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Sen. Cruz Leads Calls for Fundamental Reassessment of U.S.-China Relationship

HOUSTON, Texas - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is leading the charge in the Senate to fundamentally reassess the U.S.-China relationship as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continues to lie and engage in a massive coverup of the coronavirus outbreak, threatens to cut off U.S. access to life-saving medications made only in China, and squash Hong Kong's autonomy.

As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Cruz is working to:

This week, in a speech on the Senate Floor, Sen. Cruz specifically warned about the urgent need to combat the Chinese Communist Party's propaganda and the dangerous censorship that sparked a global pandemic, saying:

"We need to be vigilant and to act where we can to thwart the Chinese government's attempts to twist the truth, to censor and to silence within China, but we also need to be vigilant about the Chinese government's attempts to censor and silence elsewhere, including in our own nation.
"In the United States, the Chinese government attempts to spread propaganda by two ways: by leveraging their enormous market access to coerce Americans into self-censorship, especially to Hollywood and sports teams who stand to make billions of dollars in China, and by simply purchasing access to our cultural and educational centers. With both levers, Chinese officials have one objective: to shape what Americans see, hear, and ultimately think."

He added:

"We need to stand up and deal directly with the threat China poses. China bears direct responsibility, direct culpability, for the over 300,000 people who have died worldwide, for the trillions in economic livelihoods that have been destroyed."

Here's what news outlets are saying about Sen. Cruz's leadership:

Variety: Ted Cruz Expands Hollywood-Targeted Bill to Threaten Ties With All Federal Agencies
"On the floor, Cruz underscored the need to be ‘vigilant about the Chinese government's attempts to censor and silence elsewhere, including our own nation.' The senator raised a point he has before about Tom Cruise's character in the forthcoming sequel ‘Top Gun: Maverick.' Cruz highlighted that the character's bomber jacket had been stripped of Japanese and Taiwanese flags in promotional images and trailers - thought to be done in deference to Chinese censors. ‘What message does it send that Maverick, an American icon, is apparently afraid of the Chinese communists?' Cruz said. ‘That's ridiculous.'"

Bloomberg: Ted Cruz Seeks to End U.S. Dependence on China for Rare Earth Metals
"Senator Ted Cruz said he plans to introduce legislation on Tuesday that aims to end U.S. reliance on China for rare earth elements used in the manufacturing of products including consumer electronics, electric vehicles and fighter planes. The bill is part of a push in Congress to shift supply chains, particularly in industries critical for national defense, away from China and back toward the U.S. ‘Much like the Chinese Communist Party has threatened to cut off the U.S. from life-saving medicines made in China, the Chinese Communist Party could also cut off our access to these materials, significantly threatening U.S. national security,' Cruz, a Texas Republican, said in a statement. ‘The ORE Act will help ensure China never has that opportunity by establishing a rare earth elements and critical minerals supply chain in the U.S.'"

The Jerusalem Post: Ted Cruz proposes bill for US-Israel medical partnership
"Senator Ted Cruz is leading the effort to establish a bilateral cooperative program that joins American and Israeli resources to battle the ongoing pandemic. [...] Cruz has referred to America's dependency on China as ‘deeply problematic,' and has said that ‘expanding partnerships with Israel, an ally and global leader in medicine ... is a common-sense step.'"

The Hill: Cruz threatens to stop federal agencies from cooperating with Hollywood over China ‘censorship'
"Republican Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) threatened to stop federal agencies from cooperating with Hollywood productions Thursday during a speech he made on the Senate floor. The senator was introducing a new piece of legislation, the SCRIPT Act, that seeks to hamper the modification of American movies in China. It is a common practice for major studios to make their films palatable to consumers in the Asian country. However, Cruz called the edits acts of censorship and compared them to foreign propaganda. The senator said he is ‘vigilant about the Chinese government's attempts to censor and silence elsewhere, including our own nation.' The bill would ban all federal agencies from participating in productions that ‘censor' or change American films for Chinese consumption."

Daily Wire: Cruz, Cotton, Introduce Bill To Turn Away From China And Toward Israel To Fight Virus
"On Wednesday, Senator Ted Cruz introduced a bill in the Senate that would lessen American dependence on China for life-saving medications and treatments and turn toward cooperation with Israel instead. The bill, which was offered by a bipartisan group of senators including Chris Coons (D-DE), Martha McSally (R-AZ), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Ron Wyden (D-OR), is titled the ‘Expanding Medical Partnerships with Israel to Lessen Dependence on China Act.' It states it would ‘authorize funding for a bilateral cooperative program with Israel for the development of health technologies with a focus on combating COVID-19.'"

Deadline: Ted Cruz Introduces Bill To Restrict U.S. Government Help For Studios If They Alter Movies To Gain Entry Into Chinese Market
"On the floor of the Senate on Thursday, Cruz said that the Chinese government had forced changes to titles like Doctor Strange, Skyfall and the Red Dawn remake, removing references to topics like Tibet, Taiwan and human rights. In Bohemian Rhapsody, he noted, they ‘edited out references to the fact that Freddie Mercury was gay.' [...] Studios for years have edited movies to gain entry into international markets, not just China but other countries, and those edits occasionally have created substantial attention. But Cruz has seized on China's practices and he and other Republicans have also put the spotlight on the country's response to the coronavirus outbreak. Cruz called his legislation a ‘wake up call' to Hollywood."

Washington Examiner: Ted Cruz legislation targets Chinese cover-ups, Hollywood censorship, and CCP propaganda
"Sen. Ted Cruz will declare China ‘the most dangerous geopolitical threat' facing the United States during a speech Thursday on the Senate floor as he introduces legislation targeting China, Hollywood, and Chinese Communist Party propaganda. The Texas Republican's speech, an advance copy of which was seen by the Washington Examiner, argues that the U.S. needs a ‘fundamental reassessment' of how it deals with China, especially following the coronavirus pandemic that originated there. Cruz will also introduce three bills on Thursday, the legislative text of which was also reviewed by the Washington Examiner, which focus on ‘how we unwind from China.'"

Epoch Times: New Senate Bill Aims to Reduce US Rare Earths Dependence on China
"Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has introduced a bill aimed at shedding U.S. dependence on China for rare earth metals and critical minerals, which are vital for the production of high-tech products such as hybrid vehicles, smartphones, and missile systems. ‘Our ability as a nation to manufacture defense technologies and support our military is dangerously dependent on our ability to access rare earth elements and critical minerals mined, refined, and manufactured almost exclusively in China,' said Cruz [...] Cruz's bill, named ‘Onshoring Rare Earths Act of 2020' (ORE Act), would provide tax incentives for U.S. companies to extract rare earths in the United States; require the Pentagon to source rare earths and critical elements from the United States; and establish grants for pilot programs to develop these materials in the United States."

Breitbart: Ted Cruz Wants to Cut All Federal Assistance to Hollywood Studios that Censor Movies to Appease China
"Sen. Ted Cruz is laying out a zero-tolerance policy for Hollywood studios that willingly censor their movies to please Chinese Communist officials, proposing new legislation that will block all federal assistance to the studios behind those film productions. The senator called China ‘the single most dangerous geopolitical threat' in the world in a speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate on Thursday. Chinese officials want ‘to shape what Americans see, hear, and ultimately think,' Cruz said. Because Hollywood studios voluntarily change characters and plot points in order to gain access to the Chinese market, Chinese officials ‘control not just what audiences see in China but also what Americans see.'"

Newsmax: Sen. Cruz Bill Restricts Fed Help to Studios That Alter Films to Get Past China Censors
"Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is pushing legislation to restrict federal government help for studios that alter their movies in order to skirt China's censors and gain access to the country's lucrative market. [...] Cruz's legislation is part of a broader series of bills he is putting forward as he has put a spotlight on Chinese propaganda [...] On the Senate floor Thursday, Cruz said the Chinese government had forced changes to titles like ‘Doctor Strange,' ‘Skyfall,' and the ‘Red Dawn' remake, removing references to topics like Tibet, Taiwan, and human rights. [...] Cruz originally announced his legislation last month, but it applied only to support from the Department of Defense."

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