National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. JACKSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this amendment, as it cuts funding for the W87-1 warhead, which will be assembled at the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas.

These are funds that have been mentioned or requested by President Biden and are broadly supported across all of Congress. Cutting funding for the W87-1 would be irresponsible and unsafe, as it is slated to replace the W78, which will soon be the oldest weapon in the stockpile.

This program was started by Obama, continued by Trump, and is now being funded by Biden. It has been a great success as it has hit all of its markers and is on track to reach IOC and deliver the first unit in 2030.

Further, plutonium pits for the W87-1 will eventually be produced at the Los Alamos National Lab and Savannah River Site, giving us a production capability that we do not currently have.

For these reasons and the others mentioned by my colleagues, I urge everyone to oppose this far-left attempt to unilaterally disarm the United States.

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Mr. JACKSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of my amendment, which clearly states that Israel is a critical defense partner of ours. Our national security is inextricably linked to our relationship with and our military's support for Israel.

As our strongest ally in the Middle East, it is critical that we conduct military exercises with Israel to improve interoperability and readiness. We must ensure that Israel has the capabilities it needs to defend itself against terrorists with consistent and reliable transfers of defense articles.

Last year, President Trump negotiated the historic Abraham Accords, and to honor that, my amendment states clear support for Israel's work to promote peace. While some in this body have made their disdain for the Jewish State of Israel clear, I believe our relationship with Israel is nonnegotiable.

Our friends in Israel are currently questioning our commitment because some of my more radical colleagues forced the Speaker to withdraw financial support for the Iron Dome yesterday.

I urge all Members of this body to support my amendment. We must take this step to show the only democracy in the Middle East that they can count on us for support.

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