Protecting American Agriculture From Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, the reality that we face is simple: The CCP, the Chinese Communist Party, is planting roots in our homeland and working around the clock to infiltrate our institutions.

In the last decade, Communist China's investment in U.S. ag land has grown tenfold. That is a dangerous trend that we cannot overstate, but today, we are taking an important step in keeping them out.

My bill to add the Secretary of Agriculture to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is critical in keeping the CCP off of American soil.

Mr. Speaker, food security, as you have heard many times, is national security. This legislation strengthens the safety of our supply chains and opens a door to new reporting mechanisms that USDA can use to keep us safe from this threat.

With an already flawed foreign purchase reporting system within USDA, we must be sure our ag land is protected from nefarious actors.

As chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus, I hear from farmers and ranchers across the country who are concerned by the reality that not only is the CCP in our backyard, but we cannot accurately say where.

Additionally, Mr. Speaker, my bill guarantees that the Secretary of Agriculture can accurately monitor and report purchases not just for land, but also for biotechnology, transportation, storage, and processing.

This bill is a first step. It is the beginning of the effort to keep our greatest adversaries from being able to purchase any American farmland because, the way I see it, a group like the CCP, who has made it their goal to cripple the United States, has no business having a hand in our supply chains and critical lands, but, first, we must know exactly how much they already have.

Mr. Speaker, time is not on our side here. Every moment we wait, the CCP tightens their grip on our system, further succeeding in their efforts.

I thank Speaker Johnson and Leader Scalise for bringing this important piece of legislation to the floor. A vote for this bill is a vote for our farmers, our economy, and our national security.

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