Rep. Ruppersberger strongly believes that the Chinese government is using ZTE to spy on Americans through the cellphone components it manufactures.
Pres. Trump’s decision to save ZTE contradicts his America First policy
On the other hand, democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro, co-author of the amendment, said, “This is not a company that President Trump should be trying to save. He promised to protect American jobs and claims to be all about ‘America First.’ I suppose not—this move is clearly China First.”
Last month, the Commerce Department imposed sanctions against ZTE for violating the U.S. trade embargo against Iran and North Korea. The department prohibited the Chinese telecom company from using American components and ordered to pay $1.19 billion in civil and criminal penalty.The sanctions prompted the company to shut down its operations in the United States.
On Monday, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio criticized the President’s decision to overturn the sanctions against the Chinese telecom company. Sen. Rubio said the problem with ZTE is national security and espionage.
