On Monday, I was glad to join the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) for a discussion on the future of U.S. relations with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), how best to curb CCP aggression in the Indo-Pacific region, and address its human rights abuses, as well as how President Joe Biden should approach these issues at his upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. As Ranking Member of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the CCP, I have helped to lead Congressional efforts to hold the CCP accountable while building a stronger American foundation for a future rooted in democracy, the free market, and human rights. With the economic, military, and technological competition between America and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) intensifying, I was grateful for the opportunity to sit down with Jude Blanchette, the Freeman Chair in China Studies at CSIS, for an in-depth discussion on what next steps need to be taken. You can watch my full conversation here.

This week, as Ranking Member of the Select Committee CCP, I was proud to join Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher and other members of our committee to introduce the bipartisan Defend Our Networks Act. The legislation will continue efforts to remove communications infrastructure and equipment currently in use made by Chinese companies that present a national security risk. It’s estimated that there are approximately 24,000 pieces of untrusted equipment from Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE at more than 8,000 locations across the country. As communications providers of all sizes have worked to replace this equipment with secure infrastructure, the rapid demand has outpaced funding levels and left a significant gap not addressed by the initial program, the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program, commonly known as “Rip & Replace.” My legislation would immediately fund the full amount remaining, allowing completion of the critical Rip & Replace program, and ensuring our nation’s communications infrastructure is secure.

If you are unable to make it to our district office in Schaumburg, our staff is available at mobile office hours throughout the district. Share your concerns, questions, issues and get help navigating federal agencies at convenient locations across the district.

Our Next Pingree Grove Office Hours: Tuesday, December 5th, 12:00pm – 4:00pm at the Pingree Grove Municipal Center at 555 Reinking Rd, Pingree Grove, IL.

Our Next Wood Dale Office Hours: Tuesday, November 21^st: 10:00am – 1:00pm in the Wood Dale Public Library at 520 N Wood Dale Rd, Wood Dale, IL.

We will continue to hold additional office hours in Wood Dale on the third Tuesday of each month, with the next after November on December 19^th.

Our Next Des Plaines Office Hours: Tuesday, December 12^th: 9:30am – 11:30am in the Des Plaines Public Library at 1501 Ellinwood St, Des Plaines, IL.

P.S. I always enjoy hearing from constituents, so feel free to comment and share my social media posts! Here are the links: Twitter here, Facebook page here, Instagram here and Threads here.