Providing for Further Consideration of H.R. National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. ROY. Mr. Speaker, I take issue with the characterization of what has transpired with respect to the legislation before us. We have passed, by voice vote even, four bipartisan en bloc amendments with items like China, Taiwan, readiness, munitions, and Israel--a host of issues that do not fall into the category that the ranking member raises, which I am happy to address in a moment.

There are countless other amendments that we have raised and addressed. For example, my friend Mr. Rosendale's amendment, which I know is near and dear to the heart of Mr. Griffith from Virginia, limits indefinite detention.

There are other amendments. For example, Mr. Norman's requires that any Department of Defense component that fails to pass an independent audit have 1\1/2\ percent of its budget returned to the Treasury for deficit reduction.

These are a lot of very good, commonsense amendments. We went through the process, combed through 1,500 amendments, and made decisions in the Rules Committee on how to equitably bring them to the floor. They cover the gamut of issues that the American people are concerned about when they see their Department of Defense no longer able to defend the United States.

That is the question.

I hear the ranking member talking about how we are injecting culture wars into the National Defense Authorization Act or injecting culture wars into the military when, in fact, it is this administration that has turned the Department of Defense into a social engineering experiment wrapped in a uniform. That is what is happening. That is what the American people see.

When the American people see advertisements in June with rainbow bullets strapped to helmets, when they see surgeries for transgender people being funded by taxpayers at the Department of Defense, and when they see the Department of Defense ignoring existing law, existing precedent, and existing traditionally historic bipartisan agreements on Hyde amendment protections, then they see the Department of Defense being turned into a social engineering experiment.

Of course, the people's House is responding to an executive branch that is making policy by executive fiat not just, of course, in this area but across the entirety of the Federal Government. So, yes, we are offering amendments to address these things.

An Air Force Academy deck slide instructs cadets to use language like ``parents and caregivers'' instead of ``moms and dads.'' Well, that is a really great use of time for the Air Force Academy. Don't refer to the phrase ``mom and dad.'' Boy, that will do it.

The United States Special Operations Command's diversity and inclusion strategic plan claims that diversity and inclusion are operational imperatives. The Marines tweeted a Pride Month image, as I pointed out, with rainbow-tipped bullets. This stuff is happening every day.

When I go talk to military recruits and talk to the recruiters, they are struggling. They are not even able to make their recruiting goals. They are well under their numbers. Why? Because the target audience of people who want to serve in the military don't want to be preached to. They don't want to have their entire worldview being questioned by the leaders and the brass in the military.

We are trying to stop that. We would like to make the military focused on killing people and blowing stuff up again because that is what a military is supposed to be for--sparingly used and not in endless wars, but ready and able to defend the United States of America.

The American people I talk to back home don't want a weak military. They don't want a woke military. They don't want rainbow propaganda on bases. They don't want to pay for troops' sex changes. The American people want a military that can provide for security and win wars.

Mr. Speaker, that is what we are doing with this legislation, and I am proud to support the rule.

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