[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 218 (Monday, December 21, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7898-S7900]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ENCOURAGING THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES TO ``BUY
AMERICAN''
Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I rise today to encourage all
Americans to join the fight to support our Nation and our jobs and
stand up against the growing threat of Communist China.
I have been saying it for months: Buying American products is the No.
1 thing we can do to support American jobs and stand up to our foreign
adversaries.
There is a new Cold War occurring between the United States and
Communist China, and we must be crystal clear about the negative
impacts of continuing to buy Chinese-made products.
General Secretary Xi is a dictator and human rights violator. He is
yet another Communist leader trying to be the dominant world power.
The Communist Party of China is stripping the people of Hong Kong of
their freedoms--as the Presiding Officer experienced when he was over
there--cracking down on dissidents, militarizing the South China Sea,
supporting Maduro's genocide in Venezuela, surveilling its citizens,
and imprisoning more than 1 million Uighurs in internment camps simply
because of their religion.
Communist China is stealing American jobs and technology and spying
on our citizens.
Is this the kind of nation we want to be sending our money to?
Absolutely not.
Washington politicians have been too concerned with short-term
political success and have long ignored the long-term threats of
Communist China to our way of life but not anymore. It is time to take
action.
Now, more than ever, Americans must remember that every time we buy a
product made in China, we are putting another dollar into the pocket of
the people stealing our jobs and our technology, denying their people
basic human rights and propping up dangerous dictators like Maduro in
Venezuela.
We cannot continue to rely on countries like Communist China, which
lied about the coronavirus and refused to be a partner in solving this
crisis, for critical supplies.
This outbreak has shown why we need to end our reliance on foreign
supply chains. As a nation, we need to finally take a stand and demand
that Communist China is removed from our supply chain.
I am proud to lead my colleagues in a bipartisan resolution calling
on Americans to buy products made in the United States whenever
possible.
Buying American is not partisan, and I am glad my colleagues from
both sides of the aisle are continuing to
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come together to encourage Americans to take a stand.
I know it is not always easy, but it is an important step we can all
take at home to support American jobs, American producers, and American
manufacturers, while helping build up the U.S. supply chain.
In my State, we take immense pride in products made in Florida. It is
a driving force that led to our incredible economic turnaround.
A return to this pride in homegrown businesses and products ensures
that America remains strong as the undisputed leader of the global
economy.
We all must do our part to support our Nation and make it clear to
Communist China that the United States won't stand for their behavior.
I am committed to supporting American businesses over Chinese
products. I am urging my colleagues to join me in this effort and pass
this resolution today.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation be discharged from further
consideration and the Senate now proceed to S. Res. 625.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 625) encouraging the Government and
the people of the United States to ``Buy American''.
There being no objection, the committee was discharged and the Senate
proceeded to consider the resolution.
Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
Scott amendment at the desk to the resolution be agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment (No. 2726) in the nature of a substitute was agreed to,
as follows
(Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)
Strike all after the resolving clause and insert the
following: ``That--
(1) it is the policy of the United States Government to
``Buy American'' products for public use when fiscally and
reasonably possible, in accordance with the Buy American Act
of 1933 (41 U.S.C. 8301 et seq.); and
(2) the Senate supports American manufacturing and
strengthening our American manufacturing base.
Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I know of no further debate on
the resolution, as amended.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there further debate?
Hearing none, the question is, Shall the resolution, as amended, be
agreed to?
The resolution (S. Res. 625), as amended, was agreed to.
Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
Scott amendment to the preamble be agreed to, the preamble, as amended,
be agreed to, that the Scott amendment to the title be agreed to, and
that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the
table with no intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment (No. 2727) was agreed to as follows
(Purpose: To amend the preamble)
Strike the preamble and insert the following:
Whereas, on July 15, 2019, President Donald J. Trump signed
Executive Order 13881 titled ``Maximizing Use of American-
Made Goods, Products, and Materials'' (84 Fed. Reg. 34257),
which would enforce the Buy American Act of 1933 (41 U.S.C.
8301 et seq.) to the greatest extent permitted by law;
Whereas, the Buy American Act of 1933 requires Federal
agencies to procure materials and products domestically--
(1) when the materials are intended for public use within
the United States; and
(2) when the materials to be procured (or the materials
from which they are manufactured) are present in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably available commercial
quantities of a satisfactory quality;
Whereas American-made products are developed under United
States' regulations and undergo testing to ensure their
compliance with United States' safety standards, which are
among the highest standards in the world;
Whereas American-made products are produced by workers
earning competitive wages and working in safe working
conditions;
Whereas purchasing American-made products supports the
producers of those products and their communities;
Whereas, according to the Manufacturing Institute, each
dollar spent in sales of manufactured products supports $1.33
in output from other sectors of the economy;
Whereas, according to the Manufacturers Alliance for
Productivity and Innovation Foundation, for every full-time
job in manufacturing, there are 3.4 full-time equivalent jobs
created in non-manufacturing industries;
Whereas, according to a 2017 poll conducted by Reuters and
Ipsos, when buying products, nearly 70 percent of Americans
find it important that the products they buy were made in the
United States;
Whereas strengthening American manufacturing supports
employment in the United States, produces innovation and the
seeds for future industries, and supports the global
competitiveness of the United States;
Whereas a strong American manufacturing base is an
important component in helping to revitalize the United
States economy as it recovers from the global COVID-19
pandemic;
Whereas a strong domestic supply chain for certain goods
and close cooperation with trusted allies can support
national security and public safety;
Whereas the global COVID-19 pandemic presented significant
challenges for the globally interconnected supply chain of
medical products and has heightened the need for supply chain
security of a variety of critical materials and products; and
Whereas, regarding the manufacturing of critical medical
supplies and products essential to national security,
national stockpiles and a healthy domestic industrial base
would help handle any future surge in need for these
supplies: Now, therefore, be it
The preamble, as amended, was agreed to.
The amendment (No. 2728) was agreed to as follows
(Purpose: To amend the title)
Amend the title so as to read: ``A resolution affirming the
benefits of `Buying American'.''.
The resolution, as amended, with its preamble, as amended, reads as
follows:
S. Res. 625
Whereas, on July 15, 2019, President Donald J. Trump signed
Executive Order 13881 titled ``Maximizing Use of American-
Made Goods, Products, and Materials'' (84 Fed. Reg. 34257),
which would enforce the Buy American Act of 1933 (41 U.S.C.
8301 et seq.) to the greatest extent permitted by law;
Whereas, the Buy American Act of 1933 requires Federal
agencies to procure materials and products domestically--
(1) when the materials are intended for public use within
the United States; and
(2) when the materials to be procured (or the materials
from which they are manufactured) are present in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably available commercial
quantities of a satisfactory quality;
Whereas American-made products are developed under United
States' regulations and undergo testing to ensure their
compliance with United States' safety standards, which are
among the highest standards in the world;
Whereas American-made products are produced by workers
earning competitive wages and working in safe working
conditions;
Whereas purchasing American-made products supports the
producers of those products and their communities;
Whereas, according to the Manufacturing Institute, each
dollar spent in sales of manufactured products supports $1.33
in output from other sectors of the economy;
Whereas, according to the Manufacturers Alliance for
Productivity and Innovation Foundation, for every full-time
job in manufacturing, there are 3.4 full-time equivalent jobs
created in non-manufacturing industries;
Whereas, according to a 2017 poll conducted by Reuters and
Ipsos, when buying products, nearly 70 percent of Americans
find it important that the products they buy were made in the
United States;
Whereas strengthening American manufacturing supports
employment in the United States, produces innovation and the
seeds for future industries, and supports the global
competitiveness of the United States;
Whereas a strong American manufacturing base is an
important component in helping to revitalize the United
States economy as it recovers from the global COVID-19
pandemic;
Whereas a strong domestic supply chain for certain goods
and close cooperation with trusted allies can support
national security and public safety;
Whereas the global COVID-19 pandemic presented significant
challenges for the globally interconnected supply chain of
medical products and has heightened the need for supply chain
security of a variety of critical materials and products; and
Whereas, regarding the manufacturing of critical medical
supplies and products essential to national security,
national stockpiles and a healthy domestic industrial base
would help handle any future surge in need for these
supplies: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That--
(1) it is the policy of the United States Government to
``Buy American'' products for public use when fiscally and
reasonably possible, in accordance with the Buy American Act
of 1933 (41 U.S.C. 8301 et seq.); and
(2) the Senate supports American manufacturing and
strengthening our American manufacturing base.
Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
[[Page S7900]]
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
____________________