Susan Collins: “I rise to urge my colleagues to strongly support the national security supplemental appropriations package before us.…”

“I rise to urge my colleagues to strongly support the national security supplemental appropriations package before us. This important legislation, which was approved overwhelmingly by the House of Representatives, reflects, in many ways, the bipartisan bill that Chair Murray and I negotiated and the Senate passed in February by a vote of 70 to 29. This bill would strengthen our military's readiness, rebuild our defense industrial base, and assist our partners and allies at a volatile and dangerous time in world history. The national security package before us totals $95 billion. Now, 71 percent of that funding--$67 billion--is defense funding. It will be used to continue vital U.S. military support to Europe and the Middle East, where our partners and allies are under attack by authoritarian regimes, rogue states, terrorists, and other extremists. It will expand and modernize U.S. defense production capacity. It will replenish our own stockpiles with updated, more capable weapons and equipment. And it will strengthen the U.S. submarine industrial base. In the past few months, I have received briefings from two combatant Commanders--General Kurilla of the U.S. Central Command and Admiral Aquilino of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Each of them has told me that this is the most dangerous global environment that they have seen. One said in 40 years; the other said in 50 years.…”