Last month, I joined Vice President Vance at a manufacturing facility in Des Moines to highlight what Iowa does best: building products, creating jobs, and competing in markets around the world.
But we also discussed a growing threat to that success: Beijing is buying up the ports, roads, railways, and trade routes that American producers depend on to get their products to market.
The problem: Since 2013, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has invested nearly $1.4 trillion into infrastructure projects across the globe through its Belt and Road Initiative. These investments aren’t just about building roads and ports — they’re about gaining leverage, expanding influence, and controlling access to critical trade markets.Â
Why it matters: The ports China finances today can become the chokepoints Iowa exporters face tomorrow. When Beijing controls key transportation hubs, it controls who moves goods, when they move, and at what cost. Iowa farmers and manufacturers, already competing in a challenging global marketplace — and they shouldn’t be forced to compete on a playing field tilted by the CCP.
The solution: This week, I introduced two bills to counter Beijing’s infrastructure power grab and keep trade routes open for Iowa:
🚂 Our TRAIN Act directs the State Department to help partner nations identify and avoid risky infrastructure deals with Beijing before they sign a piece of paper that turns global infrastructure over to the CCP.
🌉 Our BRIDGE Act requires the U.S. government to create a coordinated, whole-of-government strategy to counter China’s invest-to-control agenda and strengthen America’s economic leadership abroad.
Bottom Line: Iowa farmers and manufacturers can compete with anyone in the world when the rules are fair. They don’t need Washington sitting on the sidelines while the CCP tilts the playing field against them. I’ll keep fighting for fair trade, open markets, and policies that help Iowa producers succeed.