Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2018

Floor Speech

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Mr. Chairman, thank you for yielding the time. Congratulations to you on your maiden voyage in this role that you are occupying--very expertly, I might add. During the forced march that we undertook in the committee for the last 3 weeks, clearing all 12 bills through the full committee in a historically record time, we had a good drill sergeant, Mr. Frelinghuysen. Thank you for doing a great job.

We held 74 oversight and budget hearings, heard from over 400 witnesses, with the overarching goal that each of the 12 bills we passed out of our committee addressed the needs of our constituents. I am proud to say that these bills do just that--advance our national defense and secure our borders, take care of our veterans, provide critical infrastructure funding, increase resources to combat the opioid epidemic, maintain our presence as a leader in global diplomacy--all the while maintaining fiscal discipline.

I am disappointed that we won't consider all 12 of these bills before the August recess, but this security package is an important step forward. It will ensure that we, as the Congress, uphold our most sacred responsibility to provide for our Nation's common defense.

Under the previous administration, our Department of Defense faced needless uncertainty. I am proud that we are now turning the tide, providing our troops and their commanders with the necessary resources to respond to threats from countries like Russia, China, and Iran, as well as crush the violent extremists who wish to do us harm.

As promised to the American people, we are rebuilding and modernizing our military as an international powerhouse by better equipping our troops, strengthening counterterrorism efforts, and reestablishing confidence with our allies. At a time when our enemies continue to advance around the globe, the U.S. must remain at the forefront of military readiness and advanced technology to strengthen national defense at home and abroad.

This bill also maintains our commitment to those brave men and women after their service has come to a close, providing for greater oversight and accountability at the VA and modernizing electronic health records to help our veterans receive the high quality of care they deserve.

I am also pleased that this legislation includes the Energy and Water Appropriations bill, which funds many of our national security interests and builds upon our country's essential infrastructure needs.

In particular, this bill protects the Appalachian Regional Commission, ARC, from proposed elimination, and ensures that its critical programs will continue in our hardest hit Appalachian coal communities.

Since 1965, ARC has led efforts to innovate, partner, and invest in the region to build community capacity and strengthen economic growth.

These investments have led to the creation of thousands of new jobs. It has improved local water and sewer systems, improved our schools, increased access to healthcare, and provided critical assistance to emerging businesses. After 8 years of strangulation by regulation in the Obama administration's war on coal, Appalachia needs the ARC now more than ever.

Mr. Chairman, thank you again for allowing me to speak on behalf of this bill. Is it everything we wanted? No. It is critical that we prioritize our national security, and that is what this bill does.

Mr. Chairman, the motto of our Appropriations Committee is this: ``A vision without funding is a hallucination.'' Now we have got a visionary leader in our chairman, but we have got to provide the funding to make the dreams that we have come true, and that is what Appropriations does.

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