Senate on Coronavirus Relief, Schools and Childcare — Congressional Record, August 3, 2020
Summary
Page S4655 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for August 3, 2020, headed Senate on Coronavirus Relief, Schools and Childcare, in interleaved columns. The Senate proceeds to executive session to resume a nomination, and a speaker says Democrats believe schools need more teachers and money to reopen safely and want funding so children and adults do not go hungry, which is that speaker's view. Mr. Cornyn then speaks, citing stories from trainers, coaches and basketball league employees about camps in China. A 2018 Pew study is cited, saying 7 out of 10 Americans thought social media politically biased.
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“Senate on Coronavirus Relief, Schools and Childcare — Congressional Record, August 3, 2020.”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2020-08-03-crec-2020-08-03-pt1-pgs4655-5-7b70f21128/
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August 3, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S4655
EXECUTIVE SESSION need more teachers. These are very im- lution—a bold, comprehensive solution
portant things we need to do to open that will slay this awful virus and its
schools safely, but they demand more consequences once and for all.
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR dollars. As we sat in a room today, we I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under discussed our views as to how many I suggest the absence of a quorum.
the previous order, the Senate will pro- dollars are needed. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The
ceed to executive session to resume The same thing with food safety—we clerk will call the roll.
consideration of the following nomina- Democrats believe that during this cri- The senior assistant legislative clerk
tion, which the clerk will report. sis, children and adults should not go proceeded to call the roll.
hungry, and we proposed money to en- Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, I
The legislative clerk read the nomi-
sure that there are SNAP benefit in- ask unanimous consent that the order
nation of Mark Wesley Menezes, of Vir-
creases to help people to feed them- for the quorum call be rescinded.
ginia, to be Deputy Secretary of En-
selves, that there is enough money to The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms.
ergy.
feed the kids who used to get school ERNST). Without objection, it is so or-
Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I
breakfasts and lunches, and that there dered.
suggest the absence of a quorum.
is enough money at food banks and ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF EL PASO SHOOTING
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The
clerk will call the roll. other places so they can feed their fam- Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, 1
The legislative clerk proceeded to ilies. That costs money. The Senate year ago, a gunman stormed into an El
call the roll. Republican proposal here proposed a Paso Walmart and opened fire. There
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask tax break for a three-martini lunch and were 46 people shot; 23, tragically, died;
unanimous consent that the order for a $20 billion slush fund for big agri- and the devastation in this tight-knit
the quorum call be rescinded. business but no money for these kids community was beyond imagination.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without who need to be fed. That is a signifi- The heartbreak and confusion quickly
objection, it is so ordered. cant difference. There are many. There turned to rage when we learned that
are many. this out-of-town shooter was a white
RECOGNITION OF THE DEMOCRATIC LEADER
We Democrats believe strongly that supremacist whose crime could only be
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The described as domestic terrorism.
we have to have free and fair elections
Democratic Leader is recognized. As my good friend El Paso Mayor Dee
and that the mail must be delivered in
CORONAVIRUS
a timely way because so many more Margo has said many times over the
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I just people are going to vote by mail. So last year, we will not let this evil de-
heard the Republican leader speak out many polling places need to be set up fine us. He wrote in an op-ed this week-
on the floor. Leader MCCONNELL is busy because, with COVID, you can’t be end: ‘‘El Paso will not be known for
giving partisan speeches while for the close together. tragedy but for our strength and grace
last 21⁄2 hours Speaker PELOSI, myself, There is a long list of things that are in the midst of tragedy.’’
Secretary of Treasury Mnuchin, and needed. The good news is, our Repub- That strength comes to mind when I
Chief of Staff Meadows were sitting in lican colleagues agree with a few of reflect on this terrible anniversary.
a room working hard, trying to narrow them, but some they don’t agree with, When I visited El Paso the day after
our differences and come to an agree- and we are discussing why we think the shooting, I saw the makeshift me-
ment. We all want to come to an agree- they need them, and they will counter morial that was created to honor those
ment. We know the gravity of the situ- with us in the room—Mnuchin and who died. On that first day, the collec-
ation demands it. We will continue to Meadows. But the discussion is nec- tion of photos, flowers, and mementos
work and work at it. essary, the discussion is productive, was relatively small—maybe just a few
We had a productive meeting. We and we will continue it. feet wide—but by the time I came back
narrowed some differences. Frankly, Again, the anomaly of the Repub- 3 days later, it had grown to over half
there are many that remain, but we lican leader making a partisan speech a mile. This massive memorial, the
must not give up. We must not resort on the floor while we—Speaker PELOSI, long line of folks waiting to donate
to stark partisanship. We must come myself, Mnuchin, and Meadows—are blood, the generous donations made to
together and find a solution. trying to negotiate and move forward support the victims and their families,
If I had to characterize the major dif- is really a contrast that I think most these were the real reminders of the
ference between our side and the Re- people see. power and resilience of the El Paso
publican side, we believe the gravity of So let’s keep moving forward. There community.
the situation—the economic problems, is a real crisis here. There are people As we remember this anniversary
the health problems—demands a bold, who are unemployed, and they don’t amidst a pandemic, there will not be
strong, vigorous solution by the Fed- deserve a pay cut as they go forward. groups of strangers hugging, crying, or
eral Government. We believe we must There are small businesses that need holding hands like I witnessed in the
meet those needs. And it will cost help desperately. There are schools days following the shooting. Instead,
money, but mark my words—if we that have to open. There are State and we will have socially distanced memo-
spend less money now, it will cost us local governments that must have rials, like the vigil held yesterday, that
more money later. funding. This is not an abstract con- will allow El Pasoans once again to
We hear from our schools. They very cept; these are firefighters, our teach- prove that hate will not win.
much want to reopen. We hear from the ers, our healthcare workers, our bus- Together, we will remember the 23
parents of children. They very much drivers and sanitation men and women. lives which were lost 1 year ago, as
want their kids to go back to school, If the State and local governments well as those who were wounded, and
but they want to do it safely. It costs don’t get money, they are going to be we stand in solidarity with El Paso, a
a lot of dollars to make a school safe in laid off, and services will be much border community that has looked
this COVID crisis—not only the money worse. hate in the eye and unequivocally cho-
for masks and PPE, but you can’t sit Again, we have a wide disparity on sen strength, grace, and love for one
two kids next to each other on a bus, so what kind of dollars and how to deal another.
there have to be many more bus routes. with treatment. It is our belief that CORONAVIRUS
Because some of the learning will be this administration’s program on Madam President, with August here
distant, you need hotspots, and a lot of treatment has been a failure, that we and the start of school just around the
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the kids don’t have them in their don’t have enough treatment, and that corner, school districts, colleges, and
homes. You may need new ventilating we have to redouble our efforts to put universities in Texas and Iowa and ev-
systems because COVID demands it for more money into treatment. erywhere else are in the process of
a healthy classroom. You may need to These discussions are continuing be- making very difficult decisions about
convert gymnasiums and cafeterias cause we hope we can reach an agree- how to begin the school year. The
into new classrooms. Teachers may ment. We will keep at it and at it and teachers, the professors, the faculty,
have to teach longer, and we may even at it because the Nation demands a so- and the administration of these schools
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S4656 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE August 3, 2020
are trying to figure the best way to motely; they had to be on the frontline commodations not only for learning on
keep their students safe but, at the treating the people with the virus. campus but also the living, eating, and
same time, provide a quality education We have unemployed workers—peo- the range of other activities that occur
for all their students. ple who, through no fault of their own, on university campuses.
As we have seen, there is no one-size- continue to not earn a paycheck—and At least 10 percent of that funding is
fits-all to the coronavirus when it small businesses that are struggling. dedicated to the historically Black col-
comes to public health. Our Nation is Maybe they had a PPP loan and grant leges and universities and minority-
very diversified, with some highly con- but now have continued to see their serving institutions.
centrated populations with multigener- businesses harmed by lack of cus- Keeping Texas children healthy and
ational families and an international tomers. Then there are farmers and their education on track is a top pri-
travel hub, like New York City, and ranchers and other producers, so many ority. It should be a top priority here
more rural areas where we, fortu- of whom need us to act and act quick- and for all of us, and the next relief bill
nately, have not seen the same sort of ly. must provide the funding for our stu-
impact that we have in some of these Now, Congress is not known for act- dents and teachers that they need as
concentrated areas. ing with speed and dispatch, and at they head into this new territory this
So, in a country as big and diverse as most times that is actually probably a fall.
ours, there has been no one-size-fits-all good thing because you make mistakes In addition to supporting our chil-
handbook or rubberstamp response. when you get in a big hurry, but there dren going back to school, another
With COVID–19 surging in some parts is no reason we can’t come together issue that has reared its head is
of my State and declining in others, de- and reach an agreement this week and childcare because, for many parents, if
cisions, I think, should continue to be get relief on the way to those who need their children are not studying in
made flexibly, which means they it most. classrooms, they are studying at home,
should be made locally. Each school The Senate should not recess—we and they need supervision. Many par-
district or college knows their chal- should not go back home for the Au- ents who would like to go back to
lenges, their needs, their capability, gust break—until the next coronavirus work, if they can do so safely, need to
and the risks better than anyone else bill is complete. So we really have a have childcare available for them to be
from the outside—certainly from Wash- choice. We can do this the hard way or able to do so.
ington, DC—and they should be the we can do it the commonsense and In 2018, 60 percent of Texas children
ones, at the local level, to make the de- easier way, which is simply to sit under the age of 6 had all their avail-
cisions how best to safely proceed. down, come together, and work our able parents in the workforce—60 per-
Whether the school year kicks off way through our differences. We know cent. And prior to COVID–19, many of
with in-person, online, or some com- how to do it because we do it all the these working parents relied on
bination of the two, one thing that has time, and it is the only way anything daycare so they could go to work.
become abundantly clear is that addi- gets done. Of course, the pandemic has changed
tional Federal support is needed so So we need to put the grandstanding childcare arrangements for many fami-
these schools can safely reopen with and the posturing and the rhetoric and lies. Those who have been able to
the proper protections in place. Con- the politicalization of this pandemic on telework have often pulled double duty
gress has already provided $30 billion in the shelf for the time being. There is as employees and caregivers at the
emergency relief for education, includ- plenty of time for elections. The elec- same time, and those who, unfortu-
ing more than $2.6 billion for Texas tion is 93 days off from today, but what nately, lost their jobs or were laid off
alone, which has helped our school dis- is urgent and what is needed most is have stayed home with children until
tricts, colleges, and universities pre- for us to demonstrate that we can lead they have been able to return to work.
pare for the start of the new year while during a time of crisis. When our con- But, really, childcare will be a huge
filling some holes left by gaps in tui- stituents, the American people, are in limiting factor for many, many people
tion that has not been collected be- pain and hurting and need our help, we who want to and can safely return to
cause students have not been studying need to demonstrate we can work our work. Now that more businesses are re-
in person. differences out and come together and opening, parents are increasingly in
Now, this funding can be used to sup- respond to that need. need of safe, reliable childcare, and
port things like cleaning services and Despite the immense challenges pre- Congress needs to step up and provide
equipment to protect students and sented by the virus, tens of millions of relief to childcare providers.
staff returning to the classroom. It essential workers have continued to go The HEALS Act authorizes short-
could be used for laptops or hot spots to work each day because their com- term assistance to help them so they
for virtual learning. munities depend on them. We all de- can safely reopen their doors and par-
What we really need is a restoration pend on them. Right now, our country ents can safely return to work. This is,
of confidence that people can continue is depending on us to do our job, and we I believe, a key to getting more people
to get on with their lives, as we all cannot let them down. back to work so we can begin to re-
have learned to do, by socially As school leaders make tough deci- cover and rebuild our economy.
distancing, masking, handwashing, and sions today and continue to assess the This legislation builds on another
staying home if you are sick. That is situation, we need to ensure that they provision in the CARES Act that pro-
what each of us can do as individual have the resources they need to keep vided students student loan relief for
Americans, and that is what students their students healthy and their edu- the more than 43 million Americans
can do in their classroom, as deemed cation on track. with student loan debt. It allowed stu-
appropriate by local authorities and This is not a zero-sum game. It is not dents to defer student loan payments
parents. one or the other. We have to do both. for up to 6 months with no penalty. I
Well, we had a strong start in the re- The HEALS Act that was introduced have gotten a lot of positive feedback
sponse to the coronavirus with the leg- by a number of colleagues on this side on that provision from Texans across
islation that we passed, the repeated of the aisle included $105 billion for nearly every part of the State.
bills we passed on a bipartisan basis, education, more than tripling the in- With so much economic uncertainty,
virtually unanimously, but now is not vestment made in the CARES Act, we can’t allow that provision to expire.
the time to take our foot off the gas. which we passed late in March. The Student loan debt is a real and growing
The Senate must move quickly to pass majority of that funding goes to K–12 problem in our country, and families
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additional relief, not only for our stu- schools and will support safety meas- should never be in the situation where
dents and teachers but for the workers ures for students and also provide bet- they are sacrificing their basic needs
and the industries hit hardest by this ter access to those studying remotely just to make those student loan pay-
pandemic. at home. It will bolster the Higher ments, especially during the time of a
Think about our healthcare heroes. Education Emergency Relief Fund with global emergency.
These were the truly essential workers an additional $29 billion to ensure that As we try to find consensus on the
who didn’t have the choice to work re- colleges and universities can make ac- next coronavirus response package,
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August 3, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S4657
there is no room to compromise on sup- tected from COVID–19 exposure claims other actions throughout his career are
port for our children and teachers. as long as they make a good-faith ef- why he was the right person to serve as
Another critical provision of sup- fort to comply with mandatory public Chief of Staff for the past 4 years. Gen-
porting our schools is liability health guidelines. eral Goldfein epitomizes the finest
protections. This is the targeted and temporary qualities of a military leader. His pas-
As I mentioned, schools are weighing provision. It expires in 2024. This is not sion for the Air Force, the airmen, and
whether to reopen, and they go through an attempt to permanently change the their families—this certainly is a fam-
a long list of considerations. The num- tort laws that apply across the board ily affair—is unparalleled, and the
ber of cases of COVID virus in their but only a targeted provision that ap- country owes him a debt of gratitude
community, new case trends, the risk plies to this pandemic. for his sacrifice and for his service.
to student health and teachers, the Our schools need to know and have I would also like to recognize Chief
ability to implement relevant health confidence that if they are operating in Master Sergeant of the Air Force
guidelines—school leaders are weighing good faith and obeying guidelines, they Wright for his exceptional 31-year ca-
all of these factors and more in deter- will not spend the next years in court reer in the U.S. Air Force. For the past
mining whether to reopen their doors. fighting lawsuits. 31⁄2 years, he has served as the senior
But even if a school is prepared to take In order for our country to recover, enlisted advisor to the Air Force Chief
every precaution and make a good- these workers and institutions need to of Staff and the Secretary of the Air
faith effort to protect the health and be able to open their doors and to do Force on all issues regarding the wel-
safety of students and staff, they can their jobs with confidence. That is pre- fare, the readiness, the morale, and
still face a mountain of lawsuits. cisely what this legislation will pro- proper utilization and progress of the
Let’s say a district has carefully con- vide. enlisted force.
sidered all of these factors and made I hope our colleagues on both sides of After enlisting in the Air Force in
the decision to reopen. They are pre- the aisle will join us in providing this 1989, Chief Wright would go on to serve
pared to implement the CDC guidelines critical funding and the protections in various duties in the dental career
and mitigation strategies—things like our schools need at such a crucial time. field. He deployed in support of Oper-
I yield the floor. ations Desert Shield, Desert Storm,
social distancing, masks, handwashing, The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen-
reduced class sizes, and cohorting stu- and Enduring Freedom and completed
ator from Arkansas. overseas tours in South Korea, Japan,
dents. They have made changes to the TRIBUTE TO GENERAL DAVID L. GOLDFEIN AND
bus routes, classroom seating, and Germany, and Alaska.
CHIEF MASTER SERGEANT KALETH O. WRIGHT As the 18th Chief Master Sergeant of
lunch schedules to accommodate social Mr. BOOZMAN. Madam President, I
distancing. They have talked to par- the Air Force, his transparent leader-
would like to take this opportunity to ship, character, and natural charisma
ents about how to identify the symp- recognize and congratulate two of my
toms of COVID–19 and have planned for built a never-before-seen trust with the
favorite people—Gen. David L. Goldfein 410,000 enlisted members. Under his
what they should do if a student or and CMSAF Kaleth O. Wright on their leadership, improvements were made
staff member tests positive. upcoming retirement from the U.S. Air
Despite taking every precaution and to the enlisted professional military
Force after a combined 68 years of dis- education system, enlisted promotion
closely following guidelines, the tinguished military service to our
schools could still be sued for COVID– system, physical training testing, and
great Nation. the enlisted evaluation system. His
19 exposure. If a child contracts the General Goldfein’s outstanding 37- passion for building a resilient force,
virus, a parent could file a lawsuit year career has culminated as the 21st suicide prevention, and diversity and
blaming the school. Even though it Chief of Staff of the Air Force. In this inclusion will have lasting positive im-
would be extremely difficult—if not role, he has been responsible for the or- pacts on the service, the airmen, and
impossible—to prove the school was at ganization, training, and equipping of their families.
fault, the district could be drawn into 685,000 Active-Duty, Guard, Reserve, Fittingly, Chief Wright will continue
a costly court battle to defend itself, and Civilian Forces serving all over the to advocate for airmen as the next CEO
taking money and time away from world. He has been crucial to strength- of the Air Force Aid Society. As co-
classrooms needed to teach our chil- ening our national security and has led chair of the Senate Air Force Caucus
dren. the effort on shaping the Air Force and and Chairman of the Appropriations
In Arizona, this has arisen as a major Joint Force of the future. subcommittee responsible for ensuring
issue. The largest insurer for schools General Goldfein launched his career our Armed Forces and their families
announced it will not provide liability at the Air Force Academy. He grad- have the infrastructure and facilities
coverage for COVID–19 claims. Without uated in 1983 and continued his train- to support their needs, I have met with
action from Congress, many schools ing at the United States Air Force these Air Force leaders on numerous
may choose not to reopen their doors Weapons School. He would go on to occasions during their service, as they
because the risk of expensive litigation earn his command pilot rating, accu- encouraged congressional support to
is simply too high. mulating more than 4,200 flying hours strengthen Air Force priorities and
It is not just litigating and losing in various aircraft, such as the T–37, T– military readiness. Airmen can be
that is such a burden. By litigating, 38, F–16, F–117, MQ–9, and MC–12. proud of their advocacy and leadership
you actually can lose even if you win He flew combat missions in Oper- to ensure the United States maintains
the case because of the cost associated ations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Al- our air superiority.
with defending these cases and the lied Force and Enduring Freedom. On On behalf of the U.S. Senate, the
time and energy it takes that could be May 2, 1999, while flying a night mis- Senate Air Force Caucus, and a grate-
expended on educating our children. sion during Operation Allied Force, ful nation, I extend my deepest appre-
That is why the legislation I have in- then Lieutenant Colonel Goldfein ciation to General Goldfein, Chief Mas-
troduced, known as the SAFE Act, found himself in the skies above Serbia ter Sergeant Wright, and their families
which is included in the HEALS Act, is in his F–16 fighter jet. His mission was for their many, many years of exem-
so important. It will prevent schools to bomb targets designed to force the plary military service and sacrifice. We
that make a good-faith effort to safely Serbian dictator, Slobodan Milosevic, all wish them nothing but the very
reopen from facing a wave of opportun- to withdraw his troops from Kosovo. best in the future.
istic litigation. Things changed rapidly when an air With that, I suggest the absence of a
It doesn’t provide blanket immunity.
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missile exploded through the belly of quorum.
It actually incentivizes following pub- his aircraft, forcing him to eject and The PRESIDING OFFICER. The
lic health guidelines and says that only parachute into enemy territory. He clerk will call the roll.
those who engage in willful or grossly was quickly rescued in Kosovo by the The senior assistant legislative clerk
negligent conduct can be sued and re- Air Force’s elite combat search and proceeded to call the roll.
covery sought. But it does spell out in rescue team. Mr. WICKER. Madam President, I
black and white that K–12 schools, col- His ability to make sound decisions ask unanimous consent that the order
leges, and universities will be pro- under this extreme pressure and many for the quorum call be rescinded.
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S4658 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE August 3, 2020
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without companies censor political viewpoints employ disturbing and familiar im-
objection, it is so ordered. that they find objectionable. That was agery.
COMMUNICATIONS DECENCY ACT 2 years ago. It has only worsened in the According to the ESPN investiga-
Mr. WICKER. Madam President, for 2 years since then. tion, one former league employee com-
almost 25 years, the internet has grown These concerns come at a time when pared the atmosphere at the Xinjiang
and thrived under the light-touch regu- tech companies wield unprecedented camp to ‘‘World War II Germany.’’
latory framework established by the power within our economy and our cul- An American coach, who worked at a
Communications Decency Act. I hope ture at large, and no one can deny that. similar facility, described it as a
we can continue that. I think some A bipartisan chorus of committee ‘‘sweat camp for athletes.’’
changes need to be made. members from the other body pointed Now, according to the investigation,
Passed in 1996, the law that the Com- this out just last week. More and more almost immediately after the NBA
munications Decency Act is a part of of our daily business is taking place launched this program back in 2016,
helped create the internet. Section 230 online, and that trend is only accel- multiple coaches who were staffing the
of that law gives broad liability protec- erating during the current pandemic. camps reported to high-ranking organi-
tions to interactive computer services, As we near the 2020 election, Ameri- zation officials that they had witnessed
such as Facebook, Twitter, and other cans have serious concerns about Chinese coaches beating and berating
social media platforms. This provision whether online platforms will treat student athletes. Bear in mind that
protects online platforms from being campaigns on both sides of the aisle these reports were made in 2016. They
fairly and equally. Those concerns are also reported that the Chinese Com-
held liable for content posted by their
warranted. I have those concerns. munist Party officials who were in
users.
This is a unique protection for online Americans are right to be worried charge of the camp were denying stu-
platforms, and not everyone in our about interference by politically ho- dents an education.
mogenous tech firms that hold unprec- In coming to this elite camp, they
country enjoys those protections. For
were to receive both an education and
example, newspapers do not enjoy this edented sway over our Nation’s polit-
elevated sports training, but the re-
important protection. But we have ical discourse.
After 24 years, it is time for Congress ports, going back to 2016, said the chil-
done this for internet platforms.
to revisit section 230 of the Commu- dren were being abused, beaten, be-
At the same time, section 230 of the
nications Decency Act and start with rated, and denied the education. So
Communications Decency Act allows
why then did the NBA maintain these
online platforms to censor content that refining—perhaps narrowing—the scope
programs?
they—the platforms—consider obscene, of what counts as otherwise objection-
Money.
lewd, harassing, along with several able content subject to censors. There Communist China plays host to an
other categories, including the term may be other reforms that would be estimated $4 billion NBA market. They
‘‘otherwise objectionable.’’ better, but I think it is time for Con- say that China is basketball-obsessed,
I am concerned that this term, ‘‘oth- gress and the committee that I chair to and NBA execs have used every avenue
erwise objectionable,’’ is too broad and revisit this section of the law. they can to take advantage of that,
ends up protecting online platforms Last week, the Commerce Sub- and they jealously protect these rela-
when they remove content that they committee on Communications, Tech- tionships.
simply disagree with or dislike or find nology, Innovation, and the Internet Last October, when Houston Rockets’
distasteful personally. convened a hearing to consider exactly General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted
I fear section 230 has enabled big tech this issue, and it was a very good hear- in support of the Hong Kong Freedom
companies to censor conservative views ing. As chairman of the Commerce Fighters, multiple league all-stars,
and voices, and I am joined by a lot of Committee, I intend to pursue this stakeholders, and well-connected em-
Americans in that view. As such, this matter thoroughly and evaluate what ployees lashed out in a panic—terrified
provision has become a loophole for changes are needed to section 230. Con- of retaliation from Beijing.
censoring free speech, and it risks ne- gress needs to ensure that the internet Team owner and Alibaba co-founder
gating the values at the very heart of remains a forum for a ‘‘true diversity Joe Tsai not only sided with the Chi-
our First Amendment. of political discourse’’ that promotes nese Communist Party as it retaliated
In the last few years, reports of on- competition and innovation. against the entire league, but he char-
line censorship of conservative view- I suggest the absence of a quorum. acterized the Hong Kong protesters as
points have grown more frequent. In The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. leading a separatist movement.
early 2018, for example, an undercover BOOZMAN). The clerk will call the roll. Their over-the-top reactions are
report exposed Twitter for systemati- The senior assistant legislative clerk proof enough of how fragile the NBA’s
cally ‘‘shadow banning’’ conservative proceeded to call the roll. relationship with China actually is and
profiles—meaning users were blocked Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, I who is really in control of this rela-
from the platform without being noti- ask unanimous consent that the order tionship. The control is not with the
fied. for the quorum call be rescinded. NBA.
More recently, Google threatened to The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without In June, I sent a letter to the NBA,
demonetize a conservative news site, objection, it is so ordered. expressing my concerns about the
The Federalist, for not removing offen- CHINA training camps in Xinjiang and the
sive content in their comment section. Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, league’s entanglement with the Chi-
Based upon information I received, the last week, journalists at ESPN pub- nese Communist Party. In their re-
comments may indeed have been derog- lished the results of a bombshell inves- sponse, they announced that they had
atory and unacceptable. But what is tigation into human rights violations closed their facilities in the region and
noteworthy is that Google’s threat to- at NBA training academies in China. that they had severed their ties to any
ward the Federalist was hyperselective When you think about a basketball programs there.
and a bit hypocritical. Google held the camp, you probably think of shooting The problem is that the ESPN report
Federalist accountable for comments drills or running sprints, but these I referenced previously disputes that
made by the Federalist readers, but camps look much different. The inves- assertion. I am reaching out for clari-
Google does not want to be held re- tigation focused on training camps lo- fication on that matter, but in their re-
sponsible for the posts or comments by cated in Xinjiang. This particular re- sponse, I hope NBA officials express
users on Google’s platforms, including gion in western China has achieved a clarity regarding all—each and every
SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE
YouTube—a double standard imposed certain level of notoriety in recent one—of their business relationships
by Google itself. This selective scru- months for the horrific political vio- with China because the NBA and other
tiny reveals what most Americans al- lence its government officials inflict on organizations that maintain close ties
ready believe: that tech companies are the Uighur Muslim minority. So it is to the Chinese Communist Party be-
politically biased. no surprise that the stories told by lieve that they are merely taking ad-
According to a 2018 Pew study, 7 out trainers, coaches, and other NBA em- vantage of a growing consumer mar-
of 10 Americans believed social media ployees who helped to run these camps ket—or that is what they say. To them,
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