Defense and National Security
The issues of Defense and National Security are important to our district and to my work in Congress.
Our national security is of utmost importance to me. Being a constitutionalist, I believe that our nation's security from all threats, both foreign and domestic, is the government's core responsibility. In Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, the founding fathers empowered Congress to: “Provide for the common Defense… To raise and support Armies … (and) To provide and maintain a Navy.” It is important Congress ensures our service members are receiving the resources they need to do the critical job of protecting our nation.
With that said, even our nation’s top military officer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, has warned that the national debt is the greatest threat to our national security. While Congress must continue to fund programs that keep our citizens safe, it is my belief that every federal agency including, the Department of Defense, needs to be examined closely for waste, fraud, and abuse. Concurrently, the Pentagon is going to have to tighten its belt just like everyone else.
I exemplified this belief when I voted for a particular amendment to the Continuing Resolution (CR)—meant to fund the federal government for the rest of the 2011 fiscal year—which was passed earlier in this Congress. The amendment reduced funding for the Research Test and Evaluation Fund for both the Navy and the Air Force by $225 million. This terminated funding for a second engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter that the Department of Defense, under President Bush and President Obama, have stated it did not want or need. Those savings were transferred to the Spending Reduction Account, which is meant to pay off the national debt. These are the types of cuts we have to continue to make to get our fiscal house back in order.
Fulfilling the federal government's obligations to national defense and getting our fiscal house in order are two missions that are not mutually exclusive. It is important Congress does not turn a debt crisis into a national security crisis. As the Representative of Arizona's First Congressional District, I am committed to ensuring our military , law enforcement, and intelligence community remains the best in the world.
For more information concerning my work and views on the issues of Defense and National Security, please contact my Washington, DC office.