Innovation, Data, and Commerce

Washington D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Communications and Technology Subcommittee Vice Chair Buddy Carter (R-GA), and 23 other Republican Committee members sent a letter to TikTok demanding answers regarding how the Chinese Communist Party is using the app as a tool to surveil and manipulate Americans.  From the letter: “ Disturbingly, millions of TikTok users have recently viewed videos glorifying Osama Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America,’ which attempts to justify his horrific murder of 3,000 Americans in the September 11, 2001, attacks while also perpetuating ‘the antisemitic trope claiming the Jews ‘control your policies, media and economy.’” Key excerpts from exclusive reporting by FOX NEWS : “ A group of House Republicans is demanding more transparency from TikTok about how content is amplified and how much insight China has into those processes as accusations mount against the social platform that it’s boosting antisemitic videos. “‘On October 7, the Palestinian terrorist organization, Hamas, brutally attacked Israel and killed more than 1,400 people. Since this terrorist attack, disinformation related to the conflict has run rampant on your platform, stoking antisemitism, support, and sympathy for Hamas,’ they wrote to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. “The letter is being led by Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga. It comes just days after TikTok was under fire for facilitating a surge in viral videos expressing support for Usama bin Laden’s 2002 'Letter to America' written in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.” […] “National security hawks have been wary of TikTok’s connection to China, with its parent company ByteDance being based in Beijing.” […] “The lawmakers are demanding to know how many employees at TikTok have connections to ByteDance, how the platform screens for misinformation and anti-Israel content amid the conflict with Hamas, and how its algorithms are curated, among other queries. “‘Given that roughly half of TikTok’s U.S. user base is under 25 years old, American youth are being exposed to extremely violent and disturbing images and videos," they wrote. "This deluge of pro-Hamas content is driving hateful antisemitic rhetoric and violent protests on campuses across the country. The CCP has already co-opted your platform, and it seems TikTok and TikTok’s employees are resigned to becoming a mouthpiece for antisemites, terrorists, and propaganda.’” ICYMI: In October, Chair Rodgers called on multiple tech companies, including TikTok, to brief the Energy and Commerce Committee on their moderation policies regarding the spread of illegal content posted by Hamas. CLICK HERE to read the full letter. CLICK HERE to read the Fox News story on the letter.

Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers: “The CCP does not share our values—life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all—yet President Biden continues to push his radical agenda that increases our reliance on China.   “We cannot continue down this path. That's why the Energy and Commerce Committee is leading to hold President Biden accountable and reverse the consequences his agenda through solutions that bolster American leadership and promote freedom. It's how we ensure America beats China and wins the future.”  Ahead of President Joe Biden’s meeting with China’s Leader Xi Jinping, these are the top oversight questions Energy and Commerce Republicans have for President Biden. 1. What is President Biden's plan to safeguard American taxpayer dollars from flowing to companies with ties to the Chinese Communist Party?    Earlier this year, the Department of Energy announced that it had awarded a $200 million grant to Microvast, an electric vehicle battery manufacturer with ties to China. The Biden administration suddenly reversed its decision the night before our Oversight Subcommittee hearing with the DOE official that had signed off on the award. The DOE official did not show up to our hearing, and DOE has still not provided a sufficient explanation of what happened.   2. How many American jobs will be handed to China as a result of President Biden's forced transition to 100 percent electric vehicles?   President Biden and Democrats are forcing Americans to transition to electric vehicles within the next decade. China controls the vast majority of critical minerals mining, processing, and refining for electric vehicles, and it will continue to do so through 2032.  Earlier this year, China announced that it would restrict exports to the U.S. of several minerals that are critical for EVs, a warning of how they plan to use their grip on EV technology against America. Democrats and the Biden administration are playing right into China’s hands with top-down government mandates that force an EV transition. These will further strengthen China’s foothold in the American auto industry, send American jobs overseas , and could lead to vehicles from China being one of the only affordable options left for Americans by 2035.  3. Will President Biden confront President Xi for the Chinese Communist Party using TikTok to spy on and manipulate Americans?    TikTok is a tool of the Chinese Communist Party to spy on Americans and manipulate what we see. During Energy and Commerce’s hearing on TikTok, the company’s CEO, Shou Chew, admitted the CCP has access to Americans’ data . We’re leading on a national data privacy standard so we’re prepared to stop the next technological tool or weapon China will use for its own strategic gain.  4. What is President Biden’s plan to secure American supply chains and ensure none of the materials needed for his rush-to-green energy agenda are made using slave or child labor?   China controls more than 90 percent of the critical minerals that are used to make wind turbines, solar panels, and batteries for electric vehicles and grid storage. In April, Energy and Commerce held a hearing exposing the environmental, human rights, and national security risks of the Biden administration’s rush-to-green energy policies. As Subcommittee Chair Johnson said , “We cannot be morally selective. It is our duty to ensure that American energy supply chains do not rely on slavery or child labor.”  Bottomline: China is committing genocide and forcing millions of ethnic minority Muslims into slave labor. China also controls mineral mines in countries, like the Congo, where children are forced to work in inhumane conditions. At the same time, President Biden’s administration has shut down and delayed critical mining projects across the United States.  5. Will President Biden hold China accountable for the lies it spread during the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than one million Americans?   China has put the world in danger of future outbreaks because of the country’s refusal to cooperate with global investigations into the origins of COVID-19. Fully examining all available evidence to have a clearer picture of the origins of the pandemic is one of the greatest public health responsibilities of our lifetime. Energy and Commerce will continue to pursue the facts related to how NIH spends taxpayer dollars and to what extent it was involved in funding potentially dangerous research in China within a lab that was not at an adequate biosafety level.  6. Did President Biden direct or condone Secretary Granholm’s secret interactions with the Chinese government prior to releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve?   Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm had multiple conversations with the Chinese Communist Party’s top energy official just days before the Biden administration announced it would release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in 2021. The Biden administration has helped support China’s national security at the expense of our own by using our strategic energy supplies to help the Chinese build up their own strategic reserves. Energy and Commerce led on H.R. 22 and H.R. 21 , both of which passed the House with bipartisan support, to protect against this abuse. In Case You Missed it : Check out Energy and Commerce’s roadmap that President Biden should follow to secure our competitive edge and beat China. 

Washington D.C. — A recent Bloomberg Law op-ed by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-CA) highlights why establishing a national data privacy and security standard is an essential first step towards ensuring American AI leadership. Key excerpts from Chair Rodgers and Rep. Obernolte: “Artificial intelligence is here to stay. This technology is both exciting and disruptive, offering advancements that could empower people, expand worker productivity, and grow the US economy. We need to ensure America leads in developing standards and deploying this emerging technology. A critical first step toward achieving AI leadership is passing a national data privacy standard." […] “Data powers all of these new tools. The more information companies can feed into their machine learning systems, the smarter those systems can become. Yet a lack of transparency into AI systems and the data used to train them raises serious concerns about how they operate and where they might potentially be abused.”   […] “Guarding against these risks while still enabling America to reap the benefits of AI will be one of the key challenges of our time. Achieving this balance will require a deliberate approach to AI. A national data privacy standard must be the first step. Establishing comprehensive protections on the collection, processing, transfer, and storage of our data should be foundational to AI regulation in Congress.   “Last year, the Energy and Commerce Committee worked in bipartisan fashion to advance comprehensive data privacy and security legislation, which passed out of the committee with near unanimous support. We’re building on that momentum this Congress. We continue to work toward legislation that would implement the most robust privacy protections to date in the US, putting people back in control of their data.”   […]   “By setting clear rules of the road that promote innovation, strengthen protections for people’s data privacy and security, and ensure companies are assessing the safety of their algorithms as AI is deployed, the US will continue to lead on this revolutionary technology.”    Don’t miss — A national data privacy and security law would put people back in control of their online data by:  Restoring Americans’ control over their data  Minimizing what data is collected and stored on all Americans, specifically children  Requiring assessments of Big Tech’s algorithms and how they harm children  Preventing data brokers from selling profiles of Americans, especially when it comes to governments looking to surveil people and violate their civil liberties  CLICK HERE to read the full op-ed.

Washington D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Communications and Technology Subcommittee Vice Chair Buddy Carter (R-GA), and 23 other Republican Committee members sent a letter to TikTok demanding answers regarding how the Chinese Communist Party is using the app as a tool to surveil and manipulate Americans.  From the letter: “ Disturbingly, millions of TikTok users have recently viewed videos glorifying Osama Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America,’ which attempts to justify his horrific murder of 3,000 Americans in the September 11, 2001, attacks while also perpetuating ‘the antisemitic trope claiming the Jews ‘control your policies, media and economy.’” Key excerpts from exclusive reporting by FOX NEWS : “ A group of House Republicans is demanding more transparency from TikTok about how content is amplified and how much insight China has into those processes as accusations mount against the social platform that it’s boosting antisemitic videos. “‘On October 7, the Palestinian terrorist organization, Hamas, brutally attacked Israel and killed more than 1,400 people. Since this terrorist attack, disinformation related to the conflict has run rampant on your platform, stoking antisemitism, support, and sympathy for Hamas,’ they wrote to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. “The letter is being led by Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga. It comes just days after TikTok was under fire for facilitating a surge in viral videos expressing support for Usama bin Laden’s 2002 'Letter to America' written in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.” […] “National security hawks have been wary of TikTok’s connection to China, with its parent company ByteDance being based in Beijing.” […] “The lawmakers are demanding to know how many employees at TikTok have connections to ByteDance, how the platform screens for misinformation and anti-Israel content amid the conflict with Hamas, and how its algorithms are curated, among other queries. “‘Given that roughly half of TikTok’s U.S. user base is under 25 years old, American youth are being exposed to extremely violent and disturbing images and videos," they wrote. "This deluge of pro-Hamas content is driving hateful antisemitic rhetoric and violent protests on campuses across the country. The CCP has already co-opted your platform, and it seems TikTok and TikTok’s employees are resigned to becoming a mouthpiece for antisemites, terrorists, and propaganda.’” ICYMI: In October, Chair Rodgers called on multiple tech companies, including TikTok, to brief the Energy and Commerce Committee on their moderation policies regarding the spread of illegal content posted by Hamas. CLICK HERE to read the full letter. CLICK HERE to read the Fox News story on the letter.

Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Full Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Innovation, Data, and Commerce Subcommittee Chair Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), and Subcommittee Ranking Member Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) wrote to Meta and other online marketplaces today requesting information regarding efforts to end the sale of banned and recalled hazardous products on their platforms. KEY EXCERPTS FROM THE LETTER TO META: “The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is tasked with keeping the public safe from consumer products that pose an unreasonable risk of injury or death. In addition to its own work, the CPSC relies on online marketplaces, like Meta, to keep consumers safe by preventing the posting for sale of products that are known to be dangerous. It is our understanding that Meta has been falling short on this mission.” […] “Meta’s failure to prevent recalled products from being posted for sale on its platform has resulted in your users and their children being placed at risk of purchasing and using a product that CPSC has found to pose a serious risk of injury and potential death.” BACKGROUND: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) relies on online marketplaces to keep people safe by proactively preventing the sale of products that are known to be dangerous.  Recent reports suggest that at least one platform, Meta, has fallen short of that responsibility, despite numerous takedown requests from CPSC. CPSC has issued takedown requests to various platforms, including several takedown requests for recalled products related to infant deaths. CPSC has formally issued an approximately one thousand take down requests a month for these products. To date, the volume of takedown requests has not slowed, and CPSC staff is unaware of any proactive measures by the platform in question  to prevent these postings in the future. This lapse has resulted in thousands of users and their children being put at risk of using a product that has been found to pose serious risk of injury and potential death. The Chairs and Ranking members asked companies to provide answers to the following questions by August 31, 2023: What systems do you have in place to ensure recalled products that the CPSC has determined pose a serious risk of injury and potential death are not able to be posted to your marketplace? Do you have a compliance staff dedicated to consumer product safety issues? If so, how many full and or part time staff are on that team? What actions do you take to monitor CPSC recalls? What actions will you take to ensure that the Fisher Price Rock ‘n Play, Boppy Newborn Lounger, and similarly designed and/or other recalled products are not available on your platform moving forward? Are there statutory issues that are creating a gray area where it is unclear what the platform’s responsibilities are? Will you commit to working with the Committee to find a solution to this, to ensure that CPSC’s resources are not wasted on sending thousands of takedown requests for products that pose a known hazard and are for sale on your marketplace? CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Meta. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Amazon. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Walmart. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Target. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Bikelist. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Ebay. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Etsy. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Goldin. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Kidizen. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Mercari. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to OfferUp. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Poshmark. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Reverb. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to TikTok. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Pinduoduo. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Alibaba. CLICK HERE to read the full letter to Shein.

Washington, D.C. — Following announcements this week from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regarding new vehicle fuel economy standards and penalties on automakers, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) urged the administration to ease the burden for millions of Americans and stop its regulatory assault that’s handing the keys to America’s automotive industry over to China.   “At a time when prices for new vehicles are at all-time highs, NHTSA’s new fuel economy standards will add even more to the price tag, depriving people of safe, affordable vehicles. These new penalties put an additional burden on manufacturers as well, which will ultimately be passed along to the hardworking people of this county. This is another part of President Biden's full regulatory assault to force Americans to buy unaffordable electric vehicles and cede our automotive future to China.  “Increasing costs, limiting people’s choices, and decimating our energy independence is not a solution to beat China. If the Biden Administration is serious about road safety, affordability, and beating China, it should work to secure our supply chains, reduce regulatory burdens, and unleash American energy.”  NOTE: On Thursday, the Committee held a full markup of several solutions to end the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) assault on the U.S. automotive industry and ensure Americans continue to have the ability to choose the vehicles and fuels that best serve their needs.  NOTE: Earlier this week, the Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce held a bipartisan hearing on the future for self-driving vehicles, where NHTSA declined to testify.