e-News 2/27/15

• Frelinghuysen chairs hearings on Navy, Air Force FY16 budget
• Bergen Record: “U.S. approach to national security should be challenged”
• Washington Post: “A Credibility Gap, Obama’s Challenge in Selling an Iran Deal”
• Helping New Jersey Families Afford College
• Salute: Introducing girls and young women to engineering

Frelinghuysen chairs hearing on Navy, Air Force FY16 budget

The House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, which I chair, kicked off a series of important oversight budget hearings this week.  The leadership of the U.S. Navy and Marines Corps, Secretary Ray Mabus, Admiral Jon Greenert and General Joe Dunford appeared before our Committee on Thursday.  Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James and the Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Mark Welsh were the witnesses this morning. 

The fundamental responsibility of members of Congress is to "provide for the common defense."  Article I of the U.S. Constitution authorizes Congress to "raise" armies and to "provide and maintain a navy."

I take this responsibility very seriously.

But I also recognize my duty to comply with the "law of the land."  That is why I informed our military leaders that the lower spending levels contained in Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA), passed by Congress and signed by President Obama, will force the House Appropriations Committee to draft a defense appropriations bill for the next fiscal year that strictly adheres to shrunken spending levels contained in the BCA.

The BCA levels are $34 billion lower than the President’s budget wish list.  To me, and many security experts, these BCA levels are completely inadequate to support America’s national defense strategy and will jeopardize our security in an environment of rising global threats.

It is my hope that when the American people understand the looming budget danger for our military and intelligence agencies, they will demand that Congress and the President change course quickly.

Watch the hearings I chaired with the Navy and Air Force on my websitehere.

Bergen Record: “U.S. approach to national security should be challenged”

Of course, lower defense spending is not the only reason why the United States’ position as a world leader is being threatened.  Read my Op-Ed column, “U.S. approach to national security should be challenged” in theWednesday Bergen Record here.

“A Credibility Gap, Obama’s Challenge in Selling an Iran Deal”

The editorial page editor of the Washington Post, Fred Hiatt, writes that President’s past assurances on Iran fell flat. Read his column, “A Credibility Gap, Obama’s Challenge in Selling an Iran Deal” here.

Helping New Jersey Families Afford College

Many New Jersey families rely on so-called 529 Plans to help finance a college education for their children.  A “529 Plan” is a plan operated by a state or educational institution, with tax advantages and other incentives to make it easier to save for college or other post-secondary training for a child or grandchild.

Earlier this year, the Obama Administration suggested applying new taxes to 529 plans.  However, this week, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 529, bipartisan legislation that would expand, modernize, and strengthen tax-free 529 college-savings plans.

With the cost of tuition up by double digits, the last thing anyone should contemplate is making it even harder to pay for college. This common sense bill endorses the value of 529 savings accounts and would help ensure that higher education and training becomes more accessible to New Jersey students.

Learn more about 529 plans and H.R. 529 here.

Salute: Picatinny Arsenal is working to introduce girls and young women to engineering and science in STEM careers.  Last night the Arsenal hosted an “Introduce a Girl to Engineering” event for 75 local female high school students. The event was designed to encourage young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

These career fields are still predominantly male. Although women fill close to half of all jobs in the U.S. economy, they hold less than 25 percent of STEM jobs.

The nation and all our Armed Forces, need more women to enter the STEM fields so that America can continue to be a leader in technical innovation.  Ed Petersen, Picatinny STEM Program Manager said, “This was an opportunity for local female high school students to interact with several of our women engineers working in the military’s cutting-edge STEM fields, and to hopefully help close the gender gap in these fields.”

School districts attending included Bloomfield, Boonton, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional High School, Dover, East Orange STEM Academy, High Point Regional, Jefferson, Montclair, Montgomery, Morris Catholic, Morris Hills Academy, Morris Knolls, Mount Saint Mary Academy, Mount Olive, Newton, Paramus, Parsippany, Phillipsburg, Pope John XXIII Regional High School, Randolph, and Sparta, Sussex Technology, and Verona.