WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and John Thune (R-SD), lead sponsors of the RESTRICT Act, legislation that will comprehensively address the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries, released a statement in response to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew’s testimony today before the House Energy and Commerce Committee:

“Under PRC law, all Chinese companies, including TikTok, whose parent company is based in Beijing, are ultimately required to do the bidding of Chinese intelligence services, should they be called upon to do so. Nothing we heard from Mr. Chew today assuaged those concerns. It is vital for Congress to establish a process to review and mitigate the harms posed by foreign technology products that come from places like China and Russia. We are encouraged by the quick momentum and strong bipartisan support for our legislation and expect that it will only grow following today’s testimony.”

Sen. Warner, Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and Sen. Thune, ranking member of the Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications, Media and Broadband, recently introduced the RESTRICT Act along with a bipartisan coalition of co-sponsors, including U.S. Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Susan Collins (R-ME), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Thom Tillis (R-NC). 

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