October 22, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 167 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Page H8304]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   STRENGTHEN OUR COUNTRY'S DEMOCRACY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Larsen) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on 
strengthening America's elections and the democratic process.
  The task we face is very simple: Congress should secure elections 
from foreign interference and break down barriers that prevent 
Americans from accessing the ballot. And the SHIELD Act, which Congress 
will vote on this week, protects elections from foreign meddling by 
increasing oversight of campaign contacts and online political 
advertising.
  U.S. citizens have a right to be fully informed of their ballot box 
choices without concerns of foreign interference. The 2016 election 
taught us in the United States many lessons as foreign governments 
sought to influence the outcome of our election.
  The SHIELD Act builds on lessons learned from the 2016 election by 
creating an obligation to report contacts between campaigns and foreign 
nationals.
  Additionally, the SHIELD Act presents modern-day solutions for the 
problems of manipulative online political advertisements by ensuring 
the same standards applied to other political ads will extend to these 
new advertisements.
  Mr. Speaker, the House will vote on the SHIELD Act this week, and I 
urge Members of the House to vote for the SHIELD Act to strengthen our 
country's democracy.

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