Armed Services
As the Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee, I am committed to ensuring that our military personnel, veterans, and their families receive the support of our government in return for their years of faithful service. Working to ensure our military families are well cared for will remain my top priority.
In addition to pay and benefits, it is important we work to ensure that our military has the proper equipment, resources, and policies to meet the threats we face today and well into the future. However, in a time of mounting pressure on the Federal budget we must also ensure that every dollar spent on defense is done so in an effective and efficient manner. Simply spending more money does not make our country safer – spending more wisely and effectively does.
While we must ensure that our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines have the equipment and training they need to carry out their missions, we must do a better job of carefully examining our policies, requirements, and acquisition programs to improve efficiencies and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in the Department of Defense.
To that end, I will continue to work to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as it is becoming woefully expensive to operate and the annual cost-per inmate greatly exceeds the cost of holding someone in a maximum security federal prison. It is of great importance that we work to restore civil liberties and due process for all persons. Our civilian law enforcement and justice systems have a proven track record of success when it comes to investigating and prosecuting suspected terrorists.
I am proud to serve as the Ranking Member of the Armed Service Committee and remain committed to supporting our local communities in Washington State and all member of the Armed Services who represent us bravely at home and abroad.
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“There are a number of serious problems with this legislation. This bill has profound implications in a number of different areas, and yet we did not have time to consider the legislation adequately to figure out the long-term impacts it will have.
“I want to thank Chairman McKeon, all members of the House of Representatives and staff for their hard work on this important piece of legislation.
House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Adam Smith made the following statement after a short-term deal to halt Iran nuclear ambitions was struck:
“The deal announced today is a positive step in the right direction and I applaud the Administration for making progress on this important national security issue. It is vital that we prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon in a peaceful way.
“On the 12th anniversary of September 11th, my thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those who we lost on that tragic day. We must honor the innocent Americans who perished and all the heroic first responders who put their lives on the line to save others. We will never forget their sacrifice.
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Funding for the new Tacoma Readiness Center will come by reprogramming dollars from existing Army construction projects that came in under budget.