[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 71 (Tuesday, April 29, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2619-S2620]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Nomination of David Perdue

  Mr. RISCH. Mr. President, I come to the floor today in support of our 
friend David Perdue's nomination to be Ambassador to China. This is 
certainly one of the most important nominations and appointments that 
will come across this floor, and the President is to be commended for 
picking David Perdue for this position.
  China, as we all know, is the largest, the most significant, probably 
the longest lasting foreign policy challenge that the United States of 
America has, and it is going to continue to be for some time.
  Today, we have seen, over the last recent decades, China move from a 
third-world country to a near peer to the United States. Their economy 
is growing rapidly, and they have done it the old fashion way: They 
have stolen every good idea that we have and used it to their own 
devices, which has brought them to the challenging position they are in 
for the United States. And they are a very different country than the 
United States is.
  The world, I think, is very quickly developing into a bipolar 
position, where, on the one hand, you have democracies and semi-
democracies like the United States, made of up of free people, of 
capitalism, of free markets, of entrepreneurs, and of people who very 
much value human rights and value the individual way, ahead of the 
state. On the other hand, you have countries like China that are 
communist. They are socialists. They are not free market or capitalist 
motivated. And they have no regards for human rights. The best example 
of that is the genocide that they commit against the Uighur Muslims in 
China, and the world pretty much looks the other way while they do 
human rights abuses that are way over the top.
  So, Senator Perdue--David--you have your work cut out for you. This 
is going to be a challenge as we go forward, particularly over the next 
4 years.
  In addition to that, China has done everything it can to infiltrate 
the United States. Most people in America have no understanding about 
the tremendous amount and the millions of dollars that the Chinese 
Government pumps into our colleges and universities here in the United 
States. I myself and others have long been trying to put a stop to 
this. No foreign government can come into our political system and use 
money to influence our political system, and yet a foreign government 
like China can go into our colleges and universities and pump in 
millions of dollars and use the influence of that money to influence 
the colleges and universities. We don't allow this in our political 
system because we don't want foreign influence in our political system, 
nor should we allow this kind of influence in the institutions that 
make up the education system for future Americans.
  We need to put a stop to this, and all of us, I hope, will be glad to 
partner with our friend David Perdue as he confronts these issues from 
Beijing.
  In this administration and in his first term, President Trump 
demonstrated that he will be tough on China. He has to be.
  We need a strong leader like David Perdue at the front of our fight 
with the Chinese Government to execute on President Trump's vision, and 
I hope my colleagues will join me today in supporting Mr. Perdue to be 
Ambassador to China.
  Mr. President, I would ask unanimous consent that we commence the 
vote on the nomination.

[[Page S2620]]

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.