Risch, Cornyn, Colleagues Bill to Mitigate Foreign Influence on U.S. Policymaking Passes Senate

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, along with Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), released the following statements after their Conflict-free Leaving Employment and Activity Restrictions (CLEAR) Path Act, which would mitigate foreign influence on U.S. policymaking by prohibiting certain former government employees from lobbying on behalf of certain countries of concern, passed the Senate unanimously:

"It isn't right for senior government officials to turn their public service experience into a payout from malign foreign governments," said Senator Risch. "This bill will help prevent corruption at the highest levels of our government, protect our national security, and ensure that our public servants do not abuse their power for the good of America's adversaries."

"Foreign adversaries with ill intentions should not wield influence on American policymaking, nor should they exploit our own citizens to intercede on their behalf," said Senator Cornyn. "This commonsense legislation would root out attempts of malign foreign interference and ban high-level former U.S. government employees from lobbying for countries of concern like Russia and China, and I urge its swift passage in the House."

"Public trust in our democratic institutions is eroding. It's vital we set higher standards against potential conflicts of interest for former government employees, particularly when it involves foreign adversaries that might be working to influence U.S. policy," said Senator Welch. "I'm thankful for the support of the Senate on our bipartisan bill and urge my colleagues in the House to join us in this effort to help restore trust in our democracy."

"Corrupt foreign nations put their thumb on the scales of American policy through both secret and overt channels of influence. I'm very pleased that the Senate has unanimously passed our bipartisan CLEAR Path Act to stop senior U.S. government officials from selling their expertise and access to benefit America's adversaries after they leave public service," said Senator Whitehouse.

Background:

The CLEAR Path Act would seek to mitigate foreign malign influence in our political system by:

• Banning agency heads, deputies, and Senate-confirmed employees from lobbying the executive and legislative branches on behalf of countries of concern, which includes China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and Cuba;
• And including a mechanism to add or remove countries of concern if the U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Attorney General propose a change to the list of countries and Congress concurs with the passage of a joint resolution of approval.

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