In Speech, Senator Rosen Highlights Company That Employs Nevadans And Manufactures Cancer-Fighting Technology, Bipartisan Provisions She Secured
VIEW/DOWNLOAD VIDEO OF FULL SPEECH HERE
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) called on her Senate colleagues during a floor speech to pass bipartisan legislation to address the ongoing computer chip shortage that is affecting supply chains across American industry, threatening U.S. national security, and increasing costs for American consumers. The landmark, bipartisan package would bring computer chip manufacturing back to the U.S. and help existing manufacturers compete, creating thousands of new American jobs. It also contains several of Senator Rosen’s bipartisan provisions to invest in STEM education, bolster the critical minerals supply chain, and support advanced manufacturing workforce development.
Watch Senator Rosen’s full remarks here.
Below are Senator Rosen’s floor remarks as delivered:
Mr. President,
For months, our country has experienced a severe computer chip shortage, one that has impacted nearly every American industry and increased costs for nearly every American.
From cell phones, to cars, to televisions, even our refrigerators and washing machines — products we use every day, well they need computer chips to function.
They are also used in critically important technology like the medical equipment at our hospitals, and the technology used by our military.
This is why the computer chip shortage we’re facing is a critical economic and national security issue.
It has caused prices to rise, contributed to supply chain issues, and limited the availability of many products — something that anyone who has tried to buy or rent a car over the past couple of years knows all too well.
This shortage, well it’s directly impacting hardworking families and the businesses that support jobs across our nation.
It has hurt companies that employ people in my state of Nevada, like Varian Medical Systems, which uses computer chips to manufacture cancer-fighting and other critical medical technologies.
This shortage is impacting lives and livelihoods.
For decades, America was the global leader in manufacturing and innovation, but over the years, we outsourced the production of computer chips to countries like China – costing us millions of potential American jobs, and increasing our reliance on foreign nations for technology, well for technology that is critical, critical for our national security and safety.
And, all of this has been exacerbated by a global pandemic and war in Ukraine.
Mr. President, we can’t afford to wait any longer to bring the manufacturing of computer chips back to the United States.
The Senate, well we’ll be voting on bipartisan legislation to bring computer chip manufacturing back to the U.S. and help existing manufacturers compete – creating thousands of new American jobs and enhancing both our economic and our national security.
We’ll also improve our supply chain, which will help businesses like Varian Medical Systems, and it will minimize those supply chain disruptions, which will ultimately help lower prices for consumers.
And this bill will do so much more to spur innovation and invest in our American economy.
As the first and only former computer programmer to serve in the United States Senate, I’m so excited about what this legislation will do for the future of American technology and innovation.
It will establish a first-of-its-kind effort to accelerate our development of critical technologies like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and advanced manufacturing.
It will invest heavily in STEM education and in our cybersecurity workforce.
And it will help build regional technology hubs across the country to spark innovation.
I’m also proud that this bill includes bipartisan provisions that I worked on in the committee that wrote the bulk of the legislation, which includes these:
My bipartisan Rural STEM Education Act with Senator Wicker to increase access to quality STEM education for rural schools so it’s accessible to all of our students no matter where they live.
It also includes provisions I worked on with Senator Blackburn to support advanced manufacturing workforce development.
And a bipartisan amendment I introduced with Senator Lummis to develop a secure and reliable critical mineral supply chain.
This historic, bipartisan legislation is just common sense.
So, let’s build up our communities, let’s strengthen America’s competitiveness, let’s invest in American innovation, let’s lower prices for hardworking families, and let’s bolster our domestic supply chains.
Let’s pass this critical piece of legislation now.
Thank you.
