John Thune: “this week, the Senate is beginning consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2026. This…”

“this week, the Senate is beginning consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2026. This annual Defense bill is one of the most important things we do each year, and I appreciate the hard work that Chairman Wicker and our colleagues on the Armed Services Committee have done to put forward a strong bipartisan bill and get it ready for the floor. Mr. President, the last few years demonstrated that the world remains a dangerous place. And as new challenges have arisen, we also had troubling reports on the state of our military's readiness to meet those challenges. We have aging equipment, insufficient munitions, lagging recruitment, excessive bureaucracy that delays the delivery of new weapons. Our readiness and capabilities have not been heading in the right direction. We have begun to turn that situation around, most recently with a significant investment in our national security in the One Big Beautiful Bill. This year's NDAA, along with sustained investments in the years to come, will help us continue to reverse that trend so that we have a military capable of deterring and defeating today's threats and tomorrow's. This year's National Defense Authorization Act boosts America's shipbuilding, and that includes additional combat ships and submarines that are essential to delivering American power anywhere in the world.”