Todd Tiahrt: “I wanted to rise today for two reasons, one is to commend Chairman Lewis and the Appropriations Committee for completing…”

“I wanted to rise today for two reasons, one is to commend Chairman Lewis and the Appropriations Committee for completing their work on the appropriations process today, June 20. This is quite an achievement. It has taken a lot of hard work by the committee. Both the Republican and Democrat members have worked very hard, applied themselves, had strenuous debates, and now we have completed our action, and we are looking forward to the action on the House floor for all of these bills, including today's defense bill. The second reason I rise is to thank the chairman and the ranking member for their consideration for the young men and women that serve this great country. One of the significant additions to this bill is an additional $500 million for the National Guard. National Guard soldiers, as you know, give up their jobs, their time with their family, make sacrifices to make sure this country is safe. Their equipment has been used and used hard, needs to be replaced. And thanks to these two gentlemen, we have $500 million to do just that. I think this is a very good bill. It does take consideration for young men and women who make sacrifices to serve this country and carry out the will of this Nation, and I hope that we can pass this quickly and get through the amendment process quickly as well.”