'US Schools Had Nearly 3,000 Contracts With China!': Mark Harris Demands DETERRENT Act's Passage

2 days ago

Rep. Mark Harris (R-NC) spoke in support of HR 1048, the DETERRENT Act during debate on the House floor.

Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:

https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript

Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com

Transcript

00:00Thank you, Chairman Wahlberg, and thank you to Congressman Bumgarner for the work on this bill.

00:05Mr. Speaker, each year

00:08adversarial nations like China, North Korea, Iran, and Russia

00:12attempt to buy the ability to influence our next generation through donations and contracts with American colleges and

00:20universities. The Deterrent Act will shine the light on these shady backroom deals that get maligned foreign

00:27influence out of our schools.

00:30The legislation will strengthen the thresholds of reporting foreign gifts and

00:35contracts. According to the Wall Street Journal, in the last 12 years,

00:39U.S. schools had nearly

00:423,000 contracts with China,

00:44valued at no less than

00:46$2.32 billion. That raises an important question.

00:51Why would a country that certainly doesn't have the best interest of American students in mind pay such enormous sums

00:58to American universities?

01:00This bill will get to the bottom of it. The Deterrent Act includes language from my own legislation, the No Contracts with Foreign

01:09Adversaries Act, which requires a college or university to be transparent about the reason they might want to contract

01:16with one of the four countries currently designed by our government as a, quote, country of concern.

01:23It's true.

01:24There could be an academic purpose for a partnership with a country like China, North Korea, Iran, or Russia,

01:31but these partnerships cannot come at the expense of our national security,

01:37research integrity, or our future generations.

01:41Students, parents, and taxpayers have a right to know the financial ties of these universities. The Deterrent Act

01:49strengthens current law by raising the reporting standards and

01:53providing a real enforcement mechanism if schools try to hide their dealings with foreign countries.

01:59I urge all of my colleagues to stand and support the Deterrent Act, and with that I yield back.

'US Schools Had Nearly 3,000 Contracts With China!': Mark Harris Demands DETERRENT Act's Passage

Category

Transcript

Recommended