Orrin Hatch: “I rise in strong support of the current plan to procure around 2,500 F-35s for our men and women in uniform. Recently, I…”

“I rise in strong support of the current plan to procure around 2,500 F-35s for our men and women in uniform. Recently, I understand the chairman of the Armed Services Committee called upon Congress to cut the number of F-35s our Armed Forces will produce. Usually, I fully agree with the chairman's astute assessment of national security matters. In fact, I think he is a terrific chairman. In particular, I applaud his vital work in drawing attention to this administration's lack of effective strategies to eliminate the current threats posed by the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and the so-called Islamic State. Nevertheless, I must respectfully disagree with his call to reduce the number of F-35s to be acquired by our Nation's military. In doing so, I reiterate my full support for the existing program of record, which calls for the procurement of 1,763 F-35s for the Air Force, 420 for the Marines, and 260 for the Navy. As we assess the question of F-35 procurement, we should remember how the Department of Defense determined the number of aircraft it would purchase in the first place. I can assure you, this decision was neither hasty nor taken lightly. The Pentagon based its estimates on a thorough review of our Nation's airpower readiness and the capabilities needed to deter and defeat future threats to our national security. The Department's procurement request doesn't reflect an arbitrary estimate but the number of F-35s needed to keep our Nation safe.…”