S. 4049

Floor Speech

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Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, this weekend, the American people will celebrate 244 years since our Nation's independence. Over these last two and a half centuries, our country has faced and defeated many enemies who have sought to undermine the very foundation of our way of life. They sought to take away our freedom, undermine our values, and destroy our way of life. They also in the process sought to instill fear, hate, and perpetrate violence. But each time, our country has prevailed.

It is really a miracle, if you look back at our Nation's history, that we made it through a civil war, two world wars, and we find ourselves still the beacon of liberty that attracts so many people from around the world who want to live here and become Americans and pursue their dreams here. All of that starts with our security.

As we celebrate our independence and generations of men and women who fought to protect it, we are now engaged in fulfilling our most important responsibility, and that is to provide for the common defense. We do that by advancing the National Defense Authorization Act.

This bill is an annual exercise and is part of Congress's commitment to give our men and women in uniform the support they need to defeat those threats and to prepare for ones that will inevitably come tomorrow. We have done this for the last 59 years. Believe it or not, we have been consistent and done this for the past 59 years. I can't think of any other area where Congress has been so consistent. In doing so, we have managed to overcome our differences and pass this legislation, as we should. This is how we determine how our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines are paid; how our alliances are to be strengthened; and how our military facilities are to be modernized and maintained. As the threat continues to evolve, it is how we ensure that we are the best there is.

In 2018, the national defense strategy was crafted to recognize the reality of the global threats we were facing then and we still face today and outline a comprehensive strategy to maintain what Ronald Reagan coined as ``peace through strength.'' The past two Defense bills have supported the implementation of that national defense strategy, and this legislation will continue to build on the progress we have made.

Given the state of our world, preserving our military readiness has never been more important. Both China and Russia have become much more aggressive in their attempts to disrupt the global order. North Korea continues to provoke the United States and our allies with its nuclear aspirations. Iran's hostile and unpredictable actions continue to threaten democracies around the world. Our adversaries are investing in their capabilities in an effort to surpass ours, and in some areas, sadly, they are succeeding.

Simply put, America no longer enjoys the competitive edge we once had on our competitors and adversaries. We can't allow that status quo to be maintained. We must change it, and that is where the NDAA comes in.

This legislation makes tremendous strides in maintaining that technological advantage, in modernizing our weapons, building resilience, and regaining a credible military deterrent. What keeps us safe is our deterrent. We need any foe to realize that if they engage the United States in military conflict, they will be defeated. The moment they believe that they can take us on and gain some advantage, they will do it. That is the nature of the world we live in. So the deterrent value of what we are doing here this week could not be more important.

All told, the defense authorization bill will support $740 billion for our national defense. That is the single biggest ticket item in our Federal spending. It will mark a significant step forward in our efforts to modernize and strengthen our military. But this bill is about more than maintaining our powerful national defense; it is empowering the men and women behind it. America's 2.1 million servicemembers have made a commitment that most of us have not made, and that is to volunteer to serve in the defense of our Nation and in so doing, joining the ranks of America's heroes who have defended our country throughout our history. They make sacrifices each and every day, not because it is good for them but because it is good for all of us. We owe it to them to support them in any way we possibly can, both on duty and off.

This legislation provides for a modest 3-percent pay raise and additional support for our families. Since we have an all-volunteer military, it is frequently said that it is the individual servicemember who volunteers, but it is the family that determines whether we will retain them in military service. So this bill provides for military spouse employment opportunities and childcare.

I offered one amendment to the bill that would extend this support to help military parents during a time of tragedy. It would change a policy that was brought to my attention by Maj. Matthew Checketts, who is an Active-Duty airman at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland.

Major Checketts and his wife Jessica spent much of last year preparing for the arrival of their newest family member, a little girl named Elaine. Elaine would be their sixth child, joining a squad of boys who were eager to have a little sister.

When Elaine arrived last fall, Major Checketts was given 21 days of parental leave to spend time with his family, but then they experienced an unimaginable tragedy. Their beautiful daughter passed away. Instead of getting to know their newest family member, the Checketts family was facing a hardship every parent prays they will never have to endure.

For many military families, that loss is made even more difficult because of a Department of Defense policy which ends a servicemember's preapproved parental leave upon the death of a child. There is no time to grieve and no time to regroup. That means no time to be with your grieving family or somehow process this immeasurable loss. The policy of the Department of Defense currently requires servicemembers to leave their family and return to work when that child dies.

In Major Checketts' case, his commander allowed him to take his preapproved leave so he could stay with his family, but not every servicemember will get that same consideration. That is why Senator Duckworth and I introduced the Elaine M. Checketts Military Families Act, named after Elaine. This legislation would amend current leave policy for servicemembers so their preapproved parental leave is not terminated upon the tragic event of a child's death.

This is actually in line with other civilian Federal employees, and there is no reason why servicemembers should be treated differently. The grief of losing a child should not be aggravated or compounded by having to face the grief thousands of miles away from your family.

So, as we begin to debate this year's Defense authorization bill, let's keep at the forefront of our conversation the men and women who are heroically offering themselves, and, indeed, their very lives, on some occasions, to protect against the threats to our country. Let's work in good faith to get this bipartisan bill passed soon.

Let me commend Senator Inhofe, the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, and Senator Reed, the ranking member, for their leadership on this bill, as well as all the members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. I particularly appreciate their maintaining the tradition of strong bipartisanship that has historically guided this legislation.

As we get closer and closer to the Fourth of July, let us remember all of America's Armed Forces, what they have all given to protect our freedoms, and let's make sure we do our job both here in Washington, with a strong Defense authorization bill, and at home, with our demonstration of support and expressions of gratitude and appreciation.

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