National Security
One of my top duties in Congress is to keep our country safe. This means strengthening our national security, supporting our troops at home and abroad, and completing our missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
To increase our national security, I have supported legislation to give our men and women in uniform the resources they need to keep us safe while ensuring accountability and good stewardship of our taxpayer dollars. For instance, 2011’s National Defense Authorization provides our military with the additional tools they need to disrupt, dismantle, and eventually defeat al Qaeda and its extremist allies. These tools include counter-proliferation programs to keep weapons out of the hands of our enemies and intelligence and cyber security efforts to deter threats as soon as we learn about them. Al Qaeda and our enemies are constantly adapting, and I am committed to supporting our military and defense community in evolving to meet new threats.
Supporting our Troops
Over two million American service members have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. These brave men and women put their lives on the line to keep us safe and it is critical to our national honor and security to support members of our military when they are in the field and when they return home. To learn more about my work for veterans and their families, click here.
Saving Fresno’s 144th Fighter Wing
The Air National Guard’s 144th Fighter Wing in Fresno is vital for our national security and our Valley’s economic security. The location of the 144th Fighter Wing on the West Coast helps our nation maintain air superiority in the Southwest region of the United States and around the world, and with more than 1000 guardsmen and women stationed at the wing, the 144th is a central part of our local economy.
That’s why I fought so hard to stop proposals by other states to end the 144th fighter wing and halt the transfer of new F-15s to the wing. On a bipartisan basis, I rallied more than half the California Congressional delegation in support of the wing, and we were successful. The new F-15s are on track and the 144th is safe from any proposed elimination.
More on National Security
Washington, D.C. – Valley Congressman Jim Costa (CA-16) was elected Vice Chairperson of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s Economic Security Committee yesterday during the Assembly’s 64th annual session in Halifax, Canada.
WASHINGTON, DC – Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed H. R. 1698, the Iran Ballistic Missiles and International Sanction Enforcement Act with strong bipartisan support. The bill aims to stop Iran’s development of ballistic missiles through a combination of expanding sanctions, intensifying sanction enforcement, and increasing reporting of Iran’s ballistic missile supply chain. The House voted on the legislation less than two weeks after President Trump decided to decertify the 2015 Iran Nuclear Agreement.
WASHINGTON, DC – Today members of the U.S. House of Representatives – led by the House Democratic Caucus National Security Task Force – sent a letter to President Trump, urging him “to adopt a strong, strategic and steady policy toward North Korea.” The letter provides five principles those who signed the letter assert should guide the U.S. strategy toward North Korea, including increasing economic pressure through sanctions, enhancing diplomatic efforts, strengthening relationships with allies in the region, and maintaining U.S. military deterrence and defense efforts.
WASHINGTON, DC –Rep. Costa issued the following statement after the House passed H.R. 240, the Homeland Security Appropriations Act, which included five amendments that would undermine the Administration’s immigration priorities, hurt our nation’s economy, and put the safety of all American families at risk.
Thanks Haller & Rivera for Heroic Service
February 20, 2013
Washington, DC – Rep. Jim Costa congratulated California Highway Patrol Officers Sean Haller and Rafael Rivera who were honored for their heroic service by Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder. The two were among 18 public safety officers nationwide to receive the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor, the highest national award for valor by public safety officers.