Ndaa

Floor Speech

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Mrs. CAPITO. Madam President, I rise today to address something that is not getting done on time, as it deserves to be done on this Senate floor; and that is the fiscal year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act.

I am very pleased to see my fellow Senator from the Great State of Mississippi, who is the ranking member on this committee, who has spent numerous hours--and days and weeks--working this bill but also educating Members and Senators as to how important this is.

The National Defense Authorization Act--or the NDAA, as we call it-- is an annual display of support for the national security of our country here in the U.S. Congress. In fact, we have passed the NDAA for 63 consecutive years.

This bipartisan legislation supports our troops, supports our national security, and strengthens the capabilities of the U.S. military.

In a time when we face some of the most dangerous security environments since World War II, the NDAA should be one of our top legislative priorities. But, unfortunately, Leader Schumer just doesn't seem to agree.

And with the support of my Democratic colleagues, Leader Schumer has spent much of the summer on messaging votes that are crafted with no true intention of making a law, nominations for Federal entities, which we are going to be doing all day today, and the confirmation of judges that have--some of them--no business serving on the bench. This is not what the American people sent us to do for our country.

The urgent need to pass the NDAA becomes obvious when you take into account what is currently happening in the world around us. First, our ally and friend Israel is under attack by Iran and its terrorist clients.

Last week, we welcomed President Binyamin Netanyahu for a joint address to Congress, and he detailed the stark reality that his country is facing. Just a few days ago--just a few days ago--we learned the devastating news that 12 children and teenagers were killed by a Hezbollah strike while innocently playing on a soccer field.

We know that Iran is the aggressor behind these attacks, and we know that they are doing all they can to grow their nuclear capabilities as well. Imagine the dangers of a nuclear-armed Iran and what that means for the stability in the Middle East.

The last 24 hours alone have shown the rapid pace at which the Middle East security environment is changing. Israel is showing that it has the will and the capability to fight back against their aggressors--and I stand strongly in support with this ally.

Second, there is a large-scale ground war going on in Europe for the first time since World War II. And we know Putin's territorial ambitions and aggressions extend far beyond Ukraine.

Third, we are witnessing an unprecedented military buildup by China, accompanied by aggressions against Taiwan, the Philippines, Japan, and other partners in the region.

This summer alone, China aggression in the South China Sea has threatened to spark a dangerous conflict with the Philippines--a country that has a mutual defense treaty with the United States.

And just 5 days ago--I feel like everything is week to week--5 days ago, two Chinese and two Russian nuclear-capable bombers were detected near the coast of Alaska, prompting U.S. fighter jets to intercept these aircraft.

This is the first time we have seen this type of joint strategic bombing training between China and Russia in their ``no limits'' partnership.

Throughout all of this, we are watching China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea reinforce one another in their aggression. They are supporting one another and sharing resources to achieve objectives directly opposed to the United States, our way of life, and our values. If that doesn't raise alarm bells, I just don't know what will.

On top of this, the National Defense Commission--charged with assessing our Nation's preparedness for future conflict--gave us a pretty stark warning this week, which was: The U.S. is facing the most challenging threats we've seen since 1945--and we aren't ready for it.

According to this report, the Biden National Defense Strategy simply doesn't prepare us to deter or prevail in a future conflict.

According to one headline, the Pentagon has insufficient forces inadequate to face China--and Russia. Here again, we cannot wait; we have to get serious about our national security.

As I mentioned, Senator Wicker understands this. That is why he has released a proposal to help us repair our anemic military so that we are not at our lowest number of aircraft, ships, and munitions when China is building to their highest.

It is clear that now is the time to invest in our military, our personnel, and our capabilities. We can do that and send a clear message to both our allies and our adversaries by passing a strong and robust NDAA.

American leadership on the world stage has long been defined by ``peace through strength,'' but in order to do that, we must invest in strength first. The NDAA authorizes programs that the Department of Defense needs to replenish and grow our military stockpiles and to invest in the innovation and modernization programs we might need for a future fight.

The NDAA will make critical upgrades to our nuclear, hypersonic, missile defense, and our space programs, and restore the arsenal of democracy by ensuring our country's ammo plants have the tools they need to modernize amid increasing demands for munitions. These are the facilities like the Allegany Ballistics Laboratory, which proudly operates in my home State of West Virginia.

It also invests directly in the men and women of our military by providing a 4.5-percent pay raise for servicemembers and increasing the monthly pay for our junior enlisted troops as well.

I have also worked to ensure provisions for my own State of West Virginia and how we can contribute to building our military and strengthening our national defense. It supports upgrades and operations at the Air National Guard facilities like the 130th Airlift Wing in Charleston, WV. It directs the U.S. Army to move forward on testing and fielding active protection systems on Army ground combat vehicles--to implement lessons learned from watching the failure of Russian tanks in Ukraine--and some of that testing is being done in West Virginia.

The bill supports the resilience of undersea cables used by the Department of Defense--to make certain that critical missions are not disrupted--and provisions that move our country away from the reliance on foreign sources for critical precursor chemicals used for the manufacture of U.S. weapons.

These are just a handful of the provisions included in the NDAA, but they speak to the importance of the legislation and the steps we need to take now to make sure that our military remains ready for any conflict that we may face in the future.

The crux of the issue is this: The House of Representatives passed their version of the NDAA on June 14. The Senate Armed Services Committee approved our version of the NDAA the day before that--that would be June 13--and we have heard absolutely nothing from the Democrat leader about when he will bring this vital leadership to the floor for debate and consideration.

So we are wasting the time of the American people on show votes and inconsequential nominees. Republicans are demanding action. We want to continue to point out the danger of sidelining our national security priorities. There is a desperate need for American leadership on the world stage, and a strong bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act helps us to get there. So I encourage my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to please recognize that.

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