On the recordOctober 9, 2015
I join my friend, Mr. Forbes, in opposition to this amendment. This amendment would harm America's national security. Under the program that it seeks to eliminate, the Pentagon reserves capacity on roughly 60 U.S.-flagged commercial ships to ensure the supply and transport of American troops. It is a program that supports our private sector as well, requiring the Defense Department to contract private commercial ships rather than building their own. So there was not redundancy, but complementary ability. It is a program that enhances America's national security by ensuring that our military can depend on U.S.-flagged and crewed vessels instead of foreign ones. It is a program that supports important domestic maritime jobs. In my view, we ought to reject this amendment. This legislation is, obviously, controversial. I hope this amendment is not controversial and that it receives overwhelming bipartisan opposition.
