for the dangerous and harmful content they host has real-life implications for users – leaving many vulnerable to threats like stalking, intimidation, and harassment, as well as discrimination,” said Sen. Blumenthal. “Our legislation is needed to safeguard consumers and ensure social media giants aren’t shielded from the legal consequences of failing to act. These common sense protections are essential in today’s online world.”
“For too long, big tech companies have treated the internet like the wild west while users on their platforms violate civil and human rights, defraud consumers and harass others. These companies have shown over and over again that they are unwilling to make their platforms safe for Americans. It is long past time for consumers to have legal recourse when big tech companies harm them or their families. Our bill will ensure they are held accountable,” said Rep. Castor.
“Social media companies continue to allow malicious users to go unchecked, harm other users, and violate laws. This cannot go on and it is clear federal reform is necessary,” said Rep. Levin. “Our bicameral legislation makes much needed updates to Section 230 to ensure Americans can safely use online platforms and have legal recourse when they are harmed. It’s long past time that these legislative fixes are made and I look forward to this bill moving through the Congress.”
Specifically the SAFE TECH Act would force online service providers to address misuse on their platforms or face civil liability. The legislation would make clear that Section 230:
- Doesn’t apply to ads or other paid content – ensuring that platforms cannot continue to profit as their services are used to target vulnerable consumers with ads enabling frauds and scams;
- Doesn’t bar injunctive relief – allowing victims to seek court orders where misuse of a provider’s services is likely to cause irreparable harm;
- Doesn’t impair enforcement of civil rights laws – maintaining the vital and hard-fought protections from discrimination even when activities or services are mediated by internet platforms;
- Doesn’t interfere with laws that address stalking/cyber-stalking or harassment and intimidation on the basis of protected classes – ensuring that victims of abuse and targeted harassment can hold platforms accountable when they directly enable harmful activity;
- Doesn’t bar wrongful death actions – allowing the family of a decedent to bring suit against platforms where they may have directly contributed to a loss of life;
- Doesn’t bar suits under the Alien Tort Claims Act – potentially allowing victims of platform-enabled human rights violations abroad to seek redress in U.S. courts against U.S.-based platforms.
Sen. Warner first introduced the SAFE TECH Act in 2021 and is one of Congress’ leading voices in demanding accountability and user protections from social media companies. Last week, Sen. Warner pressed Meta on Facebook's role in inciting violence around the world. In addition to the SAFE TECH Act, Sen. Warner has introduced and written numerous bills aimed at improving transparency, privacy, and accountability on social media. These include the Deceptive Experiences to Online Users Reduction (DETOUR) Act – legislation to prohibit large online platforms from using deceptive user interfaces, known as “dark patterns,” to trick consumers into handing over their personal data and the Augmenting Compatibility and Competition by Enabling Service Switching (ACCESS) Act, legislation that would encourage market-based competition to dominant social media platforms by requiring the largest companies to make user data portable – and their services interoperable – with other platforms, and to allow users to designate a trusted third-party service to manage their privacy and account settings.
“The onslaught of misinformation and discriminatory attacks across social media platforms continues unabated. It is essential that the tech companies that run these platforms protect their users and end the rampant civil rights violations of Black users and other users of color. Social media remains a virtually unchecked home for hateful content discrimination, especially through the manipulation of algorithms that lead to both the targeting and limiting of which users see certain types of advertisements and opportunities. Congress can take a step in the right direction by strengthening Section 230 and ensuring that online communities are not safe harbors for discrimination and civil rights violations. LDF supports Senator Warner and Senator Hirono’s bill to address these critical concerns,” said Lisa Cylar Barrett, Director of Policy, Legal Defense Fund (LDF).
“There needs to be real clarity on Section 230. The hate that festers online: antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, misogyny and disinformation – leads to real violence, real lives targeted, real people put at risk. ADL supports the ability for people affected by violence to hold perpetrators accountable – and that includes social media companies. ADL appreciates the efforts of Senators Warner, Hirono, Klobuchar, and Kaine to tackle this complex challenge. We look forward to working with them to refine this legislation to ensure a safer and less hate-filled internet for all users.” said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, CEO of ADL (Anti-Defamation League).
“Platforms should not profit from targeting employment ads toward White users, or from targeting voter suppression ads toward Black users. The SAFE TECH Act makes it clear that Section 230 does not give platforms a free pass to violate civil rights laws, while also preserving the power of platforms to remove harmful disinformation,” said Spencer Overton, President, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.
“I applaud the SAFE TECH Act introduced by Sens. Warner and Hirono which provides useful modifications to section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act to limit the potential negative impacts of commercial advertising interests while continuing to protect anti-harassment and civil and human rights interests of those who may be wrongfully harmed through wrongful online activity,” Ramesh Srinivasan, Professor at the UCLA Department of Information Studies and Director of UC Digital Cultures Lab, said.
“It is glaringly apparent that we cannot rely on the tech companies to implement common sense policies that reflect common decency on their own. We thank and commend Senators Warner, Hirona, Klobuchar, and Kaine for their foresight and for showing their commitment to the safety of our citizens by putting forth the SAFE TECH Act. The SAFE TECH Act will continue to protect free speech and further protect our civil rights while sensibly amending section 230, an outdated law that the tech companies hide behind in their refusal to take responsibility for real-life consequences” said Wendy Via, Cofounder, Global Project Against Hate and Extremism.
“The Cyber Civil Rights Initiative welcomes this effort to protect civil rights in the digital age and to hold online intermediaries accountable for their role in the silencing and exploitation of vulnerable communities. This bill addresses the urgent need to limit and correct the overzealous interpretation of Section 230 that has granted a multibillion dollar industry immunity and impunity for profiting from irreparable injury,” said Mary Anne Franks, President, Cyber Civil Rights Initiative and Danielle K. Citron, Vice President, Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.
“Social media companies have enabled hate, threats and even genocide against Muslims with virtual impunity. The SAFE TECH Act would bring needed and long-overdue accountability to these companies,” said Muslim Advocates Senior Policy Counsel Sumayyah Waheed. “We thank Sens. Warner, Hirono, Klobuchar, Kaine and Blumenthal for leading on this important bill. Every day, Muslims are profiled, discriminated against, attacked and worse just for engaging in public life. Passing this bill would bring us one step closer to ensuring that Muslims and other marginalized communities can hold social media companies accountable for the reckless way they violate people’s rights and threaten their safety on and offline.”
“The SAFE TECH Act is an important step forward for platform accountability and for the protection of privacy online. Providing an opportunity for victims of harassment, privacy invasions, and other violations to remove unlawful content is critical to stopping its spread and limiting harm,” said Caitriona Fitzgerald, Deputy Director, Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC).
“The SAFE TECH Act is a Section 230 reform America needs now. Troubling readings of Section 230 have encouraged reckless and negligent shirking by platforms of basic duties toward their users. Few if any of the drafters of Section 230 could have imagined that it would be opportunistically used to, for example, allow dating sites to ignore campaigns of harassment and worse against their users. The SAFE TECH Act reins in the cyberlibertarian ethos of over-expansive interpretations of Section 230, permitting courts to carefully weigh and assess evidence in cases where impunity is now preemptively assumed,” said Frank Pasquale, Author of The Black Box Society and Professor at Brooklyn Law School.
“It is unacceptable that courts have interpreted Section 230 to provide Big Tech platforms with blanket immunity from wrongdoing. Congress never intended Section 230 to shield companies from all civil and criminal liability. Reforms proposed by Sens. Warner and Hirono are an important step in the right direction. It is time to hold Big Tech accountable for the harms they cause children and families and other vulnerable populations," said James P. Steyer, Founder and CEO, Common Sense.
“The SAFE TECH Act aims to hold social media giants accountable for spreading harmful misinformation and hateful language that affects Black communities and limits our voting power," said Brandon Tucker, Sr. Director of Policy & Government Affairs at Color Of Change. “Social media companies have used Section 230 as a shield against legal repercussions for their continued civil rights violations across their platforms. When we released our Black Tech Agenda and Scorecard last year, we made sure that the SAFE TECH Act was a key criteria in marking legislators’ progress toward advancing tech policy solutions with a racial justice framework. We call on members of Congress to support this critical legislation to protect Black people’s rights and safety online.”
“It has become abundantly clear that disinformation and hate on social media can create real-world harms. - whether it's anti-vaxx misinformation, election-related lies or hate, it is now clear that there is a significant threat to human life, civil rights and national security. The problem is crazy incentives, where bad actors can freely spread hate and misinformation, platforms profit from traffic regardless of whether it is productive or damaging, but the costs are borne by the public and society at large. This timely bill forensically delineates the harms and ensures perpetrators and enablers pay a price for the harms they create. In doing so, it reflects our desire for better communication technologies, which enhance our right to speak and be heard, and that also respect our fundamental rights to life and safety,” said Imran Ahmed, CEO, Center for Countering Digital Hate.
“Senator Mark Warner is a leader in ensuring that technology supports democracy even as it advances innovation. This legislation removes obstacles to enforcement against online discrimination, cyber-stalking, and targeted harassment and incentivizes platforms to move past the current, ineffective whack-a-mole approach to harms,” said Karen Kornbluh, Former US Ambassador to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Full text of legislation is available here.
###
Warner Presses Meta on Facebook's Role in Inciting Violence and Spreading Misinformation Around the World
Feb 22 2023
WASHINGTON – Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, pressing the company on its efforts to combat the spread of misinformation, hate speech, and incitement content around the world. Reporting indicates that Facebook devotes 84 percent of its misinformation budget to the United States, where only ten percent of its users reside.
“In its pursuit of growth and dominance in new markets, I worry that Meta has not adequately invested in the technical, organizational, and human safeguards necessary to ensuring that your platform is not used to incite violence and real-world harm,” wrote Sen. Warner, pointing to evidence, acknowledged by Meta, that the platform as used to foment genocide in Myanmar. “I am concerned that Meta is not taking seriously the responsibility it has to ensure that Facebook and its other platforms do not inspire similar events in other nations around the world.”
In his letter, Sen. Warner noted that Facebook supported more than 110 languages on its platform as of October 2021, and users and advertisers posted on the platform in over 160 languages. However, Facebook’s community standards, the policies that outline what is and isn’t allowed on the platform, were available in less than half of the languages that Facebook offered at that time. Facebook has previously said that it uses artificial intelligence to proactively identify hate speech in more than 50 languages and that it has native speakers reviewing content in more than 70 languages.
“Setting aside the efficacy of Facebook’s AI solutions to detect hate speech and violent rhetoric in all of the languages that it offers, the fact that Facebook does not employ native speakers in dozens of languages officially welcomed on its platform is troubling – indicating that Facebook has prioritized growth over the safety of its users and the communities Facebook operates in,” Sen. Warner wrote, citing documents provided by Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen. “Of particular concern is the lack of resources dedicated to what Facebook itself calls ‘at-risk countries’ – nations that are especially vulnerable to misinformation, hate speech, and incitement to violence.”
Warner noted that in Ethiopia, Facebook reportedly did not have automated systems capable of flagging harmful posts in Amharic and Oromo, the country’s two most spoken languages. A March 2021 internal report said that armed groups within Ethiopia were using Facebook to incite violence against ethnic minorities, recruit, and fundraise.
“In the wake of Facebook’s role in the genocide of the Rohingya in Myanmar – where UN investigators explicitly described Facebook as playing a ‘determining role’ in the atrocities – one would imagine more resources would be dedicated to places like Ethiopia. Even in languages where Meta does have experience, the systems in place appear woefully inadequate at preventing violent hate speech from appearing on Facebook,” observed Sen. Warner, citing an investigation conducted by the non-profit Global Witness, which was able to post ads in Swahili and English ahead of the 2022 general elections in Kenya that violated Facebook’s stated Community Standards for hate speech and ethnic-based calls to violence.
“Unfortunately, these are not isolated cases – or new revelations. For nearly six years, Facebook’s role in fueling, amplifying, and accelerating racial, religious, and ethnic violence has been documented across the globe – including in Bangladesh, Indonesia, South Sudan, and Sri Lanka. In other developing countries – such as Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines – Facebook has reportedly courted autocratic parties and leaders in order to ensure its continued penetration of those markets,” wrote Sen. Warner. “Across many of these cases, Facebook’s global success – an outgrowth of its business strategy to cultivate high levels of global dependence through efforts like Facebook Free Basics and Internet.org – has heightened the effects of its misuse. In many developing countries, Facebook, in effect, constitutes the internet for millions of people, and serves as the infrastructure for significant social, political, and economic activity.”
“Ultimately, the destabilizing impacts of your platform on fragile societies across the globe poses a set of regional – if not global – security risks,” concluded Warner, posing a series of questions to Zuckerberg about the company’s investments in foreign language content moderation and requesting a response by March 15, 2023.
A full copy of the letter is available here.
###
Warner & Rubio Urge Biden Admin to Prevent Flow of U.S. Innovation to China's Military Industrial Complex
Feb 21 2023
WASHINGTON – Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Vice Chairman Marco Rubio (R-FL) wrote to the Biden administration to request that it expand the use of existing tools and authorities at the Departments of Treasury and Commerce to prevent China’s military industrial complex from benefiting from U.S. technology, talent and investments.
In a pair of letters, the Senators expressed concern with the flow of U.S. innovation, talent, and capital into the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which seeks to exert control over global supply chains, achieve technological superiority, and rise as the dominant economic and military power in the world. They also stress the need to utilize the authorities at the government’s disposal to protect U.S. interests and ensure that American businesses, investors, and consumers are not inadvertently advancing China’s authoritarian interests or supporting its ongoing genocide in Xinjiang and human rights abuses in Tibet and Hong Kong.
In their letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the Senators wrote, “It is widely known that the PRC’s Military-Civil Fusion (MCF) program targets technological advancements in the U.S., as well as university and research partnerships with the U.S., for the PRC’s military development. U.S. technology, talent, and capital continue to contribute—through both lawful and unlawful means, including theft—to the PRC’s development of critical military-use industries, technologies, and related supply chains. The breadth of the MCF program’s ambitions and reach creates dangerous vulnerabilities for U.S. national and economic security as well as undermines respect for democratic values globally.”
The Senators also posed a number of questions for Sec. Yellen regarding Treasury’s internal Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) lists, which do not include a number of entities and individuals who have been identified by the U.S. Government as posing national security risks or human rights concerns.
In their letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, the Senators wrote, “Despite recent restrictions on the export of sensitive technologies critical to U.S. national security, we remain deeply concerned that American technology, investment, and talent continue to support the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC’s) military industrial complex, intelligence and security apparatus, its ongoing genocide, and other PRC efforts to displace United States economic leadership. As such, we urge the Department of Commerce to immediately use its authorities to more broadly restrict these activities.”
The Senators also requested answers from Sec. Raimondo regarding America’s most critical high-technology sectors, the Department’s ability and authority to evaluate companies’ reliance on China and assess the flow of U.S. innovation to PRC entities.
A copy of the letter to the Department of Treasury is available here. A copy of the letter to the Department of Commerce is available here.
###
WASHINGTON – Last week, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced the American Security Drone Act of 2023, legislation to prohibit the purchase of drones from countries identified as national security threats, such as China.
“I am a staunch supporter of unmanned systems and drone investment here in the United States, and I wholeheartedly believe that we must continue to invest in domestic production of drones,” said Sen. Warner. “But the purchase of drones from foreign countries, especially those that have been deemed a national security threat, is dangerous. I am glad to introduce legislation that takes logical steps to protect our data from foreign adversaries and meanwhile supports American manufacturers.”
“I’ve been clear for years: the United States should never spend taxpayer dollars on anything made in Communist China, especially drones which pose a significant threat to our national security,” said Sen. Scott. “Xi and the Communist Party of China are on a quest for global domination and whether it’s with spy balloons, TikTok or drones, they will stop at nothing to infiltrate our society and steal our data. I’m proud to join my colleagues to reintroduce the bipartisan American Security Drone Act to STOP the U.S. from buying drones manufactured in nations identified as national security threats. This important bill is critical to our national security and should be passed by the Senate, House and signed into law IMMEDIATELY.”
Specifically, The American Security Drone Act:
- Prohibits federal departments and agencies from procuring certain foreign commercial off-the-shelf drone or covered unmanned aircraft system manufactured or assembled in countries identified as national security threats, and provides a timeline to end current use of these drones.
- Prohibits the use of federal funds awarded through certain contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements to state or local governments from being used to purchase foreign commercial off-the-shelf drones or covered unmanned aircraft systems manufactured or assembled in a country identified as a national security threat.
- Requires the Comptroller General of the United States to submit a report to Congress detailing the amount of foreign commercial off-the-shelf drones and covered unmanned aircraft systems procured by federal departments and agencies from countries identified as national security threats.
In addition to Sens. Warner and Scott, the legislation is cosponsored by Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Josh Hawley (R-MO).
Sen. Warner is a strong supporter of the domestic production of unmanned systems, including driverless cars, drones, and unmanned maritime vehicles. Earlier this month, Sen. Warner introduced the Increasing Competitiveness for American Drones Act, legislation that will clear the way for drones to be used for commercial transport of goods across the country.
Full text of the legislation is available here.
###
WASHINGTON – Yesterday, Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) was joined by Committee Vice Chair Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) for a joint interview on CBS’s Face the Nation, where the Senators discussed the Committee’s bipartisan oversight efforts and how the U.S. needs to tackle the rising threats posed by the Communist Party of China.
On the need for access to classified material found in the residences of Presidents Trump and Biden:
“This committee has had a long bipartisan history of doing its job. And our job here is intelligence oversight. The Justice Department has had the Trump documents about six months, the Biden documents about three months, our job is not to figure out if somebody mishandled those, our job is to make sure there's not an intelligence compromise. And while the Director of National Intelligence had been willing to brief us earlier, now that you've got the special counsel, the notion that we're going to be left in limbo, and we can't do our job, that just cannot stand. And every member of the committee who spoke yesterday and I wanted the director to hear this, regardless of party said, we are united in we have to find a way to do our job. That means we need these documents, we need that assessment.”—U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner
On the Intelligence Committee’s priorities:
“I actually think if there's one issue that still is extraordinarily bipartisan, it is a growing concern about China, and a recognition that in this technology race, second place is not good enough for us.” —U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner
“I want to have an approach that says, we need to look at foreign technology investments, foreign technology development, regardless of country, if it poses a national security threat and have some place that can evaluate this. We need a frame to systemically look at this… 138 million users in America use TikTok on a regular basis. Average about 90 minutes a day. The fact is, the algorithms that determine what you see on TikTok is determined out of Beijing by China. And the proof is, if you look at what Chinese kids are seeing on their version of TikTok, which emphasizes science and engineering, versus what our kids and the kids around the world are seeing, it is dramatically different. So, both from a data collection and from, frankly, a propaganda tool, it is of huge concern.” —U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner
On social media regulation:
“I've been saying for years, and we may not fully agree on this, but on all these social media companies, a lot of good, but there is a dark under belly. And the fact that the United States historically, we would have set some rules of the road for these entities in terms of standards, in terms of protocols, in terms of appropriate behavior, in terms of questions like even like basic privacy. But our failure to do so has mean we have ceded that leadership, oftentimes to the Europeans, or to individual states, and I think that's, frankly, a loss of American leadership.” —U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner
Video of Sen. Warner and Sen. Rubio’s full interview on Face the Nation can be found here. A transcript follows.
CBS’s Face the Nation
MARGARET BRENNAN: Do you have any timeline in terms of when you will get visibility into the documents of classified material that both President Biden and President Trump had in their residences?
SENATOR MARK WARNER: Margaret, unfortunately, no. And this committee has had a long bipartisan history of doing its job. And our job here is intelligence oversight. The Justice Department has had the Trump documents about six months, the Biden documents about three months. Our job is not to figure out if somebody mishandled those, but our job is to make sure there's not an intelligence compromise.
And while the director of national intelligence had been willing to brief us earlier, now that you've got the special counsel, the notion that we're going to be left in limbo, and we can't do our job, that just cannot stand.
BRENNAN: But the intelligence community would say their hands are tied, because this is an ongoing, active Justice Department investigation.
So what would meet the level of -- of addressing your concerns without compromising that?
SENATOR MARCO RUBIO: Well, I don't know how congressional oversight on the documents, actually knowing what they are in any way impedes an investigation.
These are probably materials we already have access to. We just don't know which ones they are. And it's not about being nosy. You know, the -- here's the bottom line. If, in fact, those documents were very sensitive, materials were sensitive, and they pose a counterintelligence or national security threat to the United States, then the intelligence agencies are tasked with the job of coming up with ways to mitigate that.
BRENNAN: Does the director even know what the materials were?
SEN. WARNER: Well, we got a bit of vagueness on that, because, again, I believe you want to make sure the intelligence professionals and not political appointees were making some of that.
That makes sense to me. But I would even think that, if the -- President Trump and President Biden would probably want to have this known, if they say there's no there there. Well, there may still be violations on handling.
SEN. RUBIO: Let me tell you how absurd this is.
There isn't a day that goes by that there isn't some media report about what was found where, what -- some sort of characterization of the material in the press. So, somehow, the only people who are not allowed to know what was in there are congressional oversight committees.
So, it's an untenable situation that I think has to be resolved.
BRENNAN: The idea that some of these documents go all the way back to when President Biden was a senator, does that suggest that there's something more than a problem in the executive branch?
SEN. WARNER: Agreed. That's why the notion of, we're not going to give the Oversight Committee the ability to do its job until the special prosecutor somehow says it's OK doesn't -- doesn't hold water. We have a right, as not only members of the Intelligence Committee, but as part of the leadership, to read virtually every classified document. We got a problem in terms of both classification levels, how senior elected officials, when they leave government, how they handle documents. We've had too many examples of this.
And, again, I think we've got the bipartisan bona fides to say, let's put them in place on a going-forward basis, a better process.
BRENNAN: So, you -- you threatened to withhold some funding to some of the agencies yesterday.
SEN. RUBIO: I'm not in the threat business right now.
But we certainly are -- there are things we need to do as a committee every year to authorize the moving around of funds. I think the director of national intelligence and other heads of intelligence agencies are aware of that.
You know, at some point, I would prefer for them just to call us this morning or tomorrow or whenever and say, look, this is the arrangement that we think we can reach, so that the overseers can get access to this. I would prefer not to go down that road. But it's one of the pieces of leverage we have as Congress.
SEN. WARNER: We're going to figure out a way to make sure that we get that access, so that we can not only tell the American people, but we've got another 85 U.S. senators who are not on the Intelligence Committee who look to us to get those assurances.
BRENNAN: What is it that you, as lawmakers, can do? Is it new regulations when it comes to transitions?
SEN. WARNER: The director of national intelligence is the individual that's the chief officer for intelligence classification.
I think -- and there's been a number of other members of the Senate, both parties, have been working for years on the notion that we overclassify.
BRENNAN: Right.
SEN. WARNER: The number of things that we read in a SCIF that somehow then appear in the newspaper begs the question.It's kind of been an issue that's been bubbling for a long time.
BRENNAN: Overclassification.
SEN. WARNER: I think that this -- I think this series of events pushes it to the forefront.
And, again, we have the power to write legislation, which then executive agencies have to follow.
BRENNAN: In terms of record-keeping.
SEN. WARNER: In terms of record-keeping, in terms, literally, of at least guidance on classification issues. I mean, there has been -- and again, this director of national intelligence, I'm going to give her credit. She has been at least acknowledging and, long before this issue came up, said, we need to work on this issue of declassification, overclassification. Every director says it, and then it kind of gets pushed -- pushed back. I think one good thing that may come out of this is that we're going to find a way to resolve this issue on a going-forward basis.
BRENNAN: Welcome back to FACE THE NATION. For all the division on Capitol Hill, one subject that invites at least some bipartisan unity is the threat posed by China. For more, we return to our interview with the leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Mark Warner and Marco Rubio.
BRENNAN: President Biden is reportedly close to issuing an executive order when it comes to restrictions on U.S. investments in - in China. But there's concern about risking further escalation. What's your view on how far that action should go?
SEN. RUBIO: The Chinese have found a way to use capitalism against us and a - and what I mean by that is the ability to attract investment into entities that are deeply linked to the state. The military commercial fusion that exists in China is a concept that we don't have in this country. We have contractors that do defense work, but there is no distinction in China between advancements in technology, biomedicine, whatever it might be, and the interest of the state.
And then the second is, obviously, the access to our capital markets.
And the third is the risk posed. We don't, up to this point, have not had levels of transparency in terms of auditing and the like on these investments of the -- into these companies. When you invest in these companies and U.S. exchanges, you don't have nearly as much information about the bookkeeping of those companies as you would an American company or a European company because they refuse to comply with those restrictions. So, there's systemic risk to our investments and then there's also the geopolitical reality that American capital flows are helping to fund activities that are ultimately designed to undermine our national security.
SEN. WARNER: Beginning of the 20th century, I was a believer that, you know, the more you bring China into the world order, the more things will all be copacetic.
BRENNAN: Right.
SEN. WARNER: We were just wrong on that. The communist party, under President Xi's leadership, and my beef is, to be clear, with the communist party, it's not with the Chinese people or the Chinese (INAUDIBLE), wherever it is in the world, but they basically changed the rules of the road. They made clear, in Chinese law, that every company in China's ultimate responsibility is to the communist party. Not that their customers. Not to their shareholders.
We have actually, in a bipartisan way, did over -- didn't get a lot of attention, over the last seven years, have been out and we've done 20 classified briefings for industry sector after industry sector about these risks. Frankly, pre-Covid, we kind of got nods.
BRENNAN: Right.
SEN. WARNER: But, you know, some pushback because a lot of companies were making - were making –
BRENNAN: Because companies just wanted access to the market regardless of the risk.
SEN. WARNER: Were making a lot of money off Chinese tech companies.
BRENNAN: Exactly. Exactly.
SEN. WARNER: Now, post-Covid, I think there is an awakening that this is a real challenge. And I think the good news is that not only is there an awakening, you know, in America, but a lot of our allies around the world are seeing this threat as well.
SEN. RUBIO: I - I think there was a -
BRENNAN: So you want restrictions on biotech, battery technologies, semiconductors, artificial intelligence?
SEN. WARNER: I want to have an approach that says, we need to look at foreign technology investments, foreign technology development, regardless of country, if it poses a national security threat and have some place that can evaluate this. We need a frame to systemically look at this. And, frankly, if it goes just beyond the so-called CFIUS legislation about inbound or outbound investment.
BRENNAN: That's a committee looks at the national security risk.
SEN. RUBIO: But understanding that for, you know, 20 years ago everybody thought capitalism was going to change China. And we woke up to the realization that capitalism didn't change China, China changed capitalism. And they've used it to their advantage and to our disadvantage. And not simply from an old Soviet perspective to take us on from a geopolitical or military perspective, they've done so from a technological and industrial perspective. And so you have seen the largest theft and transfer of intellectual property in the history of humanity occur over the last 15 years. Some of it funded by American taxpayers.
BRENNAN: They have the biggest hacking ability program than any other nation. The intelligence community says they're the world leader in surveillance, in censorship. How restricted should their ability to access this market be?
SEN. RUBIO: I think it is nearly impossible for any Chinese company to comply with both Chinese law and our expectations in this country. Chinese law is very clear, if you're a Chinese company and we ask you for your data, we ask you for your information, we ask you for what you have or we ask you to do something, you either do it or you won't be around.
BRENNAN: You want to ban Chinese companies from investing in America?
SEN. RUBIO: Well, I think there are certain investments where there's no way we can protect the country from doing it. Do you - you know, we go back to TikTok, people say, who - you know, why do we care about what some 16- year-olds are doing.
BRENNAN: Right.
SEN. RUBIO: I don't think the threat is that some 16-year-old likes these cool videos that are on there, which I admit are - are attractive, obviously, because of the artificial intelligence makes it so. It's the massive amount of data that they're collecting, not on one 16-year-old, not on 1,000 16-year-olds, but on millions and millions of Americans that give them commercial advantage, potentially the advantage of being able to shape American public opinion in a time of crisis, that - that just give them extraordinary insights that allow them to steer the conversation in this country in any direction they want.
BRENNAN: But this has been talked about for three years now.
SEN. WARNER: But - but let's -
BRENNAN: The Trump administration tried to ban it. The Biden administration still hasn't pulled the trigger.
SEN. WARNER: Maybe we were all a little bit slow to recognize the challenge here. You know, it is both a data collection entity. Now, it may not collect as much data as some of our American platforms, but it is very much, at the end of the day, still responsible to the communist party.
But think about this, Margaret, 138 million users in America use TikTok on a regular basis. Average about 90 minutes a day. The fact is, the algorithms that determine what you see on TikTok is determined out of Beijing by China.
And the proof is, if you look at what Chinese kids are seeing on their version of TikTok, which emphasizes science and engineering, versus what our kids and the kids around the world are seeing, it is dramatically different. So, both from a data collection and from, frankly, a propaganda tool, it is of huge concern.
BRENNAN: Yes. CBS spoke to TikTok about their plans and the company said they had come to an agreement over the summer in terms of how they could structure things to separate and create a wall to protect against some of these concerns. They said they can continue operating in the U.S. by offering data protections.
Do you both know what they are offering. And you're laughing so I'm guessing this isn't sufficient?
SEN. RUBIO: I don't know what the data protections are. And there's a technical aspect to it. But it's beyond the data protections. I filed a bill to ban it last year.
BRENNAN: Right.
SEN. RUBIO: We're going to re-file it again this year.
BRENNAN: You are?
SEN. RUBIO: It's bipartisan. It's bicameral. Some people are not willing to go that far, but I certainly think it's the right place to be. But, in the end, we've got to do something about it, whether it's a ban or something else.
I - I honestly don't know - I -- as I sit here with you today, I don't know how our national security interests and the operation of TikTok in this country, as long as it's owned by ByteDance, can coexist.
SEN. WARNER: And I'm - and - and --
BRENNAN: You want to force the sale?
SEN. RUBIO: I - I want -- I've been wanting to do that for three years.
SEN. WARNER: I may have a slightly different approach. I'm going to sit down and see how we can work through this. But I've been hearing - and I've been trying to give the Biden administration now more than two years to see, is there a technical solution here? And I'd be willing to take a look at it.
The Biden administration has not announced that. And I think the problem is, this is technically extraordinarily hard to do. TikTok has repeatedly said, oh, America's data, not being seen in China. And repeatedly we've seen Chinese engineers having access to American data.
BRENNAN: But it's already been downloaded 200 million times.
SEN. WARNER: This is -
BRENNAN: How do you convince a 16-year-old to delete the app and get rid of the phone? I mean is -- isn't this very hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube?
SEN. WARNER: This is - this - this -- absolutely. But this is one of the reasons why I think Congress has been horribly unsuccessful at this. I've been saying for years, and we may not fully agree on this, but on all these social media companies, a lot of good, but there is a dark under belly. And the fact that the United States historically, we would have set some rules of the road for these - for these entities in terms of standards, in terms of protocols, in terms of appropriate behavior, in terms of questions like even like basic privacy.
SEN. BRENNAN: Right.
SEN. WARNER: But our failure to do so has mean we have ceded that leadership, oftentimes to the Europeans, or to individual states, and I think that's, frankly, a loss of American leadership.
You know, for most of my lifetime we led virtually in every innovation area. We suddenly woke up with, you know, 5G or wireless communication where China was, you know, setting the standards. We - we woke up an industry like semiconductor chips and woke up -
BRENNAN: Yes.
SEN. WARNER: We used to own this and we've lost it. We've seen now the solar industry where it's all migrated to China.
If -- think about, you know, this notion around quantum computing, the ability to break any kind of encryption, or artificial intelligence, those technologies are driven by an authoritarian regime out of China. You know, I don't care where you fall on the political spectrum in America, that's not good news or for free people anywhere in the world.
BRENNAN: Aren't you - aren't you going to run head long into business interests here in the United States? I mean just look at Elon Musk. The U.S. government relies on his company SpaceX. He has a majority in car company Tesla. He has control over the internet connection in Ukraine via Starlink. And he now owns Twitter.
You said there's no one in the world more dependent on the communist party than Elon Musk.
SEN. WARNER: Exactly (ph). My concern is, you know, if you look at Mr. Musk's public statements, they're almost all supportive of the oversight regime in China, and they're almost all derogatory about the oversight regime in America and in Europe.
And part of that, I think, whether it's knowingly or not, is, where does he get all his batteries that go into all these Teslas? They are, you know, built in China, mostly, frankly, with a lot of Uyghur labor. And Senator Rubio has been the leader on trying to make sure that the Chinese communist party's treatment of the Uyghur people is prohibited. And, you know, I've yet to hear from Mr. Musk how that kind of contradiction about comments about the CCP in China and what he's dealing with Uyghur labor, how that's not going to influence some of his decisions.
SEN. RUBIO: It goes beyond Elon Musk. I mean business interests have invested, both in access to the Chinese market, but also in the means of production. And it's allowed them, in many cases, historically, to be deputized, include - and that includes the finance and investment world -- to come to Washington and argue for things that are against the national interest but in favor of their short and midterm profit line for their investors for their company.
BRENNAN: Senator Rubio, as a conservative you have to feel a little bit uncomfortable with talking about government intervention in private industry. But that has been the U.S. solution in some ways to the semiconductor issues you were raising, the subsidy, to try to bring chip making back to America.
SEN. RUBIO: Well, I would argue this, that I don't believe in government intervention in the private sector, but I do believe in government intervention in our national security. So, capitalism --
BRENNAN: These are subsidies.
SEN. RUBIO: Well, so capitalism is going to give you the most efficient outcome. But sometimes what do you do when the most efficient outcome is not in our national interest, because it's more efficient to buy rare earth minerals from the Chinese, it's more efficient to have things built over there in many cases, but is it in our national interest to depend on them for 80 something percent of the active ingredients in our pharmaceuticals? I could argue it was not. And in those instances, where the market efficient outcome is not in our national interest, it is my opinion that we default to the national interests because without our national interests and our national security, the other things won't matter.
We are not a market. We're a nation. And the market exists to serve the market, not the nation to serve the market.
BRENNAN: The $50 billion that taxpayers just pumped into to the chips bill and semiconductors, that's just the start. That you think other legislation is coming like that?
SEN. WARNER: I'm saying - what I'm saying is we need - you know, one of the reasons that it took us $52 billion and that was for most semiconductors and next generation wireless, was because candidly I think we went asleep at the switch for a long time and we had to suddenly play catch-up because we'd seen China advance and we had also seen Taiwan, our friend and one of the reasons why we need to be supportive, where, frankly, every advanced chip in all of our satellites and - and sea craft are made in Taiwan.
We were chasing after the fact. If we can get ahead on - on some of these key areas, I don't think we will need that kind of investment. But we are going to need to make sure that we've got a plan in place to make sure that these new technology domains don't all end up in China.
SEN. RUBIO: We need to identify, what are the critical industries and capacities that our country needs to be able to have without being leveraged or having to go through the Chinese to get it. And then we need to figure out what government's role is.
Now, I want to make sure that we're not turning this into a lobbyist trial where every industry comes here and gets money. And we have to make sure that if we're going to invest in research, that that research is protected, that there's sufficient safeguards, because what's the point of putting billions of dollars to innovate something they're going to steal anyway?
But I do think, again, this is not about government running or owning these companies. We're not going to rely on the Chinese or someone else to make it for us because we'll be denied that capability in a time of conflict.
BRENNAN: Can you get that through a divided Congress?
SEN. WARNER: I actually think if there's one issue that still is extraordinarily bipartisan, it is a growing concern about China and a recognition that in this technology race, second place is not good enough for us.
BRENNAN: We actually haven't had a bipartisan interview like this in about three years. So, to see a Democrat and a Republican sit down and talk about issues of substance is great to see.
SEN. WARNER: Thank you.
BRENNAN: Thank you both.
BRENNAN: We'll be right back.
###
Statement of Senate Intel Chair Mar R. Warner on Virginia's TikTok Ban on Government Devices
Dec 16 2022
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, released the following statement applauding Virginia’s ban on TikTok:
“As a former governor and Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I’m glad to see that Virginia has banned TikTok on government devices. TikTok has the stamp of approval of the Chinese Communist Party and it poses a serious national security threat due to its data collection practices and its ability to reach and manipulate Americans. I hope to see more states take action to keep our government technology out of the CCP’s reach.”
###
WASHINGTON – Today, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) and Vice Chairman Marco Rubio (R-FL) applauded the final passage of the Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA) for Fiscal Year 2023 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The legislation passed through the Senate yesterday by a vote of 83-11, after being approved by the House of Representatives last week. The IAA authorizes funding, provides legal authorities, and enhances congressional oversight for the U.S. Intelligence Community.
“I am pleased the House and Senate have passed the Committee’s bipartisan Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 as part of our nation’s defense authorization bill,” said Committee Chairman Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA). “This year’s bill will enhance the country’s ability to confront our adversaries, including the growing threats to our national security posed by China and Russia. It also takes significant steps to promote U.S. technology leadership, including by accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies and increasing our ability to compete with China. Finally, I am pleased that this year’s bill drives serious improvement to the IC’s hiring and security clearance processes, so that the IC can attract and expeditiously on-board a talented, diverse, and trusted workforce.”
“This year’s Intelligence Authorization Act ensures that the Intelligence Community (IC) has the resources, authorities, and personnel to protect America’s national security and counter the growing threats from autocracies like China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, and Cuba,” said Committee Vice Chairman Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL). “This bill further enhances U.S. counterintelligence screening, foreign intelligence collection and analysis, and emerging technology capabilities to focus the IC on addressing our primary national security threat in the 21st century – countering Communist China.”
Background:
The IAA for Fiscal Year 2023 authorizes funding and ensures that the Intelligence Community (IC) has the resources, personnel, and authorities it needs to protect our country and inform decision makers, while under robust Congressional oversight, including in the following key areas:
- Confronting the growing national security threat posed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) by increasing hard target intelligence collection and analysis, as well as by identifying and exposing corruption, forced labor camps, global infrastructure financing, and malign economic investments in telecommunications and semiconductors;
- Bolstering intelligence support for Ukraine as it fights to defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty against Russia’s unprovoked aggression, including by increasing oversight of China’s support to Ukraine, assessing the effects of sanctions on Russia and its allies, and evaluating opportunities to mitigate threats to food security due to the conflict;
- Establishing IC Coordinators to account for Russian atrocities and for countering proliferation of Iran-origin unmanned aircraft systems;
- Driving improvements to the IC’s hiring and security clearance processes by keeping the IC accountable for progress, including timeliness in bringing cleared personnel onboard, ensuring that key management and contract oversight personnel in industry can obtain clearances, and establishing personnel vetting performance measures;
- Accelerating and improving procurement, adoption, and integration of emerging technologies across the IC;
- Establishing counterintelligence protections for IC grant funding against foreign-based risks of misappropriation, theft, and other threats to U.S. innovation;
- Establishing measures to mitigate counterintelligence threats from foreign commercial spyware;
- Strengthening oversight of national security threats associated with the regimes in Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela;
- Ensuring continued support to the victims of anomalous health incidents (“Havana Syndrome”) and maintaining continued oversight over the IC’s investigations into the causes of anomalous health incidents;
- Enforcing cybersecurity enhancements and cybersecurity minimum standards across the IC, including for classified systems; and
- Enhancing oversight of IC and Department of Defense collection and reporting on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena.
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, today applauded Senate passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the country’s annual defense bill.
“As the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I am keenly aware of the importance of the National Defense Authorization Act. I’m proud to have voted to pass legislation that will boost our national security by providing support for our servicemembers and their families, investing in projects that increase military readiness, and supporting critical jobs in Virginia while reinforcing our commitment to Ukraine’s fight against authoritarian brutality. I look forward to President Biden signing this legislation quickly,” said Sen. Warner.
The package provides $857.9 billion in funding for our nation’s defense, and includes a number of Warner-championed provisions that would:
- Help provide better housing support for servicemembers and their families. These provisions direct DoD to reevaluate methodologies for calculating the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) to better reflect servicemembers’ housing needs, and look at barriers to home ownership that are unique to members of the military. These provisions are based on two Warner-sponsored bills, the BAH Calculation Improvement Act and the Increasing Home Ownership for Servicemembers Act.
- Authorize more than $285 million in funding for 14 military construction projects in Virginia, including in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Dahlgren, Newport News, Ft. Belvoir, Langley, and at the Pentagon:
- $125 million for Submarine Pier 3 at Naval Station Norfolk.
- $47.72 million for a Dry Dock Saltwater System for CVN-78 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard.
- $26.6 million for a SOF (Special Forces) operations building addition at Dam Neck.
- $19 million for a primary distribution substation at Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads.
- $18 million for a commercial vehicle inspection facility at the Pentagon.
- $16.86 million for submarine logistics support facilities at Naval Station Norfolk.
- $10.5 million for Langley AFB for Air Force Reserve construction and land acquisition projects.
- $10.4 million for G/ATOR (Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar) support facilities at Dam Neck.
- $10 million to support research and development of advanced fuels to support future DOD energy requirements. This development would happen at BWXT in Lynchburg, cementing Lynchburg’s leadership as a center for innovation.
- $3.4 million for backup power generation at Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads.
- $2.5 million for electrical substation upgrades at Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division.
- $2.3 million for Child Development Center planning and development at Naval Station Norfolk.
- $1.23 million for Weapons Integration and Test Campus planning and development at Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division.
- $1.1 million for a secondary cooling system at NCE Springfield at Fort Belvoir.
- Accelerate the construction of two new Child Development Centers in Hampton Roads to help provide critical child care for infants and children on installations. This provision mirrors a Congressionally Directed Spending request made by Sen. Warner to help address the larger challenges military families face with the supply of available child care.
- Accelerate the construction of two new Child Development Centers in Hampton Roads to help provide critical child care for infants and children on installations. This provision mirrors a Congressionally Directed Spending request made by Sen. Warner to help address the larger challenges military families face with the supply of available child care.
- Overhaul how the military understands and studies food insecurity among members of in the military. The provision – based on an amendment led in the Senate by Sen. Warner – will improve how the military collects data and analyzes rates of food insecurity among servicemembers and their families, to better measure and more effectively address the concerning issue of food insecurity in the military.
- Support the critical work of the U.S. Intelligence Community by including the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (IAA). The IAA allocates funding, provides legal authorities, and enhances congressional oversight of the Intelligence Community.
- Bring federal data collection into the 21st century and boost financial transparency by modernizing data collection by the federal financial regulators. This provision is based on Sen. Warner’s Financial Data Transparency Act, which requires these regulators to develop common data formatting standards that promote the usability and organization of financial data they already collect from regulated institutions – rules that will make data easier for the public to use and for agencies to process.
The bill also includes a number of other crucial measures supported by Sen. Warner.
To support investments in our nation’s defense and diplomatic capabilities, this bill would:
- Support Navy shipbuilding with $32.6 billion in funding for the procurement of 11 battle force ships, including full funding for the Columbia-class submarine program and for the procurement of two Virginia-class submarines. The bill also would reverse plans for the early retirement of 12 vessels in the coming year. The legislation also guarantees a minimum of 31 operational amphibious warfare ships for the Navy and Marine Corps.
- Support the critical work of the U.S. State Department by advancing funding and a range of provisions vital to supporting our nation’s diplomatic efforts the men and women who work tirelessly to advance those around the world.
- Support the work of the U.S. Coast Guard with more than $28 billion in funding.
- Authorize nearly $132 million for defense research activities at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority Serving Institutions. Last year, Sen. Warner successfully led an effort in the NDAA to better position HBCUs and MSIs to compete for federal research dollars.
For members of the military and their families, this bill would:
- Authorize a 4.6 percent pay raise to servicemembers and Department of Defense (DoD) civilians.
- Take steps to address the suicide and mental health crisis in the military by directing DoD to undertake more detailed research into mental health and rates of suicide. This provision seeks to provide a better understanding of the different ramifications across military career fields. It also directs an Inspector General review of efforts by the Navy to prevent and respond to suicides in light of deaths in the Hampton Roads region and elsewhere.
- Make historic reforms to the military justice system’s handling of certain offenses, including sexual assaults. Following years of tireless effort by advocates, this bill would remove commanders from all prosecutorial and judicial functions for a range of covered offenses. Sen. Warner is a proud sponsor of Sen. Gillibrand’s Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act of 2021, which, combined with bipartisan efforts across both Chambers this year, formed the foundation for these reforms.
- Tackle issues with military housing by:
- Extending DoD’s authority to raise the Basic Allowance for Housing for military families living in higher-cost areas of the country.
- Improving oversight over military housing issues and codifying the position of Chief Housing Officer. Sen. Warner has pushed to have a single, designated lead for housing at DoD to improve accountability to residents as well as Congress, and to promote and increase coordination.
- Requiring the Secretary of Defense to implement health-related recommendations made by the Department’s Inspector General related to privatized military housing.
- Tackle food insecurity by:
- Expanding eligibility for the Basic Needs Allowance to help ensure that all men and women in uniform and their families have the basic necessities they need. The Basic Needs Allowance was created through the Warner-sponsored Military Hunger Prevention Act, and is aimed at combating disturbing rates of food insecurity in the military.
- Creating a pilot program to better address rates of food insecurity among veterans. This provision would offer grant funding to organizations that are actively working to address this challenge.
- Adding $210 million in authorized funding for the military’s commissary system to help support food access for servicemembers and their families.
- Increase access to timely child care for military families who undergo a permanent change of station by creating a pilot program to provide child care-related reimbursement to these families.
For the ongoing effort to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s authoritarianism, this bill would:
- Extend the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) – one of the main tools used by the U.S. in support of Ukraine’s defensive needs – and authorize $800 million for this program in the coming fiscal year.
- Authorize more than $6 billion to fully fund the European Deterrence Initiative.
- Hold Russia accountable for its atrocities by stating that the United States will collect, analyze, and preserve evidence related to Russian war crimes, and will assist in pursuing appropriate accountability for those responsible.
- Increase transparency and accountability by taking steps to ensure that Inspectors General are able to adequately conduct oversight of U.S. funding to ensure it is most effectively being applied in support of Ukraine’s efforts.
- Express the full commitment of the United States to NATO and to continuing Ukrainian assistance during Russia’s violent and illegal invasion.
- Authorize more than $2.7 billion for munitions production capacity, and direct an assessment of our defense industrial base’s capacity long-term.
To bolster our ability to compete in the 21st century, this bill would:
- Continue to strengthen U.S.-India relations by directing the Departments of Defense and State to pursue greater engagement and expanded cooperation with India related to emerging technology, joint R&D, defense and cyber capabilities, and other opportunities for collaboration – including for reducing India’s reliance on Russian-built defense equipment. These provisions support an effort by Sen. Warner, co-Chair of the Senate India Caucus, to highlight the importance of our defense partnership with India, and to support accelerated efforts by India to diversify defense systems.
- Better invest in emerging technologies by boosting funding for basic and applied research and development of advanced tech by $2.85 billion including the allocation of funding for research at Virginia-based institutions Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University.
- Support the commercialization of critical capabilities by authorizing $300 million in funding for new bio-manufacturing facilities.
- Authorize an increase of $120 million for 5G technology R&D and transition support.
- Authorize an increase of $75 million for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as it looks to implement recommendations put forward by the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (AI). It would also authorize an increase of $50 million for AI at U.S. Cyber Command, and require more strategic, longer-term planning related to DoD’s efforts to rapidly adopt AI to relevant cyber missions.
- Support DARPA’s quantum computing activities with an increase of $20 million.
- Increase productivity and cooperation in microelectronics by establishing a working group of government, private sector, and academia experts to better enable coordination and consultation related to R&D and manufacturing.
- Support technology improvements and advancements in our military by requiring the DoD to report transition plans for 5-G communications infrastructure at all military installations as well as establish a consortium specifically for the purpose of studying cybersecurity problems within the DoD.
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), today applauded the inclusion of a number of Virginia priorities in the draft of the nation’s annual defense bill that was announced late last night after weeks of talks between House and Senate negotiators. A full summary of the draft FY23 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is available here.
“As the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I’m glad to see an agreement on draft legislation that will help bolster our military readiness, support critical Virginia jobs, tackle the needs of military families, and reinforce our commitment to Ukraine in its fight against authoritarianism. I look forward to considering this legislation in the Senate,” said Sen. Warner.
The proposal supports $857.9 billion in funding for our nation’s defense, and includes a number of Warner-championed provisions that would:
- Help provide better housing support for servicemembers and their families. These provisions direct DoD to reevaluate methodologies for calculating the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) to better reflect servicemembers’ housing needs, and look at barriers to home ownership that are unique to members of the military. These provisions are based on two Warner-sponsored bills, the BAH Calculation Improvement Act and the Increasing Home Ownership for Servicemembers Act.
- Authorize more than $285 million in funding for 14 military construction projects in Virginia, including in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Dahlgren, Newport News, Ft. Belvoir, Langley, and at the Pentagon.
- Accelerate the construction of two new Child Development Centers in Hampton Roads to help provide critical child care for infants and children on installations. This provision mirrors a Congressionally Directed Spending request made by Sen. Warner to help address the larger challenges military families face with the supply of available child care.
- Overhaul how the military understands and studies food insecurity among members of in the military. The provision – based on an amendment led in the Senate by Sen. Warner – will improve how the military collects data and analyzes rates of food insecurity among servicemembers and their families, to better measure and more effectively address the concerning issue of food insecurity in the military.
- Support the critical work of the U.S. Intelligence Community by including the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (IAA). The IAA allocates funding, provides legal authorities, and enhances congressional oversight of the Intelligence Community.
- Bring federal data collection into the 21st century and boost financial transparency by modernizing data collection by the federal financial regulators. This provision is based on Sen. Warner’s Financial Data Transparency Act, which requires these regulators to develop common data formatting standards that promote the usability and organization of financial data they already collect from regulated institutions – rules that will make data easier for the public to use and for agencies to process.
The bill also includes a number of other crucial measures supported by Sen. Warner.
To support investments in our nation’s defense and diplomatic capabilities, this bill would:
- Support Navy shipbuilding with $32.6 billion in funding for the procurement of 11 battle force ships, including full funding for the Columbia-class submarine program and for the procurement of two Virginia-class submarines. The bill also would reverse plans for the early retirement of 12 vessels in the coming year.
- Support the critical work of the U.S. State Department by advancing funding and a range of provisions vital to supporting our nation’s diplomatic efforts the men and women who work tirelessly to advance those around the world.
- Support the work of the U.S. Coast Guard with more than $28 billion in funding.
- Authorize nearly $132 million for defense research activities at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority Serving Institutions. Last year, Sen. Warner successfully led an effort in the NDAA to better position HBCUs and MSIs to compete for federal research dollars.
For members of the military and their families, this bill would:
- Authorize a 4.6 percent pay raise to servicemembers and Department of Defense (DoD) civilians.
- Take steps to address the suicide and mental health crisis in the military by directing DoD to undertake more detailed research into mental health and rates of suicide. This provision seeks to provide a better understanding of the different ramifications across military career fields. It also directs an Inspector General review of efforts by the Navy to prevent and respond to suicides in light of deaths in the Hampton Roads region and elsewhere.
- Make historic reforms to the military justice system’s handling of certain offenses, including sexual assaults. Following years of tireless effort by advocates, this bill would remove commanders from all prosecutorial and judicial functions for a range of covered offenses. Sen. Warner is a proud sponsor of Sen. Gillibrand’s Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act of 2021, which, combined with bipartisan efforts across both Chambers this year, formed the foundation for these reforms.
- Tackle issues with military housing by:
- Extending DoD’s authority to raise the Basic Allowance for Housing for military families living in higher-cost areas of the country.
- Improving oversight over military housing issues and codifying the position of Chief Housing Officer. Sen. Warner has pushed to have a single, designated lead for housing at DoD to improve accountability to residents as well as Congress, and to promote and increase coordination.
- Requiring the Secretary of Defense to implement health-related recommendations made by the Department’s Inspector General related to privatized military housing.
- Tackle food insecurity by:
- Expanding eligibility for the Basic Needs Allowance to help ensure that all men and women in uniform and their families have the basic necessities they need. The Basic Needs Allowance was created through the Warner-sponsored Military Hunger Prevention Act, and is aimed at combating disturbing rates of food insecurity in the military.
- Creating a pilot program to better address rates of food insecurity among veterans. This provision would offer grant funding to organizations that are actively working to address this challenge.
- Adding $210 million in authorized funding for the military’s commissary system to help support food access for servicemembers and their families.
- Increase access to timely child care for military families who undergo a permanent change of station by creating a pilot program to provide child care-related reimbursement to these families.
For the ongoing effort to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s authoritarianism, this bill would:
- Extend the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) – one of the main tools used by the U.S. in support of Ukraine’s defensive needs – and authorize $800 million for this program in the coming fiscal year.
- Authorize more than $6 billion to fully fund the European Deterrence Initiative.
- Hold Russia accountable for its atrocities by stating that the United States will collect, analyze, and preserve evidence related to Russian war crimes, and will assist in pursuing appropriate accountability for those responsible.
- Increase transparency and accountability by taking steps to ensure that Inspectors General are able to adequately conduct oversight of U.S. funding to ensure it is most effectively being applied in support of Ukraine’s efforts.
- Express the full commitment of the United States to NATO and to continuing Ukrainian assistance during Russia’s violent and illegal invasion.
- Authorize more than $2.7 billion for munitions production capacity, and direct an assessment of our defense industrial base’s capacity long-term.
To bolster our ability to compete in the 21st century, this bill would:
- Continue to strengthen U.S.-India relations by directing the Departments of Defense and State to pursue greater engagement and expanded cooperation with India related to emerging technology, joint R&D, defense and cyber capabilities, and other opportunities for collaboration – including for reducing India’s reliance on Russian-built defense equipment. These provisions support an effort by Sen. Warner, co-Chair of the Senate India Caucus, to highlight the importance of our defense partnership with India, and to support accelerated efforts by India to diversify defense systems.
- Better invest in emerging technologies by boosting funding for basic and applied research and development of advanced tech by $2.85 billion.
- Support the commercialization of critical capabilities by authorizing $300 million in funding for new bio-manufacturing facilities.
- Authorize an increase of $120 million for 5G technology R&D and transition support.
- Authorize an increase of $75 million for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as it looks to implement recommendations put forward by the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (AI). It would also authorize an increase of $50 million for AI at U.S. Cyber Command, and require more strategic, longer-term planning related to DoD’s efforts to rapidly adopt AI to relevant cyber missions.
- Support DARPA’s quantum computing activities with an increase of $20 million.
- Increase productivity and cooperation in microelectronics by establishing a working group of government, private sector, and academia experts to better enable coordination and consultation related to R&D and manufacturing.
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement:
“Since Russia launched its brutal and illegal invasion of Ukraine nine months ago, there has been fear that this conflict could spill over into neighboring NATO countries and result in a dangerous escalation that would lead to devastation and destruction across Europe. As U.S. national security officials engage directly with Polish allies to confirm details about today’s events, the deaths of civilians following a reported Russian strike inside Poland underscore the disastrous and destabilizing effects of Putin’s unjust war. The United States has been clear in our continued support for Ukraine, as well as in our commitments to our NATO allies.”
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement after the Department of Justice unsealed charges against Chinese Communist Party (CCP) intelligence officers who attempted to sabotage Huawei investigation:
“The charges announced today by the Department of Justice further illustrate Huawei’s inextricable ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its brazen but unsurprising disregard for the rule of law. The Intelligence Community has repeatedly warned about the economic and national security threats posed by Chinese telecommunications companies like Huawei, which are backed by the CCP and exploited in the interest of authoritarian goals and ambitions. I applaud the dedicated work of the Department of Justice and law enforcement officials, and I look forward to seeing any investigations against Huawei proceed unimpeded.”
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement in response to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plan to ban new sales of Chinese-based Huawei and ZTE technologies on the bases of national security:
“Several years ago a bipartisan group of senators on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence began raising the alarm about the threat that Huawei and ZTE posed to our national security. I’m proud of the steps that Congress has since taken to confront this challenge, including passing Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 – which I co-wrote to incentivize carriers to replace Huawei and ZTE equipment in their networks. I’m glad to see the Federal Communications Commission finally take this step to protect our networks and national security.”
Sen. Warner, a former telecommunications entrepreneur, has long been outspoken about the dangers of allowing the use of Huawei equipment in U.S. telecommunications infrastructure and that of U.S. allies.
Last year, Sen. Warner, joined by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), introduced legislation to prohibit federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act from being used to purchase Chinese telecommunications equipment, including from Huawei and ZTE. In 2020, Sen. Warner and a bipartisan group of leading national security Senators introduced legislation to encourage and support U.S. innovation in the race for 5G, providing over $1 billion to invest in Western-based alternatives to Chinese equipment providers Huawei and ZTE.
###
ICYMI: Sen. Warner on MSNBC's Morning Joe
Oct 12 2022
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe to discuss the latest developments on the war in Ukraine as the winter months approach, and the impact of the war on global energy prices.
On the current status of the Ukraine war:
“Things [for Russia] are not going to get better. And I think this is why, you know there are a lot things that I disagree with the administration on, but moving us in concert with our European allies has been really important. The solidarity of NATO is really important. What happens next? We're in uncharted territory. The next month between now and when the winter sets in in the middle of November, we hope the Ukrainians will be able to take Kherson and drive the Russian troops back across the Dnieper River, but it's going to be a wild few weeks.”
On additional aid to Ukraine:
“I think we should send more anti-missile defense weapons, but I do think that we've got to walk this careful line where you don't give carte blanche to the Ukrainians to have additional strikes into Russia itself. And at the same time, you've got to not get so ahead of the Europeans that they all of a sudden say, okay, America, you put up $65 billion, we're going to make you carry the whole burden. So I do think this is a navigation of a very, very challenging time. And on this one, I give the administration high marks.”
On the impact of Saudi Arabia’s decision to cut oil production:
“I'm as angry at Saudi Arabia and their irresponsibility as anyone. But I think even as you guys said on this show yesterday, you know, the truth is, certain areas, obviously, we have huge conflicts with Saudi Arabia -- but in other areas, as a counterbalance to Iran, in terms of being an ally over many decades. We've got to sort this through in a way that puts pressure on the Saudis, but does not drive them more into the Russia camp. One of the things I think would be, you know -- and I don't think this would mean backing off from our climate change goals -- but if we can replace some of those fuel sources coming out of the Middle East with American fuel sources, particularly as we transition to cleaner energy generation, I think that's good national security, that's good economic security, and it would be a tangible pushback against the Saudis.”
Video of Sen. Warner’s interview on Morning Joe can be found here. A transcript follows.
MSNBC’s Morning Joe
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Well, joining us now, Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia. He's Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and to Willie's point, Senator, we were talking earlier with Admiral Kirby about this. It seems Vladimir Putin has been in a corner, and everyone talks about what the off-ramp is, how this ends. Obviously, most people would like this to end with Russia moving back out of Ukraine. And yet he continues to push himself more into a corner, almost without -- indiscriminately, without any thought for himself about an off-ramp, with a war that is going terribly for him. How do you deal with a leader that doesn't seem to care that he's in a corner?
U.S. SEN. MARK WARNER: Carefully. You know, this is a guy that's been an autocratic leader for 20-plus years. In the COVID environment, his number of advisers he's talking to gets smaller and smaller. You've seen not only the Russian military perform horribly on the field, you have seen a united West. You've seen NATO and our allies in Asia, all stand up against him. And now with this conscription, you know, what's not -- what's gotten some public reporting, but Russia has lost over 200,000 military-aged men, exiting the country.
BRZEZINSKI: More people leaving --
SEN. WARNER: Than being conscripted. So how he maintains that, the attacks, nobody is attacking the boss yet, nobody is attacking Putin, but the folks around the boss, some of his military advisers, they're under constant assault as well, from within Russia.
BRZEZINKSKI: But that seems dicey, too.
JOE SCARBOROUGH: So what scares you the most about a cornered Vladimir Putin? Because things are not going to get better for Russia.
SEN. WARNER: Things are not going to get better. And I think this is why, you know there are a lot things that I disagree with the administration on, but moving us in concert with our European allies has been really important. The solidarity of NATO is really important. What happens next? We're in uncharted territory. The next month between now and when the winter sets in in the middle of November, we hope the Ukrainians will be able to take Kherson and drive the Russian troops back across the Dnieper River, but it's going to be a wild few weeks.
SCARBOROUGH: Any suggestion that when winter comes, when things freeze in place, that negotiations can begin?
SEN. WARNER: Again, I think there's some speculation. Is there a fully thought-through plan? Absolutely not. And again, with every Ukrainian success, frankly, the maneuverability of Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, gets mitigated, as well.
BRZEZINKSI: And you say it's going to be a wild few weeks.
SEN. WARNER: Because once you get mid-November, at least for the next few months, because of the winter, it will -- troops will freeze in place in a sense, and then we'll see also some of the ramifications of, will the Europeans stay strong when their energy costs go through the roof this winter? One of the reasons why, frankly, it would be good national policy as well as economic policy, we ought to continue to make sure that American oil and gas are in this mixture – and why we need to go ahead and revisit permitting reforms, so that particularly in terms of American natural gas, we can supply that supply, rather than counting on friends, or not-so-good of friends in the Middle East.
SCARBOROUGH: Jonathan Lemire is in New York and has a question for you. I hope he has a question for you.
JONATHAN LAMIRE: Senator Warner, good to see you. There's been a debate in Washington, as you well know, for several months about the U.S. sending enough weapons to Ukraine to defend itself, but not so much that it could perhaps escalate the war with incursions or attacks deep into Russia. In the wake of what happed over the weekend, U.S. officials are saying, hey, we're going to send more defense weapons, but still seem to hesitate going further than that, despite Kyiv asking for it. Where do you stand? What sort of weapons should the United States be sending?
SEN. WARNER: Jonathan, I think we should send more anti-missile defense weapons, but I do think that we've got to walk this careful line where you don't give carte blanche to the Ukrainians to have additional strikes into Russia itself. And at the same time, you've got to not get so ahead of the Europeans that they all of a sudden say, okay, America, you put up $65 billion, we're going to make you carry the whole burden. So I do think this is a navigation of a very, very challenging time. And on this one, I give the administration high marks.
WILLIE GEIST: Mr. Chairman, Let me ask you about one of your colleagues in the Senate, a fellow chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Menendez, on the topic of Saudi Arabia. Who after Saudi Arabia's announcement of OPEC's, OPEC plus's handling of oil prices and the barrels of oil that they release or won't release said basically, we need to freeze our relationship with Saudi Arabia, including arms sales. Says they're underwriting Russia's war. They're backing Russia against Ukraine. Do you agree with him that we need to freeze our relations with Saudi Arabia?
SEN. WARNER: Listen, I'm as angry at Saudi Arabia and their irresponsibility as anyone. But I think even as you guys said on this show yesterday, you know, the truth is, certain areas, obviously, we have huge conflicts with Saudi Arabia -- but in other areas, as a counterbalance to Iran, in terms of being an ally over many decades. We've got to sort this through in a way that puts pressure on the Saudis, but does not drive them more into the Russia camp. One of the things I think would be, you know -- and I don't think this would mean backing off from our climate change goals -- but if we can replace some of those fuel sources coming out of the Middle East with American fuel sources, particularly as we transition to cleaner energy generation, I think that's good national security, that's good economic security, and it would be a tangible pushback against the Saudis.
SCARBOROUGH: And shouldn't we have more -- for national security purposes, and also, so we're less dependent?
SEN. WARNER: Absolutely.
SCARBOROUGH: Shouldn't we increase energy production in the United States, understanding, let me say to my friends, understanding, we're in the middle of an energy transition right now. But we have the ability to be less dependent on Russia. To be less dependent on Saudi Arabia, to be less dependent on Venezuela. These people that are talking about, oh, we can't drill at home, because it's bad for the environment, let's get dirty oil from Venezuela.
SEN. WARNER: Well the wild thing is, Joe, particularly, let's go back to natural gas for a moment. We don't even need to drill more if we simply utilize what we've already drilled. We've got to have the transmission capability to get that to places in our country, and frankly to be able to export to our European friends. You’re going to see costs, I've been told, in January in the UK, where an average home will get $5,000 per-year energy costs. Now, the British government will subsidize that, bring it back down to a reasonable number. But how long can any government do that with a very cold winter in front of them.
SCARBOROUGH: Let's talk about China. How do they play into what's happening right now in Russia.
SEN. WARNER: I think you've got the Chinese economic team, who are concerned about this alliance or friendship that has no bounds. I think Xi and Putin said.
SCARBOROUGH: It does have bounds.
SEN. WARNER: The personal relationship between these two autocratic leaders is a real challenge for all of us who live in democracies. I think the long-term challenge of our time, candidly is not Russia, but it is going to be China's attempted to dominate technology field after technology field. We in this country have stepped up on semiconductors. We've pointed out the problems with Huawei in terms of next-generation wireless. I know my committee is taking a big look at synthetic biology and next generation energy generation, and making sure that we in our country maintain the technology edge. And that's going to take the kind of investments perhaps in other domains the way we just did in semiconductors.
BRZEZINSKI: Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia.
###
Warner, Rubio Urge DNI to Review Risk Chinese Chipmaker YMTC Presents to National Security
Sep 22 2022
Earlier this month, Apple publicly acknowledged that it is considering procuring NAND memory chips for future iPhones from Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC), a state-owned company with extensive links to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its armed wing, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chairman and Vice Chairman of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, sent a letter to U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines calling for a public analysis and review of YMTC and the risks it presents to U.S. national security.
- “[W]e write to convey that any decision to partner with YMTC, no matter the intended market of the product offerings developed by such a partnership, would affirm and reward the PRC’s distortive and unfair trade practices, which undermine U.S. companies globally by creating significant advantages to Chinese firms at the expense of foreign competitors. Last year, the Biden Administration described YMTC as China’s ‘national champion memory chip producer,’ which supports the CCP’s efforts to counter U.S. innovation and leadership in this space.”
- “Policymakers have for several years now conveyed to the American public the importance of a competitive semiconductor industry to U.S. national and economic security. A partnership between Apple and YMTC would endanger this critical sector and risk nullifying efforts to support it, jeopardizing the health of chipmakers in the U.S. and allied countries and advancing Beijing’s goal of controlling the global semiconductor market. Buoyed by a major contract with a leading global equipment vendor such as Apple, YMTC’s success would threaten the 24,000 American jobs that support memory chip production. More broadly, such a partnership would also threaten the opportunities this market provides for research at U.S. universities and further development of memory chips for civilian and military uses.”
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) also signed the letter.
Full text of the letter is available here and below.
Dear Director Haines:
We write to convey our extreme concern about the possibility that Apple Inc. will soon procure 3D NAND memory chips from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-owned manufacturer Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC). Such a decision would introduce significant privacy and security vulnerabilities to the global digital supply chain that Apple helps shape given YMTC’s extensive, but often opaque, ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and concerning PRC-backed entities. In addition, we write to convey that any decision to partner with YMTC, no matter the intended market of the product offerings developed by such a partnership, would affirm and reward the PRC’s distortive and unfair trade practices, which undermine U.S. companies globally by creating significant advantages to Chinese firms at the expense of foreign competitors. Last year, the Biden Administration described YMTC as China’s “national champion memory chip producer,” which supports the CCP’s efforts to counter U.S. innovation and leadership in this space.
In July 2022, we wrote to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to warn of the threat YMTC poses to U.S. national security and to request that it be added to the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Entity List. We made these arguments based on the company’s central role in CCP efforts to supplant U.S. technological leadership, including through unfair trade practices. YMTC also appears to have strong ties to the PRC’s military-civil fusion program, as shown through its investors and partnerships; its parent company, Tsinghua Unigroup, allegedly supplies the PRC military.
The PRC has heavily subsidized YMTC for several years, enabling the company to rapidly expand production and sales in China and internationally. Since its formation in 2016, YMTC’s nearly $24 billion in PRC subsidies triggered explosive growth, helping to prepare the company’s plan to launch a second plant in Wuhan as early as the end of this year. At a time when overcapacity is potentially disrupting the market for chipmakers, these subsidies could enable YMTC to distort this often highly cyclical market, selling memory chips below cost in an effort to push out competitors. In addition, in April, reports alleged that YMTC may have breached the U.S.’s foreign direct product rule for supplying smartphone and electronics components to Huawei.
For these reasons, we request that you coordinate among the relevant intelligence community (IC) components a comprehensive review and analysis of YMTC and the threat that a suppler partnership arrangement between it and Apple would pose to U.S. national and economic security. The review should consider, among other issues:
- How the CCP supports the YMTC as part of its plan to bolster and indigenize China’s semiconductor industry and to displace chipmakers from the United States and allied and partnered nations;
- YMTC’s role in assisting other Chinese firms, including Huawei, to evade U.S. sanctions;
- YMTC’s role in the PRC’s military-civil fusion program and its linkages to the People’s Liberation Army; and
- The risks to U.S. national and economic security of this potential procurement.
Policymakers have for several years now conveyed to the American public the importance of a competitive semiconductor industry to U.S. national and economic security. A partnership between Apple and YMTC would endanger this critical sector and risk nullifying efforts to support it, jeopardizing the health of chipmakers in the U.S. and allied countries and advancing Beijing’s goal of controlling the global semiconductor market. Buoyed by a major contract with a leading global equipment vendor such as Apple, YMTC’s success would threaten the 24,000 American jobs that support memory chip production. More broadly, such a partnership would also threaten the opportunities this market provides for research at U.S. universities and further development of memory chips for civilian and military uses.
We once again request that you convene the relevant IC components to review and assess YMTC’s ties to the CCP and produce a comprehensive public report on YMTC, which can be used to inform federal agencies and the public as to the nature and risks associated with YMTC and similar companies.
We look forward to your attention to this critical matter and request a response by October 1, 2022.
Sincerely,
###
WASHINGTON - Following unprecedented flooding that has left one-third of Pakistan underwater and affected approximately 33 million people, today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner joined Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and 10 Senate colleagues in writing a letter calling on President Biden to grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Pakistani nationals currently residing in the United States. Implementing TPS would allow Pakistani nationals to remain in the U.S. until Pakistan recovers from this environmental disaster. The ongoing crisis has left many regions of the country uninhabitable and unsafe, caused at least an estimated $10 billion in damage, and contaminated the water supply, spreading an array of waterborne illnesses, including diarrhea, malaria, acute respiratory infections, skin and eye infections, and typhoid.
In addition to Sens. Warner and Gillibrand, the letter to President Biden was also signed by Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Tina Smith (D-MN).
“Granting TPS to Pakistani nationals in need is a small but consequential step that the United States can take to immediately reduce the human suffering caused by this natural disaster and would reaffirm our stance as a global leader committed to humanitarian relief efforts and protections,” wrote the senators. “Should Pakistan officially request TPS designation given the current conditions the country is facing, we urge the Biden administration to prioritize such a request while continuing to monitor ongoing developments and deliberate on the best way to aid the Pakistani community.”
This action is supported by the National Immigration Forum, Asian American Federation (AAF), the Climate Justice Collaborative at the National Partnership for New Americans, Communities United for Status and Protection (CUSP), and South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT).
The full text of the letter is available below:
Dear President Biden:
We write to respectfully urge your Administration to consider designating the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Unprecedented flooding in Pakistan is currently impacting approximately 33 million people and has killed more than 1,500 people, including 536 children. Given the severity of this crisis, the United States must ensure that Pakistani nationals present in the United States are not forced to return to conditions that could imperil their lives.
Current conditions in Pakistan represent an ongoing environmental disaster – one of the statutory bases for TPS designation. Extreme flooding has left most regions of the country uninhabitable and unsafe. According to data from the European Space Agency, approximately one-third of Pakistan is underwater. The Indus River is exceeding its capacity, which has led officials to evacuate entire villages in hopes of mitigating further disaster. Half of Pakistan’s municipal districts have declared a “state of calamity” and the country’s National Disaster Management Authority estimates that one in seven Pakistanis has been affected. According to Pakistan’s finance minister, the damage is likely to exceed $10 billion, which is equivalent to 4 percent of the country’s annual gross domestic product.
Even as Pakistanis are reeling from the physical destruction caused by the flooding, they are also facing the spread of waterborne illness that this environmental crisis has exacerbated. Tens of thousands have been stricken by diarrhea, malaria, acute respiratory infections (ARI), skin and eye infections, typhoid, and other health issues resulting from contamination of the water supply. While we applaud your Administration’s decision to provide a much needed $30 million in humanitarian assistance and dispatch a USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team, further action is needed to mitigate the harmful effects of this crisis.
Forcing Pakistanis to return to a country that is experiencing what U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has called a relentless impact of “epochal” levels of rain and flooding would be a grievous obstruction to relief efforts. It would also risk fueling further displacement, destabilizing the region, and undermining key U.S. national security interests.8 The use and implementation of TPS as a humanitarian tool would provide necessary relief to individuals that are unable to return to their country due to the extraordinary environmental and public health conditions.
Additionally, designating Pakistan for TPS would also contribute to your Administration’s multi-pronged disaster response. It would decrease the strain on Pakistani infrastructure and provide a safe haven for those who cannot return to their homes or whose homes have been destroyed. Should Pakistan officially request TPS designation given the current conditions that the country is facing, we urge you to prioritize such a request and take it into serious consideration while you continue to monitor ongoing developments and deliberate on the best way to aid the Pakistani community. TPS is a small but consequential step that the United States can take to immediately reduce the human suffering caused by this natural disaster and would reaffirm our stance as a global leader committed to humanitarian relief efforts and protections.
Thank you for your consideration. We look forward to your timely reply.
###
WASHINGTON – Today, on the 21st anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), appeared on CBS’s Face the Nation to discuss evolving threats facing our country as well the recent request by the Intelligence Committee to assess the damage of the classified documents potentially mishandled by former President Trump.
On the national security threats facing our country:
“The stunning thing to me is, here we are 20 years later and the attack on the symbol of our democracy is not coming from terrorists but it came from literally insurgents attacking the Capitol on January 6th. So, I believe we are stronger. I believe our Intelligence Community has performed remarkably. I think the threat of terror has diminished, but I still think we have new challenges in terms of nation and state challenges, Russia and longer term a technology competition with China. But I do worry about some of the activity in this country, the election deniers, the insurgency that took place on January 6th. That is something I hope we can see that same kind of unity of spirit.”
On the Intelligence Committee request for a damage assessment of the classified documents potentially mishandled by former President Trump:
“The vice chairman and I have asked for a briefing of the damages that could have arisen from mishandling of this information. And I believe it's our congressional duty to have that oversight. Remember, what's at stake here is the fact that if some of these documents involved human intelligence, and that information got out, people will die. If there were penetration of our signals intelligence, literally years of work could be destroyed. We talk about the enormous advances our Intelligence Community has made helping our Ukrainian friends. That comes about because we share intelligence. If there's intelligence that has been shared with us by allies and that is mishandled, all of that could be in jeopardy.”
Video of Sen. Warner’s interview on Face the Nation can be found here. A transcript follows.
CBS’s Face the Nation
MARGARET BRENNAN: We begin with the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Mark Warner of Virginia. Good morning to you, Senator. 9/11 introduced to many Americans for the very first time this sense of vulnerability at home and it launched the global war on terror. I wonder how vulnerable you think America is now. Are we paying enough attention to the Middle East and to Afghanistan?
SEN. MARK WARNER: Well Margaret, I remember, as most Americans do, where they were on 9/11. I was in it is middle of a political campaign and suddenly the differences with my opponent seemed very small in comparison, and our country came together. In many ways, we defeated the terrorists because of the resilience of the American public, because of our Intelligence Community—and we are safer, better prepared. The stunning thing to me is, here we are 20 years later and the attack on the symbol of our democracy is not coming from terrorists but it came from literally insurgents attacking the Capitol on January 6th. So, I believe we are stronger. I believe our Intelligence Community has performed remarkably. I think the threat of terror has diminished, but I still think we have new challenges in terms of nation and state challenges, Russia and longer term a technology competition with China. But I do worry about some of the activity in this country, the election deniers, the insurgency that took place on January 6th. That is something I hope we can see that same kind of unity of spirit.
BRENNAN: As you're pointing out, America came together after 9/11 and we are incredibly divided right now. One thing that is potentially quite explosive is this ongoing investigation by the Justice Department of the former president and his handling of classified information. You've asked for a briefing from the Intelligence Community. Given how sensitive this is, why should anything be shared with Congress given that this is an ongoing investigation?
SEN WARNER: Because as the Chairman of the Intelligence Committee, and I'm very proud of our committee, we're the last functioning bipartisan committee, I believe, in the whole Congress. The vice chairman and I have asked for a briefing of the damages that could have arisen from mishandling of this information. And I believe it's our congressional duty to have that oversight. Remember, what's at stake here is the fact that if some of these documents involved human intelligence, and that information got out, people will die. If there were penetration of our signals intelligence, literally years of work could be destroyed. We talk about the enormous advances our Intelligence Community has made helping our Ukrainian friends. That comes about because we share intelligence. If there's intelligence that has been shared with us by allies and that is mishandled, all of that could be in jeopardy. Now we don't know what's in those documents, but I think it is incumbent, as soon as we get approval -- let me be clear, as soon as we get approval, my understanding is there is some question because of the special master appointment by the judge in Florida, whether they can brief at this point. We need clarification on that from that judge as quickly as possible because it is essential that the Intelligence Community leadership at least gets a briefing of the damage assessment.
BRENNAN: That damage assessment, it has been paused, as has the classification review, and it will take some time. So, A, I'm assuming in your answer there you're saying, there have been no promises of a briefing to be scheduled, is that right?
SEN. WARNER: I believe we will get a briefing as soon as there's clarification whether this can be performed or not in light of the ruling of the judge in Florida.
BRENNAN: Why should that happen? Because I want to get o something you said, which was the “last bipartisan committee”. You and Marco Rubio, your partner in this request for a briefing, put forth this letter asking for the damage assessment. But lately your colleague has been making some comments that don't sound quite as bipartisan. He's compared the Justice Department to corrupt regimes in Latin America when it comes to this investigation, he's accused DOJ of leaking sensitive details. He says the only reason to leak it is to create a narrative for political purpose. When information gets shared with Congress, as you know, the accusation is, it will get leaked. So, A, it looks like you're losing that bipartisanship and, B, if you brief Congress, isn't it going to leak further and worsen?
SEN. WARNER: The record of our Intelligence Committee of keeping secret, secret, that's why the Intelligence Community shares information with us. Remember, this was the committee bipartisan that did the Russia Investigation –
BRENNAN: But you know your oversight capability, many would argue, including former heads of counterintelligence, FBI, the line is drawn when it's an active investigation. They don’t owe you a briefing.
SEN. WARNER: We do not -- I do not want any kind of insight into an active investigation by the Justice Department. I do want the damage assessment of what would happen to our ability to protect the nation. Here we are 21 years after 9/11. If classified secrets, top secret secrets are somehow mishandled, I pointed out earlier, people could die, sources of intelligence could disappear, the willingness of our allies to share intelligence could be undermined, and I think we need that assessment to make sure –
BRENNAN: Which you will get, but it’s going to take some time.
SEN. WARNER: But I think we need it sooner than later.
BRENNAN: To that point, because it's so sensitive, because the country is so divided, because you already have in many ways a target being put on the back of law enforcement, isn't it more important to get it right, to be deliberate and not to be fast here? I want the details just as much as you do.
SEN. WARNER: Listen, I do not think we should have as the Intelligence Committee, a briefing on the ongoing investigation. What our responsibility is, is to assess whether there's been damage done to our intelligence collection and maintenance of secrets. That is a damage assessment that frankly, the judge in Florida has said can continue.
BRENNAN: Before November?
SEN. WARNER: Listen. Once we get clarification from the judge in Florida, and again, I don't think we can cherry-pick what part of the legal system we like or dislike. I have trust in our legal system. I may not agree with the decision the judge in Florida but I respect our Department of Justice. I respect the FBI. I think they are trying under extraordinarily difficult circumstances to get it right and we owe them the benefit of the doubt.
BRENNAN: Senator, thank you for coming on and I know we are going to continue to track this and any potential impact to national security.
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) joined Sens. John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and more than 30 of their colleagues in a bipartisan letter to Senate leadership in support of closing the $3 billion funding shortfall impacting the Secure & Trusted Communications Networks Act’s Reimbursement Program. The shortfall leaves wireless networks—often in rural areas—vulnerable to espionage or disruption.
Due to security concerns, in 2020 the FCC prohibited the purchase of equipment manufactured by Chinese telecom companies Huawei and ZTE and also prohibited the use of FCC-administered funds to expand or maintain networks with Huawei or ZTE equipment already present.
The reimbursement program helps small telecommunications providers remove and replace suspect Chinese network equipment manufactured by Huawei and ZTE. If the funding shortfall for the program is not closed, the FCC will not be able to fully cover the costs of removing, disposing, and replacing suspect network equipment which will leave U.S. wireless networks vulnerable to espionage and disruption.
“The highest priority class of telecommunications providers in the Reimbursement Program serve the most rural areas of the United States where wireless connectivity is a vital lifeline to accessing telehealth services, receiving emergency notifications, and participating in the 21st century economy,” wrote the Senators.
The Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act was enacted in 2020 and given a $1.9 billion appropriation for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to help small network providers remove and replace high-risk network equipment. While the initial $1.9 billion was based on a voluntary survey of possible costs small network providers would incur, supply chain disruptions and additional program requirements (such as proper disposal of suspect equipment) added to the overall costs within the Reimbursement Program.
“The bipartisan Senate support – thirty-four Senators! – in favor of a well-resourced Reimbursement Program sends a clear message, and I applaud the letter signatories, especially Senators Hickenlooper, Fischer, Peters, and Lummis, for their leadership on this critical national security issue. The funding shortfall must be addressed as soon as possible to ensure eligible small and rural carriers are adequately reimbursed for costs associated with removing, destroying, and replacing affected equipment. These carriers serve some of the most rural and hard-to-reach places across the country and, without adequate reimbursements, their ability to provide ongoing service to customers is seriously jeopardized,” said Steven K. Berry, president and CEO, Competitive Carriers Association (CCA).
Text of the letter is available here and below.
Dear Leader Schumer and Leader McConnell,
We write to express our support for the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) Reimbursement Program under the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act (Secure Networks Act). The program’s success is critical to maintaining network resiliency in Rural America and our national security. Since the Secure Networks Act was signed into law in 2020, Congress has appropriated $1.9 billion to support the FCC’s ongoing implementation of the Secure Networks Act and the establishment of the Reimbursement Program to reimburse eligible small and rural telecommunications providers for costs associated with removing, destroying, and replacing “threats to the security of our nation’s communications networks posed by certain communications equipment providers.”
On February 4, 2022, the FCC announced providers, using guidance provided by the FCC, had requested close to $5.6 billion to remove and replace equipment in their networks—nearly three times more than a previous projection for the Reimbursement Program and creating a significant financial shortfall of $3.7 billion. On July 15, 2022, the FCC informed Congress that following an extensive review of applications submitted under the Reimbursement Program, the amount of supplemental funding needed to fully fund approved cost estimates is $3.08 billion. Pursuant to the Secure Networks Act, a funding shortfall requires the FCC issue a pro-rated reimbursement to eligible telecommunications providers—resulting in only 39.5% of funding for approved costs allocated for reimbursement.
The highest priority class of telecommunications providers in the Reimbursement Program serve the most rural areas of the United States where wireless connectivity is a vital lifeline to accessing telehealth services, receiving emergency notifications, and participating in the 21st century economy. Due to significant national security risks to U.S. communications infrastructure, the FCC has already prohibited monies from the Universal Service Fund (USF) from supporting the maintenance or expansion of any wireless network that has covered equipment from Huawei and ZTE present. While these actions are necessary, small rural wireless telecommunications providers rely upon USF funds, and rural America faces a perilous situation. Currently, rural wireless carriers may not maintain, service, or upgrade networks with USF with Huawei and ZTE equipment still present. We are jeopardizing vital communications networks nationwide and our national security.
Recognizing the importance of a well-resourced Reimbursement Program to maintaining critical telecommunications service in rural communities, we are committed to working with you on legislative solutions to promptly provide the financial resources necessary to mitigate national security vulnerabilities emanating from network equipment manufactured by untrusted companies such as Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corporation.
Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. We look forward to working with you to find a swift solution.
Sincerely,
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement after the Senate voted 95-1 to approve adding Finland and Sweden to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO):
“The NATO alliance has formed the foundation of the peace in Europe since the end of the second World War. With Vladimir Putin’s brazen and illegal invasion of Ukraine, strengthening NATO is more important than ever and today’s vote in the Senate sends a strong message that democracies across the globe will continue to stand up to Russian aggression.
“Three-quarters of NATO allies have now ratified Finland and Sweden’s applications, and it is essential that all remaining countries do so expeditiously to ensure that Finland and Sweden become full NATO members as soon as possible.”
In June, Chairman Warner led a bipartisan congressional delegation from the Senate Intelligence Committee on official visits to Finland and Turkey, where the senators met with intelligence and security officials in both countries and discussed Finland’s bid to join NATO. Following those meetings, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dropped his country’s public opposition to Finland and Sweden joining the alliance.
###
Statement of Senate Intel Chairman Mark R. Warner on the Death of al-Qaeda Leader Ayman al Zawahiri
Aug 01 2022
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement after the death of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri:
“Al-Qaeda has been responsible for brutal attacks in not only the U.S., but Asia, Africa, and Europe. I commend the efforts of our intelligence officers and servicemembers for finally – 21 years after the horrific 9/11 attacks – bringing one of its last remaining leaders to justice.
“I applaud the tireless work of the intelligence community and the bravery of our military personnel in continuing to counter terrorism abroad. In my capacity as Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, I will keep working to support the IC’s counterterrorism efforts and keep Americans safe.”
###
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner today joined Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and 27 of their Senate Democratic colleagues in calling on the Biden Administration to work urgently to increase the rate of refugee admissions for the remainder of Fiscal Year (FY) 2022. In a letter to President Joe Biden, the Senators further urge the President to maintain or increase the target of 125,000 refugee admissions in FY 2023 and take meaningful steps to meet this target.
“According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), a record high of more than 89.3 million people, 42 percent of whom are children, were displaced at the end of 2021. The displaced population includes 27.1 million refugees,” the senators wrote. “UNHCR estimates that in 2023 over two million refugees will need to be resettled. In our own region, Central America faces a growing refugee crisis, with more than 800,000 people who have sought refuge in neighboring nations or have been internally displaced… We urge your Administration to ensure that the United States scales up capacity to process refugees in these regions and across all nationalities with protection needs, particularly those who have been languishing in precarious situations awaiting resettlement, such as family reunification cases.”
Since the enactment of the Refugee Act of 1980, the United States resettled an average of more than 80,000 refugees per year, until the Trump Administration slashed the refugee admissions ceiling each year it was in office, ending at an historic low of just 15,000 for FY 2021. These drastic cuts have hobbled the resettlement infrastructure in this nation and made it difficult to quickly rebuild the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). The U.S. resettled 11,411 refugees last fiscal year, the lowest figure since the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980.
The senators continued, “We commend you for recommitting the United States to its historic role as a global leader in refugee resettlement by setting a ceiling of 125,000 for FY 2022. However, we are deeply concerned that as of June 30, 2022, the United States has only resettled 15,100 refugees this fiscal year. Despite the challenges of rebuilding the USRAP that your Administration inherited, we can and must do better. The dismantling of programs by the Trump Administration has hindered our efforts to resettle more refugees, and as such, your Administration must take the necessary steps to promptly ensure the United States has a robust, functioning, durable refugee resettlement system.”
The senators concluded, “The success of [Operation Allies Welcome] and Uniting for Ukraine have proven that, under your leadership, our country is fully capable of bringing vulnerable displaced people to safety in the United States when you commit the government to doing so. We urge you to expeditiously and safely admit all qualified refugees who are waiting to be resettled. Additionally, we urge you to set a robust target for USRAP in FY2023 as soon as possible and devote sufficient resources to meet this target.”
In addition to Warner, Durbin and Warnock, the letter was signed by Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Angus King (I-ME), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tom Carper (D-DE), Tina Smith (D-MN), Patty Murray (D-WA), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Chris Coons (D-DE), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Michael Bennet (D-CO).
The full text of the letter to President Biden is available here and below.
Dear President Biden:
We respectfully ask that you work urgently to increase the rate of refugee admissions for the remainder of Fiscal Year (FY) 2022. Furthermore, we urge you to maintain or increase the target of 125,000 refugee admissions in FY 2023 and take meaningful steps to meet this target.
We applaud your Administration’s work to expeditiously bring to the United States 85,000 Afghan nationals, U.S. citizens, and lawful permanent residents through Operation Allies Welcome (OAW). Similarly, we commend your support for those displaced by Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine through the Uniting for Ukraine parole program, which has allowed Americans to welcome and support more than 20,000 people in just the first three months of its operation. The success of these initiatives demonstrates our government’s capacity to swiftly offer protection to vulnerable people fleeing war and persecution.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), a record high of more than 89.3 million people, 42 percent of whom are children, were displaced at the end of 2021. The displaced population includes 27.1 million refugees. UNHCR estimates that in 2023 over two million refugees will need to be resettled. In our own region, Central America faces a growing refugee crisis, with more than 800,000 people who have sought refuge in neighboring nations or have been internally displaced. Haiti is also facing a rapid decline in internal security and a compounding political, environmental, and humanitarian emergency. In West Africa, amidst an ongoing civil war, Cameroon is facing high levels of internal displacement, as well as receiving thousands of foreign refugees. These are just a few examples of the current refugee challenges around the world. We urge your Administration to ensure that the United States scales up capacity to process refugees in these regions and across all nationalities with protection needs, particularly those who have been languishing in precarious situations awaiting resettlement, such as family reunification cases.
Since the enactment of the Refugee Act of 1980, the United States resettled an average of more than 80,000 refugees per year, until the Trump Administration slashed the refugee admissions ceiling each year it was in office, ending at an historic low of just 15,000 for FY 2021. We understand that the Trump Administration’s drastic cuts to refugee admissions also hobbled the resettlement infrastructure in United States, with many refugee resettlement organizations closing offices and laying off employees.
Combined with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and staffing vacancies resulting from a yearlong hiring freeze at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services imposed by the previous Administration, these cuts have made it difficult to quickly rebuild the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). Although you raised the refugee ceiling to 65,000 for FY 2021, the United States only resettled 11,411 refugees last fiscal year, the lowest figure since the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980.
We commend you for recommitting the United States to its historic role as a global leader in refugee resettlement by setting a ceiling of 125,000 for FY 2022. However, we are deeply concerned that as of June 30, 2022, the United States has only resettled 15,100 refugees this fiscal year. Despite the challenges of rebuilding the USRAP that your Administration inherited, we can and must do better. The dismantling of programs by the Trump Administration has hindered our efforts to resettle more refugees, and as such, your Administration must take the necessary steps to promptly ensure the United States has a robust, functioning, durable refugee resettlement system.
It is imperative that your Administration continue to invest in the sustainability of the refugee resettlement program. We appreciate the steps that your Administration has taken this fiscal year to rebuild the overseas and domestic infrastructure to ready the USRAP for higher arrival numbers. However, more work needs to be done so that we can restore and expand our nation’s capacity to welcome the most vulnerable refugees from around the world.
The success of OAW and Uniting for Ukraine have proven that, under your leadership, our country is fully capable of bringing vulnerable displaced people to safety in the United States when you commit the government to doing so. We urge you to expeditiously and safely admit all qualified refugees who are waiting to be resettled. Additionally, we urge you to set a robust target for USRAP in FY2023 as soon as possible and devote sufficient resources to meet this target.
Thank you for your time and consideration. We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
###