e-News 6/12/15

• A Bipartisan Defense Bill Passes a Divided House
• New day. Same war. Waiting for the President’s “Complete” Plan for ISIL
• Salute: To the United States Army!  

A Bipartisan Defense Bill Passes a Divided House

I am proud to report that the House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year 2016 Department of Defense Appropriations bill, drafted by my Defense Subcommittee, yesterday.  This is the legislation which funds critical national security needs, military operations abroad, and health and quality-of-life programs for the men and women of the Armed Forces and their families.

In total, our bill provides $578.6 billion in funding, an increase of $24 billion above the last year’s level and $800 million above the President’s budget, submitted in February.

This includes $88.4 billion in Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) funding for war efforts and related costs.  This total is approximately $38 billion more than the President sought, because, frankly, the world is a much more unstable, unpredictable and dangerous place for America and our vital interests these days. 

As I said in my closing remarks to the whole House yesterday, over 200,000 men and women in uniform do the hard work of freedom every day across the globe – in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Sinai, the Korean DMZ and many other places.  Those members of our armed forces, and their comrades who serve here at home, also deserve our admiration and untiring thanks.  They deserve the support of the whole Congress!

And yet, a remarkable event occurred Thursday morning: the President’s Secretary of Defense appeared before the House Democratic Caucus to “discuss the administration’s opposition” to my bill. This is more remarkable because our defense bill has – always – had bipartisan support!

And yet, I am proud that my bill passed with such a substantial margin.  Even though all Democrats should have supported this excellent legislation, 43 of them broke from Nancy Pelosi and voted for my bill, honoring our time-honored tradition that America’s national security is a non-partisan priority.  

With all the growing threats in the world today, our national security is far too important to fall victim to political games. We cannot risk having an underfunded military during these uncertain times, and our troops deserve unfailing support as they lay their lives on the line. This bill fulfills our responsibilities to properly fund programs for our warfighters, our military families, our national security, and for the success of our missions both now and in the future.

I invite you to read my opening statement, delivered on Wednesday when the debate began, here.

In an effort to provide maximum transparency, there are several sources of important information available to the public.

For a bill summary, please click here.  

For the text of the bill, click here.

For the bill report, click here.

Our counterparts in the Senate have started work on their version of the Defense Appropriations bill.  However, Democrats in that chamber have vowed to block all spending measures from consideration until there is a resolution on larger budget issues. 

That is a dangerous injection of partisanship into a dangerous national security climate.

New day. Same war. Waiting for the President’s “Complete” Plan for ISIL

Even as the President threatens to veto our Defense Appropriations bill which provides him with the funds and resources that he needs as Commander-in-Chief, the President is ordering another 450 U.S. troops to Anbar province in Iraq.  Military planners are said to be "actively looking at sites” for new bases in Iraq, which might require hundreds of additional troops!

Of course, we are still waiting for the President to develop a “complete” battle plan against ISIL in Iraq and Syria.

Recommended Reading: “ISIS is Not Just Iraq’s Problem. It’s Obama’s” by Kristin Roberts of the National Journal here.

Recommended Reading: Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Ricewriting in the Washington Post on the importance of trade to America's future: "Give Obama trade-promotion authority."

Salute: To the United States Army!  Picatinny Commanding General Patrick Burden rang the opening bell at New York Stock Exchange this week to celebrate the Army’s upcoming 240 birthday on June 14.  General Burden was accompanied on the podium for the bell ringing by other military officers, non-commissioned officers, family members, and Army Veterans.  Happy Birthday and Thank You to the U.S. Army!