Funding Critical To Rebuilding Our Nation’s Military
'Under the Budget Control Act, the Department of Defense has received a disproportionate funding cut—and will again if Congress fails to come to an agreement. That type of blow would unacceptably diminish our military’s readiness and damage our national security. I hope that members can work together to provide the necessary funds to our military - and to all parts of our government - so that the men and women of our all-volunteer force can continue to keep our country safe.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The following are prepared remarks by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) regarding government funding and the need to provide the necessary resources to the Department of Defense:
“Our nation faces myriad threats from around the globe, and it is the Senate’s responsibility to provide the service chiefs with the resources to train and equip our warfighters—and provide them with the resources they need to keep us safe. The diverse challenges posed by Iran, China, Russia, North Korea, ISIL, al-Qaeda, and its affiliates span the spectrum of war fighting, and our force must be trained and prepared to operate on sea, air, land and in cyberspace.
“These challenges were only compounded by the Obama Administration’s focus on reducing the size of our conventional force, withdrawing our forward presence and placing an unrealistic reliance upon allies and special operations forces. In stark contrast to the previous administration, this Republican-led Congress and the Trump Administration have taken the initial steps to rebuild our military.
“We are working to ensure that the needs of the force are met and our servicemembers have the tools and training necessary to fulfill their missions. In our ongoing discussions surrounding government funding, we must continue to prioritize our nation’s men and women in uniform.
“It is illogical for this Senate to repeatedly vote to pass National Defense Authorization Acts at one level of authority and not meet that commitment with the necessary Appropriations Act. And this funding cannot be held hostage to the Obama-era demand that increases in defense funding be matched by equal increases in non-defense spending. Congress ignored that demand earlier this year, and we must do it again now.
“The reason is simple. Under the Budget Control Act, the Department of Defense has received a disproportionate funding cut—and will again if Congress fails to come to an agreement. That type of blow would unacceptably diminish our military’s readiness and damage our national security. I hope that members can work together to provide the necessary funds to our military – and to all parts of our government – so that the men and women of our all-volunteer force can continue to keep our country safe.”
Related Issues: America's Military, National Security
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