Disapproving the Rule Submitted By the Department of Commerce Relating to ``Procedures Covering Suspension of Liquidation, Duties and Estimated Duties in Accord with Presidential Proclamation

Floor Speech

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Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this veto override resolution to support the Michigan and American workers and to hold those who violate U.S. trade laws accountable.

Let me be clear: I am proud to have worked with President Biden and his administration on important new laws, new laws like the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, which I had a hand in writing. These legislative victories have helped to bring back critical manufacturing and to create good-paying American jobs.

However, on this particular issue, the President and I disagree.

For far too long, bad trade deals and unfair trade practices from other countries have hurt American workers. I believe that we need to enforce our current trade laws and strengthen our ability to fight unfair trade practices.

When companies explicitly endeavor to evade, to circumvent our trade laws, there is no choice. We have to hold them accountable. That is why Congress, with strong bipartisan votes in both the House and the Senate, acted on our legislation.

The Biden administration's own Commerce Department investigation found that companies are evading U.S. tariffs on solar imports by circumventing those provisions. Yet, the administration has suspended enforcement on this matter. That is not acceptable to the specific workers that I represent because, let's keep in mind, we have to be thinking about the entirety of the supply chain when it comes to solar energy production, including polysilicon production.

By suspending tariffs on those that violate our trade laws, we are rewarding the worst behavior and penalizing those companies that choose to follow the law. Failing to act will mean that other countries will think they can simply take advantage of American business and the American worker, making us more reliant on foreign manufacturing and supply chains, including for our clean energy needs.

Climate change is real. Addressing climate change is important, and fair trade is important. We can't be shortsighted in our efforts and rely on foreign companies and countries to meet our energy goals, especially when they have been found to be in violation of U.S. trade laws. It is a false choice. It is a false choice to suggest that we can either choose to combat climate change or protect American manufacturers and American workers. We can do both.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes'' to override this veto and to hold those companies, those bad actors, accountable. This is not simple. It is difficult, but we do need to make sure----

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Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to finish my point.

There will always be an argument to look the other way, to get cheaper products by looking the other way when it comes to some of the worst practices in manufacturing on this planet. Of course, it is going to be cheaper to look the other way when workers are being exploited, when intellectual property is being stolen, when child labor is being utilized. It will always be cheaper, but it is wrong.

We can do both. We don't have to make the sacrifice of one principle in the name of the other. We can't take the position that for only 24 months, we are going to look the other way, and then we are going to go back to adhering to both of these principles.

We can do both. I encourage my colleagues to join me in doing so.

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