Adam Schiff

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I am sorry. I couldn't hear the ruling of the Chair. The gentleman asked for unanimous consent.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, the gentleman offering the amendment has how much time? Because they claimed both the time on the amendment--

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, well, if my colleagues in the minority--I don't know how much time they have both on the amendment and on the time in opposition to the amendment--but if they can yield to my colleague to make sure that he has time for his remarks out of both of their time, I think we can resolve this.

Mr. SCHIFF. Did the Chair offer time in opposition to the amendment?

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, this amendment clarifies section 602 of the bill dealing with domestic terrorism. Section 602 would require the FBI, DHS, and the National Counterterrorism Center to produce an annual report and strategic intelligence assessment on domestic terrorism. Ms. Pressley's amendment would require more information regarding any training or resources on domestic terrorism provided by the FBI, DHS, and National Counterterrorism Center to assist Federal, State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies. This would enhance oversight and transparency in this area and give us a better sense of how domestic terrorism training has been provided to law enforcement throughout the United States. Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for her work, and I urge our colleagues to support the amendment and the underlying bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. So no one claimed the time in opposition?

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chair, the gentleman from Texas' proposal would allow the congressional committees with jurisdiction over public health matters the opportunity to receive a briefing about the effects of emerging and infectious diseases and pandemics on national security and the international political and economic system, along with the Intelligence Committee and Armed Services Committee. It is critical that Congress be well-informed on the posture of the United States and, indeed, the rest of the world to address a public health crisis that might arise in the face of a particularly rapidly spreading, devastating disease. It is crucial that committees that oversee public health responses understand how prepared we may be to address such a crisis. I support this amendment, and I believe it will be helpful to our colleagues on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee to receive this briefing and information from the DNI, along with the Intelligence, Armed Services, Foreign Affairs, and Appropriations Committees that are already included in the bill text. For that reason, I support the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Okay. So there should be 5 minutes.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding, and I rise in strong support of this amendment offered by my colleagues from Florida and New York, who have both been leaders in this body focused on national security challenges posed by deepfake technologies. We in the Intelligence Committee held a hearing on this very topic last month, and the rate at which these capabilities are evolving is almost as breathtaking as what they can produce, high-quality video and other types of media that convincingly portray individuals saying or doing things that never happened. The potential for a foreign adversary to undermine an election, foment chaos, or create a national security crisis with a sophisticated digital forgery means that we need to ensure the intelligence community is fully considering the wide-ranging implications of deepfakes, including the capacity of foreign entities and adversaries to weaponize machine-generated media. This report will also give us a detailed picture about how the intelligence community is coordinating efforts, activities, and research surrounding this emerging technology and if there are lingering gaps in resources or assignments of responsibility, since we need to be clear-eyed about how disruptive and devastating a well-timed deep fake could be during an election or a tense diplomatic standoff. I want to thank my colleague for her work on this amendment, and I am very proud to support it.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, as the designee of the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Malinowski), I rise to offer an amendment.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I was going to request the chairman yield me 1 minute of time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I rise to support this amendment, which adds an additional requirement to section 502, a report on the repression of ethnic Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang region of the People's Republic of China. The human rights crisis underway in Xinjiang is staggering in scale. Open-source analysis based on extensive reviews of satellite imagery and Chinese Government documents has concluded that as many as 1.5 million Muslims could be held in internment camps by the Chinese Government. Despite this body of evidence, the executive branch has rebuffed attempts to clearly describe the scope and scale of this crisis. H.R. 3494 calls for a comprehensive U.S. Government assessment that addresses the number of persons detained, a description of forced labor practices in the camps, and an assessment of the surveillance, detection, and control methods associated with China's new high-tech policing model. Mr. Malinowski's amendment adds an additional requirement for the intelligence community to assess and identify the technological and financial support provided by U.S.-based companies to the Chinese Government's repressive operations in Xinjiang. In light of the alarming public reports detailing cooperation between prominent U.S. companies and foreign companies aiding and abetting the Chinese Communist Party's surveillance state, this amendment could not be timelier. Madam Chair, I thank my colleagues, particularly Mr. Malinowski for his tireless work to support human rights. Madam Chair, I am happy to support the amendment. I urge support for the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. If I could, Madam Chair, through the Chair to my colleague, I appreciate that. We will take you up on that. And on the next amendment that we have time, I will yield to my colleague, and your colleague may yield to you, if you have further comments you want to make on this issue.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, it is now a pleasure to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney).

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, this amendment clarifies section 602 of the bill dealing with domestic terrorism. This section would require the FBI, DHS, and the National Counterterrorism Center to produce an annual report and joint strategic intelligence assessment on domestic terrorism. Chairman Thompson's amendment would add safeguards to protect the civil liberties and privacy of individuals whose information would be contained in the report and mandate compliance with the Data Quality Act. It also would require DHS to disclose information on the allocation of personnel working domestic terrorism matters, enhancing oversight in this area. I would like to recognize Chairman Thompson for his work that the House Homeland Security Committee has done on the issue of domestic terrorism. Together we will continue our lines of effort to address this significant threat. Once again, Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for his work, and I urge support for the amendment.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. This amendment expresses a sense of Congress that conveys our firm opposition to any use of facial recognition technology to suppress criticism or dissent, as well as our opposition to the U.S. Government sale or transfer of facial recognition technology to countries using this technology to suppress human rights. Critically, the amendment also acknowledges the IC's unique responsibility to develop robust policies and procedures that prevent the abuse of this technology. To ensure that the intelligence community is held accountable, the amendment requires the submission of a comprehensive report analyzing any use of facial recognition technology by the IC, and the associated implications for privacy and civil liberties, especially among marginalized communities. Ms. Jayapal's amendment requires the intelligence community to establish clear policies and procedures, enhance transparency, and increase oversight concerning the applications of these new capabilities. Her amendment lays the groundwork for a thoughtful U.S. response to the emergence of divisive and disruptive technologies and how they would fit into existing civil liberties frameworks. Again, I want to thank my colleague for her work. I am pleased to support Ms. Jayapal's amendment.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, as the designee of the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Slotkin), I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I move that the Committee do now rise.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, as the designee of the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Pressley), I rise to offer an amendment.

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. This straightforward amendment adds the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Intelligence and Analysis to the DNI's consultation requirement for its report on possible exploitation of virtual currencies by terrorist actors. It also requires the report's dissemination to State and local law enforcement, consistent with the protection of classified information. Ensuring that relevant counterterrorism information is distributed, as appropriate, to State and local law enforcement is a key priority and a major function of the Department of Homeland Security. Adding these entities as recipients of this report through the DHS fusion center mechanism improves the bill. I want to encourage all my colleagues to support the amendment, as well as the underlying bill. I thank my colleague for her work.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 345, a resolution to recognize the central importance of press freedom in a democratic society and calling attention to threats to press freedom around the globe. I am proud to sponsor this bipartisan legislation, which I introduced with my colleague, Congressman Steve Chabot, with whom I co-chair the Press Freedom Caucus. I thank, as well, Mr. Engel and Ranking Member McCaul for moving forward this resolution. Every day, journalists around the world bring forward vital information and stories, sometimes from behind the curtain of the world's most repressive regimes and amid war zones. Journalists expose corruption, malfeasance, and abuse that the wealthy and powerful may seek to conceal. For that, they face harassment, threats, persecution, assaults, and even death. The purpose of this resolution today is to call attention to those threats and to make clear that Congress supports press freedoms here and around the world. Recent years have been some of the most dangerous and deadly in memory for journalists. As we confront a rising tide of authoritarianism around the world, threats to press freedom are proliferating in many countries from repressive governments. Elsewhere, inadequate security and a lack of accountability have made journalists vulnerable to criminal or terrorist actors. The resolution before the House today lists just a small sample of the cases in which journalists around the world have been killed or imprisoned for their work. I would like to speak to just a few of these cases and those that have occurred in the short months since the resolution's introduction. Among them, of course, is the case of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi human rights advocate, U.S. resident, and Washington Post columnist who last year was brutally murdered and dismembered at the orders of the highest reaches of the Saudi Government. Jamal's murder has been a rallying cry of sorts, but it stands alone in the worldwide attention it has received. All the same, it is tragically far from unique. Fewer are aware of the cases involving Loujain Al-Hathloul, Nouf Abdulaziz, and Eman Al-Nafjan, three Saudi women who wrote critically of the kingdom's treatment of women and who have been imprisoned for more than a year; or of the acute threat to journalists in the Philippines where the regime of Rodrigo Duterte has attacked independent media with a campaign of judicial harassment and investigation, including the online media outlet Rappler lead and its editor, Maria Ressa; or in China, where authorities target independent and foreign media for harassment and detention, including the labor reporter Wei Zhili, who was arrested in March. Authorities also block American-based journalists and others who have sought to report on human rights violations and mass detention of Uighurs in Xinjiang province. Turkey has become the leading jailer of journalists under the rule of President Erdogan, where, just last month, Turkish authorities charged two Bloomberg journalists who reported on the economic crisis in Turkey with undermining the Turkish economy and sought to imprison them. In Iran, economics reporter Marzieh Amiri was arrested covering May Day demonstrations and has been held since, with little information about her well-being or the status of the charges against her. In Mexico, reporters can pay with their lives for reporting on the crimes of drug cartels or corrupt local officials, including investigative journalists like Carlos Rodriguez, who was murdered in front of his family, or, more recently, Norma Sarabia, who was murdered in her home in Tabasco state and whose killers remain at large. Of course, many Americans are all too well aware of the case of Austin Tice, an American working as an independent journalist in Syria who was kidnapped by forces aligned with the Syrian regime in 2012 and today is believed to still remain a hostage nearly 7 years later. We continue to do all we can to obtain information about his whereabouts and to secure his safe return. Mr. Speaker, today, by passing this legislation, the House can send a message to journalists who face persecution for their work that we stand with them and value their contributions. For those who seek to intimidate and silence them, we send the message that we are watching. The voice of people seeking justice cannot be silenced forever. We will stand strongly with all those around the world fighting for accountability and truth.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles upon its 40th Anniversary. In July of 1979, the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA) was formed when ninety-nine men stepped up at the Plummer Park Community Center in West Hollywood, having seen posters announcing the formation and first rehearsal of a new gay chorus. Three months later, the chorus performed at the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, thus marking the beginning of their important legacy. Throughout their forty-year history, GMCLA members have used their comradery and shared experiences to challenge stereotypes and enrich the community. At the height of the AIDS epidemic, the GMCLA family lost 150 members, but even that horrific tragedy did not stop their work and their commitment to celebrate and serve the LGBTQ community. The GMCLA has since become an essential part of the fabric of Los Angeles, with members dedicating their time to advocating for equality through song and community service. The GMCLA has stayed true to its core message of equality by transforming and nurturing the Los Angeles and LGBTQ communities through its initiatives, such as the Alive Music Project. The multi- faceted project, which has reached over 65,000 middle and high school students, promotes acceptance and anti-bullying, and provides opportunities for music education programs in Los Angeles schools. Additionally, the GMCLA is a proud member of The Arts for Incarcerated Youth Network which offers music education to juvenile detention center students. Through these initiatives, the GMCLA reaches countless youth. Today, the GMCLA boasts over 300 members and has performed in iconic venues around the world, including Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, and Carnegie Hall in New York. With each new venue, they sing for a world that promotes acceptance and is free from discrimination. The Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles will honor its anniversary and the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall uprising in August, when they will be joined by the New York City Gay Men's Chorus for a historic concert and gala to benefit their music education programs. I am proud to recognize the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles for four decades of musical entertainment and outstanding service to the LGBTQ and Los Angeles communities. I ask all members to join me in congratulating the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles for its remarkable achievements.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Children's Hospital Los Angeles for being ranked first among children's hospitals in California and across the Western U.S., in addition to being named one of the top five children's hospitals in the nation, according to U.S. News and World Report's Honor Roll of Best Children's Hospitals. The talented doctors, nurses, volunteers, and staff at Children's Hospital Los Angeles provide every child with the best care possible, and have touched the lives of countless families across Los Angeles, including mine. Children's Hospital Los Angeles has been providing excellent pediatric care to the Los Angeles area since 1901, and today offers more than 350 specialty programs and services to meet the needs of some of the community's most vulnerable members. In addition to its patient services, Children's Hospital Los Angeles supports innovative research efforts which impact children across the nation and around the world. When it comes to children's health and well-being, Children's Hospital Los Angeles's quality of care is truly unparalleled. I am proud to recognize every individual at Children's Hospital Los Angeles for their unyielding commitment to caring for the children of Los Angeles. I ask all members to join me in commending Children's Hospital Los Angeles for its compassionate, exceptional pediatric care.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment offered by the gentleman from Michigan and the gentlelady from California. Bipartisan majorities of the House and Senate have recognized the national security importance of the section 702 program, that it can help protect our country and respect the privacy of our citizens, and that these goals need not be in conflict. This near consensus was founded in part on recognition of the 702 program's close and regular examination by the DNI and DOJ, by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, by The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, by inspectors general--and of course, by the judiciary and intelligence committees in the House and Senate. Even against this background, I have long supported privacy and transparency reforms that preserve the undoubted value of the section 702 program to U.S. National security. For that reason, I joined in strongly backing the bipartisan compromise legislation, which imposed new privacy safeguards while reauthorizing section 702 activities. And I do strongly believe that, as Members of Congress charged with upholding the Constitution, we should be actively and always looking for ways to shore up section 702's already rigorous regime for protecting the rights of U.S. persons--in a fashion that still permits the IC to accomplish its mission. And that is where I think the amendment goes too far, and needlessly risks doing serious harm to what is perhaps our government's most valuable mechanism for obtaining the communications of foreigners overseas. With its addition of new, unnecessary and confusing legal requirements, the amendment would risk the section 702 program's temporary cessation, while the IC takes steps to understand and comply with the amendment's mandates. Moreover, as written the amendment strongly suggests that the IC immediately would have to stop collecting the communications of a suspected terrorist abroad, simply because the suspected terrorist was communicating with an individual thought to be within in the United States. The IC should not be required to cease collection of intelligence in situations where it is entirely appropriate to collect it, and where we most badly need to IC to do so--such as the Najibullah Zazi case, where the IC detected and foiled what would have been a deadly terrorist plot to detonate explosives on subway lines in Manhattan. The amendment would also deny funds for so-called ``abouts'' collection, which the IC on its own decided to discontinue in 2017--and thus go well beyond the compromise carefully crafted by Congress the following year. Under existing law such collection might resume one day, provided the IC first convinces the courts and congress that such collection can be conducted in a manner that fully safeguards privacy rights. The IC should not be banned from collecting intelligence in a fashion that protects privacy, if it can devise an appropriate means of doing so. And yet that is precisely what the amendment would take off the table, in advance. I see no reason to disturb the balance that we struck in 2018, after such extensive and rigorous deliberation. And I see many, strong reasons to leave in place this critically necessary intelligence gathering tool, on which our intelligence professionals rely every day.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Chair, I thank the chair for her support. This amendment sends a clear message to the American people that Congress recognizes the importance of vaccination and immunization in the United States and urges individuals to follow the advice of their doctors in favor of timely vaccinations for themselves and their children. Madam Chair, I again ask my colleagues to support this amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.