Duncan Hunter: “First off, I want to thank the leadership, Adam Smith from Washington and Mac Thornberry from Texas. We have wise…”

“First off, I want to thank the leadership, Adam Smith from Washington and Mac Thornberry from Texas. We have wise leaders who are going to be here. When the generals term out, when the administration terms out, when the Secretary of Defense changes over and over, guess who is here? Mac Thornberry and Adam Smith. It will be Mike Rogers, Mike Turner, Rob Wittman, and Randy Forbes. We have people who love this country. They come to work every day in D.C., and they care about national security, because there is no social security without national security. That is the way it is. The National Defense Authorization Act is our solemn promise to our people who fight for us. It is us promising them that we will look out for them, that we will fight for them, and that we will give them what is needed to do their job. When the guys go kick down doors, when the guys are out in the freezing cold whether or the hot, humid weather every day, day in and day out, while we are here in our suits and ties in this nice air- conditioned building, this is our solemn promise to them. This is us telling them: Hey, we have your back. No matter where the President sends you, the Congress is going to make sure you have what you need to do your job. I did three tours--two in Iraq and one in Afghanistan--while my father was chairman of the Armed Services Committee here in D.C. That gave me the perspective of how Congress needs to watch our backs.…”