Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank Chairman Thornberry, Ranking Member Smith, and the ranking member on the Readiness Subcommittee, Madeleine Bordallo, for all of their efforts. Chairman Thornberry over the last few months has highlighted the significant readiness challenges and budget choices we are facing. The reality is that these decisions we make here will affect the strength of our national security for years to come. The American people are concerned. And why shouldn't they be? The readiness obstacles that we face force our military leaders to choose between providing adequate training and equipment for troops at home and supporting our men and women who are already fighting on the front lines. We have heard verified media reports, for instance, that aircraft mechanics have taken drastic measures, even attempting to strip parts from museum pieces, to keep our fighters and bombers flying. We have heard testimony from each of our service branches about how critical it is for us to address our military readiness shortfalls. What we have heard has been sobering, to say the least. Today we are called to address these maintenance, sustainment, and readiness issues. That is our constitutional duty. I believe that this bill will move us toward that end goal of restoring full-spectrum readiness.…”