Raimondo Sees 'No Reason' to Remove Curbs on Chinese Telecom Gear
Commerce secretary nominee Gina Raimondo told Senate Commerce Committee members before a planned Wednesday vote that she doesn't believe there's reason for the Commerce Department to remove Huawei and other Chinese companies from current departmental restrictions, like the Bureau of Industry and Security’s entity list. Raimondo’s comments, posted Tuesday, came amid rising GOP concerns about her failure at last week's confirmation hearing to definitively rule out removing Huawei from the entity list (see 2101260063). Senate Commerce's meeting to vote on Raimondo will begin at 9:30 a.m. in 325 Russell. The Senate also confirmed Pete Buttigieg as transportation secretary and Alejandro Mayorkas as homeland security secretary (see personals section of this publication's issue).
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“We’re trying to get” Raimondo’s position on the Huawei restrictions “cleared up” ahead of the Senate Commerce vote, said committee lead Republican Roger Wicker of Mississippi before Raimondo’s comments were posted. “I hope she will clarify not so much her position as the position” of President Joe Biden’s administration on the issue, “and we’re working to get that” information.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., told us he hadn’t received a response from Raimondo by Tuesday afternoon to his questions about her Huawei position. He and other Republican senators pressed Raimondo to explain whether there are any scenarios in which she could foresee removing Huawei or other Chinese companies from existing restrictions (see 2102010069). Rubio said he hasn’t ruled out placing a hold on Raimondo if her confirmation reaches the Senate floor, but he acknowledged that would have little effect.
“Ultimately, there’ll be a vote” on Raimondo, since Democrats have a majority in the chamber, Rubio said. There’s “bipartisan” opposition to removing curbs on Huawei, so “I’m not sure why it’s been so difficult to get an answer. My sense is she needs to circle back with the administration to make sure it’s appropriate to answer” in support of keeping the restrictions.
All parties on BIS’ entity list, including Huawei, are there “because they pose a risk to U.S. national security or foreign policy interests,” Raimondo said. “I currently have no reason to believe that entities on those lists should not be there.” If confirmed, she “will not hesitate to encourage the use of the Entity List, the Military End User List, and other appropriate tools within the scope of Commerce authorities to protect U.S. national security and foreign policy interests.”
Telecom equipment “made by untrusted vendors is a threat to the security of the U.S. and our allies,” Raimondo responded to a question from Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and other Republicans. “We will ensure that American telecommunications networks do not use equipment from untrusted vendors and will work with allies to secure their telecommunications networks and make investments to expand the production of telecommunications equipment by trusted U.S. and allied companies.”
“Huawei’s ties to China’s military, human right abuses, and theft of intellectual property have rightly been a source of bipartisan concern, regulatory action, and legislation” in the U.S. “and among U.S. partners and allies,” Raimondo said. “I also am fully aware of and support the provisions of the” FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Act and Secure and Trusted Telecom Networks Act “that contain restrictions on Huawei.” She would work with other federal agencies to “ensure that administration policies and actions related [to] Huawei reflect their national security concerns" and judgments.