C. W. Bill Young: “Mr. Chairman, if there is anything that the cities or the counties or the States cannot do that must be done by the…”

“Mr. Chairman, if there is anything that the cities or the counties or the States cannot do that must be done by the Federal Government it is to protect the security of this Nation. We are talking about a national defense. We are talking about an Army, a Navy, an Air Force, a Marine Corps, a Coast Guard, an intelligence community, and all of these related activities. Those things can only be done by the Federal Government. The States cannot do them. So, we as the Federal Congress have an obligation. The Constitution gives us the obligation to provide for the common defense. That includes intelligence, knowing what is happening in the world which might affect us. Let us face it, almost everything that happens in the world affects the United States today because of the Nation that we are. We cannot afford to put blinders on our eyes or to put plugs in our ears and not be able to determine what a potential threat might be or where it might be coming from. Mr. Chairman, we cannot accept this amendment. It is just too massive a cut in a relatively small budget that is essential to providing for the protection of the security of our Nation and our interests, whatever they might be, and our people.”