During Wednesday’s House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ) questioned Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
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00:00Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Before I make some remarks, I just want to say, as was said earlier, Jerry Conley, who we lost today, a great member of this body, a passionate advocate for the people of Virginia, particularly public servants working in the federal workforce.
00:19He was a mentor to so many of us who came into Congress after he started, and just one of the greats, and he will be missed dearly.
00:27Mr. Secretary, thank you very much for being here today. In 2016, you warned, quote, the world without American engagement is a world none of us wants to live with, unquote.
00:37I couldn't agree more, and I bring it up today because the threat from China has grown, not just due to global shifts outside of control, but because of political choices by this administration.
00:48Short-term moves with no thought for long-term consequences. The Chinese Communist Party has spent years claiming America is too divided to lead and too unstable to trust.
01:02When you became secretary, many of us hoped you would help lead the fight to combat this propaganda because that's exactly what you did so well serving in the United States Senate.
01:11For example, Mr. Chairman, without objection, I'd like to submit for the record the August 2023 op-ed written by then-Senator Rubio on this very subject.
01:24Without objection?
01:27Secretary Rubio, in this op-ed, you wrote that strong, credible deterrence against Beijing is the best way to keep, quote, far-flung controversy from impacting our way of life.
01:37You added, quote, if there's even a hint that the United States will not honor its security commitments, it will encourage Beijing to engage in more hostility to test our resolve.
01:49I thought your framing was especially smart here because you weren't just warning about policy.
01:54You were making the case for credibility, and I couldn't agree more with then-Senator Rubio.
02:00But here you are today as Secretary Rubio presenting a very different record.
02:05As Secretary, we've seen you defend or be complicit in reckless foreign policy that Senator Rubio once warned against,
02:12like strategically incoherent terrorists that alienate our allies, alliance-breaking decisions that weaken our national security,
02:20partnership neglect that isolates us, abandoned commitments that shred our credibility, and hand China easy propaganda wins.
02:29None of this is deterring China, Mr. Secretary.
02:32In fact, my concern is that unless we course-correct and fast, this administration is handing Beijing a string of I-told-you-so moments that only strengthen their position.
02:43Look no further than the vice president.
02:45In February, Vice President Vance took the stage of the Munich Security Conference not to criticize our adversaries,
02:51but in a rather stunning moment to attack our allies.
02:55In fact, he literally said, quote, the threat that I worry about most about vis-a-vis Europe is not Russia, it's not China, it is the threat from within, unquote.
03:05And just last month, the Ipsos Global Poll found that U.S. favorability fell in 26 out of 29 countries in just six short months.
03:15It's also the first time in the polls' history that more people now view China, not the United States, as the world's most positive influence.
03:25That's not just a perception problem, that's a strategic failure and the cost of inconsistency.
03:30Speaking of cost, these policies have also having Americans on edge as well.
03:34In Arizona, my home state, the Phoenix Sky Harbor alone, we have more than $750 million in annual exports at risk.
03:42Chipmakers and Chandler in my district face increasing costs driven by the unpredictability and supply chain disruptions.
03:48At Arizona State University in my district, we rely on international students for tuition, research, and talent.
03:54They are being run off by the chaotic immigration policy that flies in the face of American values.
03:59The so-called brain drain is real, and it's tipping the balance of global innovation away from the United States.
04:04The challenge in this next century won't be fought on battlefields.
04:09It'll be the fight to shape the future, technology, trade, global trust.
04:13And if we keep turning our back on what makes America strong, we risk giving China the upper hand.
04:19I yield the rest of my-