[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 138 (Thursday, September 7, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H8601]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            THE B-52 BOMBER

  (Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma. Mr. Speaker, President Reagan said, ``If we 
are forced to fight, we must have the means and the determination to 
prevail or we will not have what it takes to secure the peace.'' This 
then, is the B-2 Bomber's reason for existence.
  The chairman and members of the National Security Committee have 
clearly supported the B-2. Numerous studies indicate that the United 
States will require more than 20 B-2 bombers to support the U.S. 
national military strategy and that makes the B-2 a critical part of 
our war fighting arsenal and will play a unique role in each and every 
air and land battle that lies ahead.
  The aging fleet of B-52 and B-1 bombers will see their performance 
decline in the next 5 to 10 years and can never perform the stealth 
mission of the B-2. In fact, there are no new bombers on the drawing 
board for the next 20 years. Bottomline: The B-2 is an installment on 
Congress' promise to revitalize our national security posture.
  I challenge each of you to think about the direction of this world. 
The notion that we are safe--or war is less likely--should be 
dismissed. The reality is their names may have changed but they are 
still there--ballistic missiles, chemical weapons, and nuclear weapons. 
We must have the ability to counter that threat. The time is now--I 
urge your vote of support for the B-2.


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