On the recordJuly 13, 2017
The goal of this amendment is simple: given the rising nuclear and ballistic missile threat from North Korea and Iran, we have a renewed urgency to do everything we can to make sure that the Missile Defense Agency goes as fast and as far as possible. This includes cutting unnecessary bureaucracy. This amendment would normalize the operational test and evaluation process for our ballistic missile defense system, simply treating it like every other major weapons system that we have. This amendment fixes an outdated bureaucratic requirement which requires the Secretary of Defense, himself, to guarantee in advance a system will work before it can even be bought. This is such a high bar, we don't use it anywhere else. Under this amendment, we will still have a robust, rigorous testing program, without the Secretary of Defense needing to get personally involved. The Director of OT&E, which is the Pentagon's testing office, would still be required by law to evaluate and approve testing plans, analyze and evaluate testing results, and publish an annual public report with this information. Congress and the Secretary of Defense will still have the power to say no. The difference is MDA won't have needless obstacles to prevent them from moving forward. Let's free the Missile Defense Agency and unshackle it so it can better do its vital job of protecting us from missile attack. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
