Roger Wicker: “and my colleagues, for too long, political leaders have shied away from being honest and having a difficult conversation…”

“and my colleagues, for too long, political leaders have shied away from being honest and having a difficult conversation with the American people about our national security. Elected officials have kicked the can down the road, failing to tell the country just how dangerous the world has become. It is past time to confront this issue. Many Americans do not know that the safety we enjoy has been secured by a global network of U.S. military bases, diplomatic efforts, and international coalitions, as well as massive amounts of equipment and ammunition. We have taken our security for granted, not knowing that much of it has been enabled by a previous once-in-a-generation investment made decades ago. President Ronald Reagan led Congress to rebuild the U.S. military in the 1980s. I will hasten to add that it was a bipartisan Congress who joined President Reagan in this effort. Americans have been living off that investment ever since. Because of those efforts, we have rested easy under the umbrella of overwhelming military superiority. Today, though, our military streak is diminishing to dangerous lows--dangerous lows. That umbrella of security has become a false sense of security. The U.S. Navy is the smallest and oldest it has been in over eight decades--80 years. Our Air Force is shrinking. Much of our military infrastructure is out of date. This is a fact, and it is no secret. Time and again, U.S.…”