[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 83 (Thursday, May 13, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S2499]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          ENDLESS FRONTIER ACT

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, yesterday, the Senate Commerce Committee, 
on which you sit, came together on a bipartisan basis to advance the 
Endless Frontier Act by a vote of 24 to 4--24 to 4.
  We are now one step closer to passing a bill that will keep our 
country one step ahead in science and technology for decades to come. 
It is my intention for the Senate to take up the Endless Frontier Act 
next week in a package with legislation to strengthen our alliances and 
partnerships; invest in the American semiconductor industry; ensure 
that China pays a price for its predatory actions; and boost advanced 
manufacturing, innovation, and critical supply chains.
  For decades, American prosperity has been anchored by our unmatched 
capacity for innovation and invention in science and in technology. 
American innovation propelled American industry, and an American 
workforce brought those innovations to the global economy.
  But, unfortunately, Federal underinvestment in sciences has seen our 
country slip, exposing critical weak spots in our economy. If we don't 
fix them, we will no longer be the No. 1 economic leader in the world 
in the decade to come. So it is an imperative that we do this. This is 
for our future--our future for jobs, our future for economic 
leadership, and our future for world leadership.
  It all boils down to science, something that was ignored, 
unfortunately, by the last administration, but, fortunately, bipartisan 
unity in this Senate is bringing us back on the page that we need to do 
science.
  The Endless Frontier Act would right the ship by making one of the 
largest investments in American innovation in generations, allowing the 
United States to outcompete countries like China, create more good-
paying jobs, and harden our economic and our national security as well 
because this bill is vital to national security as well as to economic 
security.
  I want to really applaud Chairwoman Cantwell, Ranking Member Wicker, 
and my partner in the Endless Frontier Act Senator Young, all of whom 
worked hard, long, diligently, and effectively, in a bipartisan 
fashion, to move this legislation through regular order. The full 
Senate will consider and, I believe, should finish this important 
legislation before the end of the month with strong bipartisan support.

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