Political Quotes

“I rise to speak in support of the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, a bill upon which we have fortunately invoked cloture today and which I hope will allow us to proceed to finish this vitally important legislation. I wish to commend both Chairman McCain and Ranking Member Reed for their leadership as they worked together. Their bill puts us on a path toward addressing the myriad threats we face today. In fact, in my years in the Senate, it is difficult to think of a time in which we have faced more threats from more different adversaries around the world. These national security challenges include the challenges posed by ISIS, as it continues to control territory and key cities in Syria and Iraq and spreads to other countries, such as Libya and Nigeria; Al Qaeda and other Islamic extremist terrorist groups determined to attack our country and our allies; Russia's aggressive operations in Ukraine, the Baltics, and Syria; and China's aggressive military activities in the South China Sea. This bill funds programs that ensure our Nation's continued presence and deterrence missions, including $271 million to help complete the construction of two DDG-1000 Destroyers. These ships provide capabilities including stealth technology, electric propulsion, and a smaller crew size. The Navy recently accepted delivery of the first DDG-1000, the Zumwalt--a major milestone for this revolutionary program.…”