Sherrill unveils plan to strengthen American competition against the Chinese Communist Party

To combat the Community Party of China’s (CCP) “Made in China 2025” plan, Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) announced today the Leading Global Innovation Resolution, which is the first cog of her American Jobs and Competition Plan.

“For too long, policymakers haven’t given the Chinese Communist Party’s ‘Made in China 2025’ plan the attention or urgency it deserves — and that ends today,” Sherrill said. “We must act swiftly to counter the CCP’s escalating economic aggression and attempts to dominate the technology of the future that is so critical to our economic and national security.”

The resolution calls for the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to work together on reshoring American jobs, investing in workforce training initiatives, and expanding STEM education.

These programs are designed to counter the CCP’s “Made in China 2025 Plan,” which CCP leaders hope will secure the Chinese economy as the driver behind critical manufacturing of semiconductors, AI, and quantum computing.

In addition to outlining the necessity of strategic competition with the CCP, the resolution also addresses the CCP’s history of unfair trading practices.

Sherrill made the announcement today at Thomas Edison State University in Trenton, where she was joined by representatives from labor, manufacturing, education, and state government.

State Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Plainsboro) ,who chairs the bicameral, bipartisan Legislative Manufacturing Caucus, praised the plan.

“This is what today is about: Keeping Trenton, New Jersey, and the United States at the forefront of manufacturing the technology of the future,” Greenstein commented. “Congresswoman Sherrill’s resolution will help give New Jersey workers and businesses a level playing field on which to compete with international actors, like China.”

Assembly Transportation Committee Chairman Dan Benson (D-Hamilton), the Democratic  nominee for Mercer County Executive, was also in attendance.

“It’s an all-of-government proactive strategy that ties in education, labor, manufacturing, and business because we can’t do this alone,” Benson said at the event.

While the plan fundamentally views the CCP as an adversary, Sherrill emphasized that hate against Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities will not be tolerated.

“And yet doubling down on demands for fairness from the CCP cannot and must not result in hate against our AAPI community,” Sherrill said today. “This is important: Asian Americans have always and will continue to contribute mightily to the American economy and American innovation; more broadly to the American story.”

Sherrill’s announcement today is the first of what is expected to be several over the next few months related to the American Jobs and Competition Plan. Additional resolutions are expected to further combat the CCP, strengthen the U.S. Department of Commerce, and strengthen American partnerships and alliances.

This is Sherrill’s first legislative push as a member of the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the U.S. and Chinese Community Party.  The committee was formed at the beginning of this current term, the 118th Congress.