Congresswoman Jacobs Calls for United States to Lead With Values as Conference Committee on America COMPETES Act Begins
Jacobs appointed to bicameral committee tasked with finalizing bipartisan legislation to boost competitiveness with China
Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (D-CA-53) called for the United States to lead with our values and support coalition building today at the first public meeting of conferees on the House and Senate’s bipartisan innovation and competitiveness legislation.
Earlier this year, the House passed the America COMPETES Act, a comprehensive package to improve supply chains, encourage more American manufacturing, and strengthen our diplomatic efforts, while the Senate passed similar legislation, the United States Innovation and Competition Act. Speaker Pelosi appointed Congresswoman Jacobs to serve as a conferee for the bipartisan and bicameral conference committee that is tasked with resolving the two bills and bringing a final version forward.
Jacobs is one of only two freshman Democratic members serving on the Conference Committee.
“Fixing our supply chains, lowering prices, and making America more competitive is so important right now and we need to ensure these efforts are made in accordance with our values and long-term goals. San Diego is a global city, an international hub, and a proud military community, and when America is more economically and strategically competitive, our community thrives. I am honored to serve as San Diego’s representative on the Conference Committee that is tasked with getting this bill across the finish line and to the President’s desk,” said Congresswoman Jacobs.
The House version that passed in February included Congresswoman Jacobs’ United States Commitment to Peacekeeping Act, which ensures that the United States pays its share of United Nations (UN) peacekeeping dues. In an op-ed published in April, Jacobs’ argued that failure to support peacekeeping missions is creating a void that the Chinese government is exploiting and that “the United States needs to eliminate our UN peacekeeping dues cap and restore our reputation as a country that keeps its promises. It allows us to argue from a position of strength — whether pressing for peacekeeping reforms or the structure of missions — and to be seen as a reliable partner.”
Congresswoman Jacobs Remarks As Delivered:
Thank you Chair Cantwell and members of the conference committee. Thank you to Speaker Pelosi and also thank you to Chairman Meeks for your leadership on the foreign affairs piece of this legislation.
I’m excited to be with all of you this afternoon because the America COMPETES Act is so important for our country, our domestic priorities, and our global leadership.
As we’ve seen so clearly from the war in Ukraine, so much of our power and our national security comes from being able to muster international coalitions. And to be able to do that, we need to double down on leading with our values.
That’s why it’s so important to get the COMPETES Act across the finish line and to the President’s desk.
Our competitive edge in the global competition with China is the commitment to our values.
And we need to restore our credibility and reputation as a country that upholds those values in everything we do abroad and keeps our promises in the international community.
That is the best way to ensure that the real source of our power – our alliances and partnerships and our ability to get other countries to join with us – remains intact as we engage in this competition.
And a big part of this is upholding our promise at the UN, and fully funding our peacekeeping operations so that we are not letting other, low-income countries bear that burden, which creates a crack in our alliances that we know the Chinese government is already working to exploit.
That’s why I was so glad to see my bill to lift the cap on peacekeeping dues and ensure we are paying our fair share included.
We also have to ensure that the source of our strength, our values, are infused in everything we do, and not let short-term security considerations override our longer-term strategic objectives. I’m grateful that my amendment to ensure that human rights vetting in our security assistance to partners abroad was also included.
The America COMPETES Act recognizes that our strength abroad ultimately comes from our strength at home. I look forward to working with this conference and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to create a final package that reflects the best of America on the world stage.
Thank you and I yield back.
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