[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 217 (Thursday, December 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S9241]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              Nominations

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for the 
nominations of Ambassador Nicholas Burns to be Ambassador to China, Mr. 
Ramin Toloui to be an Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and 
Business Affairs, and Mr. Rashad Hussain to be Ambassador at Large for 
International Religious Freedom.
  These are a superb group of highly qualified nominees, deserving of 
the positions for which they have been nominated, and I will speak 
briefly about them.
  Ambassador Burns is an outstanding public servant, one of the 
Nation's best, and I am pleased to support his nomination as the next 
Ambassador to China. He has a long and distinguished record in public 
service, including as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs 
under the Bush administration and U.S. Ambassador to NATO.
  If there is a place that we need an Ambassador, it is China. We have 
spent so much time, both in committee and on the floor, hearing about 
the challenges of China, but we don't have a U.S. Ambassador to help us 
meet those challenges.
  It is no secret that the China of today is challenging the United 
States and destabilizing the international community in almost every 
dimension of power--political, diplomatic, economic, military, and even 
cultural. That is why Ambassador Burns' experiences and skill will be 
crucial as he confronts the monumental task ahead of him.
  I am also pleased to be supporting Mr. Ramin Toloui's nomination to 
be the Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs at the 
State Department. His experience and skill set, including as a former 
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for International Finance, where he 
represented the United States in forums like the G7 and the G20, will 
be necessary in order to be an effective Assistant Secretary, 
especially one who will play such a critical role in our economic 
diplomacy vis-a-vis China and as we must reinvigorate the instruments 
of our economic diplomacy at home. I believe Mr. Toloui represents the 
importance of getting our economic statecraft right.
  Lastly, I am also pleased to support Mr. Rashad Hussain to be our 
Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom. Throughout his 
impressive public service, Mr. Hussain has demonstrated his strong 
commitment to protecting the rights of religious and ethnic minorities, 
including as the U.S. Special Envoy for Strategic Counterterrorism 
Communications, where he led efforts to counter anti-Semitism and 
protect Christian minorities in Muslim-majority countries.
  Religious freedom, like every human right, is universal, but for many 
people around the world, this right is out of reach, and religious 
persecution is on the rise. That is why it is important that we confirm 
Mr. Hussain.
  While it is positive news that we are confirming these three nominees 
today and a few more, I hope, in the next day, I am deeply concerned 
that we have more than 50 nominees who will remain pending on the 
Senate floor, having passed the committee, almost all of them by strong 
bipartisan votes, who are subject to delays and obstacles.
  We are less safe when our national security Agencies are so short-
staffed. We owe it to the American people to fix this problem so that 
we can be represented abroad.
  With that, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Idaho.
  Mr. RISCH. We yield back also.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. We yield back any other time we had.