[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 25, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H7647-H7650]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
EXPRESSING SENSE OF HOUSE THAT THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE FACES
SIGNIFICANT READINESS CHALLENGES AFFECTED BY BUDGETARY UNCERTAINTY
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the
resolution (H. Res. 1010) expressing the sense of the House of
Representatives that the United States Air Force faces significant
readiness challenges due to insufficient personnel levels, a shrinking
and depleted aircraft fleet, and maintenance deferrals, all of which
are affected by budgetary uncertainty and impede the Air Force's
ability to meet ongoing and unexpected national security threats,
putting United States national security at risk.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows
H. Res. 1010
Whereas according to Air Force Chief of Staff General David
Goldfein, the United States Air Force is ``the smallest we've
ever been'';
Whereas according to an April 2018 report from the
Government Accountability Office, more than a quarter of
fighter pilot positions are unfilled;
Whereas the Air Force has just 18,000 of the roughly 20,000
pilots it needs to crew its 5,500 fighters, bombers,
airlifters, cargo planes, and rescue helicopters;
Whereas this 10 percent gap in its air crew requirement
could, as Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson said in
November of 2017, ``break the force'';
Whereas almost \1/3\ of the Air Force's aircraft were not
flyable, or mission-capable, at any given time in fiscal year
2017;
Whereas over the last decade, the total number of aircraft
in the Air Force has been on a downward slope;
Whereas the total number of aircraft in the Air Force will
drop again from fiscal year 2017 to fiscal year 2018;
Whereas the average age of an aircraft, forcewide,
increased from 24 years in fiscal year 2010 to 27.6 years in
fiscal year 2017; and
Whereas between fiscal years 2013 and 2017, accidents
involving all Defense Department warplanes rose nearly 40
percent: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of
Representatives that--
(1) the United States Air Force faces significant readiness
challenges due to aging aircraft and depleted personnel;
(2) Congress must provide the Air Force regular and
sufficient funding to address procurement, maintenance, and
staffing shortfalls; and
(3) without this funding, United States national security
is at risk.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
Wyoming (Ms. Cheney) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Garamendi)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Wyoming.
General Leave
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
insert extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Wyoming?
There was no objection.
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Arrington), my friend and colleague, to
discuss his resolution.
Mr. ARRINGTON. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friend, the
gentlewoman from the Cowboy State (Ms. Cheney), for yielding me time,
but mainly for her leadership on this issue to ensure that we as a
country and as the leaders of this great Nation fulfill our most
important responsibility to provide for a common defense, our
constitutional first job, to provide for the common defense, and, I
would add, to secure our liberty and the liberty of our posterity,
because there is no freedom without liberty. So God bless the
gentlewoman, and I thank her for leading the charge here.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to strongly encourage my colleagues to support
this resolution, H. Res. 1010, expressing the sense of the House of
Representatives that the United States Air Force faces tremendous
readiness challenges, reflected in a shrinking and dilapidated aircraft
fleet, insufficient personnel, and dangerous levels of deferred
maintenance, all of which are due, I think, in large part, I would say,
to budgetary uncertainty, which impedes the Air Force's ability to meet
our national security threats.
Mr. Speaker, there is nothing more important than the safety of the
American people and the security of our country. To do this, it is real
simple. We have to have a strong military. To do that, we would need to
include a strong Air Force.
For the past 70 years, our Air Force has ensured that America's
military prowess is unmatched in the skies, protecting our people, our
allies, and our interests around the world.
I am honored to have Dyess Air Force Base in my backyard, the largest
B-1 bomber base in this country, and I am proud to represent the brave
airmen of the 7th Bomb Wing and the 317th Airlift Group, and all those
in the Key City and in the Big Country area who support them.
I know that these men and women, along with all of our men and women
in the armed services around the world, are doing all they can every
day for our Nation's defense, and we as Congress ought to do all we can
to support them.
I think it is a moral imperative to ensure that our sons and
daughters, that our brothers and sisters who we ask to risk their
families, to risk their very lives, I think we should, at a minimum,
make sure they have the tools and resources necessary to be safe and
successful.
But recently, because of our continued reliance on temporary funding
measures known as CRs, or continuing resolutions, and the budget
uncertainty and disruption that those create, we have hurt the Air
Force's readiness and our combat capabilities.
We have failed, it is hard to believe, for almost 10 years in a row
to fund our military on time. Temporary spending measures, coupled with
continual defense cuts--I think it is about $200 billion over the last
decade--often delay procurement of important assets. Every contract,
whether it is to buy a plane, repair a plane, fuel a plane, or arm a
plane, is adversely affected by this funding start and stop.
But I think we could put it another way. This broken funding process,
or budget and appropriations process that I have been describing,
weakens our defense and plays directly into the hands of our
adversaries.
{time} 1515
Throughout our Nation's history, our airmen and airwomen have always
answered the call of duty. They should not pay the price because
Congress has failed to fulfill our duty, which is to fully fund our
military and to do it on time. That is going to send the right message
to our troops. That will affirm our support for our troops. And I think
it sends the right message to our enemies as well, just as importantly.
Congress, though, has continued to fail to do this, and it has caused
significant damage to our entire defense community, including the U.S.
Air Force.
The Air Force has a 70-year history. This is the smallest and oldest
Air Force--the smallest and oldest--we have ever had.
The Heritage Foundation's ``2018 Index of U.S. Military Strength''
rates our Air Force readiness as being merely marginal. With marginal
processes, marginal inputs and resources, you get marginal results.
I think both sides of the aisle, my colleagues and my Democrat
colleagues, would agree that our troops deserve better than marginal
support. More than a quarter of our fighter pilot positions are
unfilled, and there is a 10 percent gap between the pilots that the Air
Force has and what they need to crew their aircraft, a gap that the Air
Force Secretary Heather Wilson said could ``break the force.'' That is
from our Secretary of the Air Force.
Last year, almost one-third of the Air Force's planes were not
flyable, and the average age of our aircraft is almost 30 years old.
Here is the worst part: Not only are we compromising our
capabilities, but
[[Page H7648]]
aviation accidents, including fatal accidents, are on the rise. We now
have four times as many servicemembers dying in training-related
accidents than in combat.
Mr. Speaker, by June of this year, we already matched the number of
noncombat crashes in the Air Force than we had all last year. Between
the years 2013 and 2017, we had 133 military accidents leading to
deaths. That is a 40 percent increase over that timeframe.
While our Nation's Air Force fleet continues to diminish in size and
effectiveness, our adversaries, like China, are modernizing and
expanding. The way I think of it, Mr. Speaker, is with respect to our
investment in national security and our military strength. We are
retreating while some of our adversaries are advancing. That is scary,
and that is unacceptable.
As President Reagan said, weakness invites aggression. He also said
that peace is achieved through American strength.
Our first President said that our military readiness is ``the most
effectual means of preserving peace.''
If we don't reverse this trend, we as a Nation will leave ourselves
vulnerable at a time of escalating threats and increasing instability
around the world.
That is why we need to give the Air Force the quantity and the
certainty of resources that match the caliber of our airmen and their
enormous commitment of that sacred duty of protecting our fellow
Americans. If we do this, our Air Force can continue safeguarding the
skies, remaining the greatest fighting force in the world.
Mr. Speaker, America is still the leader of the free world, and the
world is safer when America leads and when America's military is
strong. The world is counting on us. The American people and our allies
are counting on us. Most importantly, our brothers and sisters in
uniform are counting on us.
Politicians too often make the important seem insignificant and the
insignificant important. There is nothing more important for the
American people and the future of this Republic than what we are
talking about here today.
Let's be leaders. Let's do the right thing, and let's support our
troops.
Again, I want to thank Representative Cheney, along with my fellow
Texans, Chairman Thornberry and Chairman Granger, for their efforts.
Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume, as long as it does not exceed 20 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from Texas spoke boldly and correctly. If
I could get a copy of his speech, as I will, I think I will use it
myself.
He covered all the issues that I would want to cover in talking about
the United States Air Force as a representative of two very important
Air Force bases, Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield-Vacaville,
California, and Beale Air Force Base just outside of Marysville,
California.
I found myself not only in sympathy and empathy, but also marching
right alongside the gentleman from Texas as he eloquently spoke about
the role of the Air Force and the necessity of Congress to provide the
adequate funding for not only repairing and maintaining the existing
aircraft and bases, but also to expand and improve.
Certainly, I am looking forward to the arrival of the KC-46s to
Travis Air Force Base. If Boeing will get that done, we will get on
with it.
However, I want to remind my colleagues on the other side of the
aisle that funding for the military is ultimately dependent upon the
revenues of the Federal Government, which are dependent upon the health
of the economy. Those things go together.
My esteemed colleague from Wyoming, in her remarks on the previous
bill, addressed the issue of how we tax and who we tax or whether we
tax. An interesting point was raised about this and whether it is
possible to tax too low.
A situation has arisen in the State of Oklahoma, where they thought
they could cut taxes continually and everything would grow, and there
would be great opportunities. Well, the opportunity turned out for the
highway patrolmen to buy their own gas, and for schools to go to 4- and
even 3-day sessions, because there was no money.
So my point is this, that we have to balance things here. I raise
this issue in the context of the appropriate desire of my colleagues to
adequately fund the military, because I read in the newspaper yesterday
and again today that my colleagues intend to go to tax cut 2.0. Very
interesting.
In the face of a trillion-dollar deficit in the 2018-2019 fiscal
year, we would do another massive tax cut in hopes that the situation
would be such for the revenues of the Federal Government that we could
fund everything that the military wants and whatever other needs we
decide must be funded.
Well, let's see. We just borrowed, or are about to borrow, $12
billion from China to pay American farmers for their losses resulting
from a trade war with China in which China was supposed to somehow grow
our economy by not shipping as much to America.
That is convoluted, but it is what we are going to have to do if we
cut taxes again. We are going to have to grow the Chinese economy, so
we can borrow money from China, and then import from them.
I guess this makes sense to some, but I think we best be very careful
here.
Mr. Speaker, I guess some people would say that I am off subject
matter here, because we are really talking about fully funding the
needs, in this piece of legislation, of the United States Air Force,
and we should do so. However, at the same time, we must consider the
revenue sources for the Federal Government, and we did.
In December 2017, the 435 of us who are selected by the 350 million
Americans to represent them, a decision was made amongst us to slash
the revenue of the Federal Government by more than $1.5 trillion over
the next decade.
Now, my colleagues on the Democratic side didn't vote for that, but,
apparently, the deficit hawks migrate out of Washington, D.C., in the
winter. I suspect they are coming back--not ``suspect,'' they are
actually back. The Speaker of the House tells us that we must cut
Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security in order to deal with the
deficit that was created by the tax bill. Well, we shall see.
How are we going to adequately fund the military in the face of last
December's tax cut, which I will remind folks, if they care to be
reminded, that the beneficiaries were principally the great American
corporations that were doing quite well, profitably, prior to the tax
cut, and that somehow promised that they would bring jobs home, which
they have not. Well, we shall see.
It takes $1.5 trillion out of the Treasury, and my esteemed colleague
from Wyoming said: Look how successful Oklahoma was.
Well, I don't think she said that. But as she was talking about tax
cuts, it came to mind that we ought to think about Oklahoma and what
happens when the government doesn't have the revenue it needs to do the
things that it must do.
Now, maybe you want to argue that the government must not provide
funding for Social Security. Maybe you would want to argue that the
government must not provide money for Medicaid, of which some 60 to 70
percent of the recipients are elderly people in nursing homes. Maybe we
ought not do that. Or maybe you would want to argue that the Medicare
program for seniors should be slashed and cut.
Those are all suggestions that the Speaker of the House of
Representatives has made. I disagree.
How do we fund the programs that Americans need? Surely, they want a
strong Air Force, as I do. And I suspect they would also want to see
that those seniors in nursing homes are cared for, and those who are on
Medicare are able to get their drugs and their care, and that the
Social Security checks not be slashed and reduced. We shall see.
In any case, I support the resolution, and I think we ought to fully
fund the Air Force.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I just want to insert some facts into the debate about
the tax cuts. According to CBO estimates, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is
going to result in an increase in GDP of $1.7 trillion. We are going to
see 900,000 new jobs. Wages will increase by $1.2 trillion. Investments
will increase by $600 billion. The tax cuts that we passed in this
House--and my colleague is right, none of the Democrats voted for it.
In fact, the minority leader has said that
[[Page H7649]]
she thinks we ought to reverse those tax cuts, which would be
devastating to the economy.
We lived through the stagnation of the Obama years, and we passed a
tax cuts bill that fundamentally changed the trajectory of this
economy. We have seen 1.3 million jobs added. We have minority
unemployment at the lowest rates, I believe, in history.
So the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is working, and it is helping to bring
jobs back. I am really pleased that we are looking at ways that we can
make those cuts permanent, that we can make sure that we are helping
the middle class, and that we are helping small businesses across this
country on a permanent basis.
We can spend all of the time my colleague from California would like
debating the tax cuts, debating the impact on our economy, but the
facts are clear, that those tax cuts, despite the politics and the
rhetoric, have had the kind of impact that, frankly, we knew they would
have.
So I am really proud of what we have done with respect to the tax
cuts, and now we need to make sure that we fund the military. If we
don't fund the military, it doesn't matter much what else we do if we
don't provide for the security of this Nation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1530
Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time I have
remaining.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from California has 12 minutes
remaining.
Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, if you are a person who wants to cut
taxes and borrow money from China, then you can keep the economy going.
In fact, the job growth has been basically steady for the last 8 years.
It has been in the last year, also, and most of this year, and we are
thankful for that.
Nonetheless, we have a very serious deficit. The CBO estimate that
was quoted a moment ago actually took place prior to the tax cut. More
recent estimates indicate that the deficit is larger than anticipated
and that the growth rate has not expanded to the point that was
anticipated and that the deficits that are going to be there are very
real. All of that is true.
While there have been increases in wages, some 2 percent over the
last year, almost 18 months now--and we are grateful for that--those
wages are less than the inflation rate; and, therefore, for those
working men and women across the Nation who have received an average of
2 percent or so of wage growth, it has been eaten up by inflation.
The point here is one of this resolution reminding us that we have a
very important obligation to adequately fund, in this case, the Air
Force; in the previous piece of legislation, special operations.
Indeed, we do have that obligation. But at the same time, we need to
have a fiscally sound government.
Unfortunately, what happened last December was to pull the foundation
of fiscal soundness out from beneath the government's revenue stream.
Now, there is a necessity for some adjustment in the taxes, and you
will get no debate on our side of the aisle about the necessity to do
that. It would have been our choice, had we the majority, to reduce
taxes far more than the tax bill did for the working men and women and
for the smaller businesses in America, and not for the wealthy
corporations that were doing quite well, and certainly not to create an
international Tax Code that continues to encourage the offshoring of
American jobs.
That simply happened because the reduction in the corporate tax rate
for America went to 20 percent, while those American corporations
operating offshore could get a 10 percent tax, providing a very
significant benefit to corporations to offshore jobs. I don't think we
would have done that. Maybe that is why many of us voted against the
legislation.
There is much more to be said about it, but the fundamental point at
this moment is this resolution that says fully fund the Air Force. We
are 100 percent for that.
The question we ask is: How are we to do that in the face of the
massive deficit and, to hear from our Republican leadership, tax cut
2.0? What does that mean, on tax cut 1.0? We don't know. But I would
draw the attention of all of us to what happens when you do not have
the revenues necessary to fund the government--Oklahoma.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time I have
remaining.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Wyoming has 10\1/2\
minutes remaining.
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Oklahoma (Mr. Russell).
Mr. RUSSELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Wyoming.
Mr. Speaker, I didn't realize that this was going to be a defend
Oklahoma debate. I invite my colleague, Mr. Garamendi, to come and look
at our thriving economy, our sustained economic growth of nearly 6
percent since 2008 when my colleague's State has been on the wane.
This thing about deficits and deficit spending, we have a balanced
budget amendment, unlike my colleague's State. And further, we don't
borrow from the Federal Government to bail out our State; instead, we
pay the bills ourselves.
Now, I thought that this was a measure to support our military and to
support the United States Air Force, and in that we will wholeheartedly
agree. But, Mr. Speaker, I take great pride in the people of Oklahoma.
With one-tenth of the population, we can do everything that my
colleague on the other side of the aisle's State does itself, and I
take great pride in that.
Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to thank my colleague
from Oklahoma for his remarks. I also want to thank my colleague from
Texas for this important resolution.
I am honored, Mr. Speaker, to represent F.E. Warren Air Force Base,
located in Cheyenne. The missileers of the Mighty Ninety Missile Wing
are responsible for maintaining, protecting, and manning ICBMs that are
deployed throughout Wyoming, Nebraska, and Colorado. These missiles
remain on alert 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They are one of our
most important deterrents against attack from our adversaries.
But these Minuteman 3 missiles, Mr. Speaker, were developed in the
1960s and deployed in the 1970s. We have made modernization and
modifications since then, but we desperately need additional
modernization to these ICBMs and to our force in general to keep pace
with adversaries like the Russians who have made significant
investments in their ICBM force. We cannot do that, Mr. Speaker,
without predictable and reliable funding that is required to complete
such a complicated and complex multiyear project.
The ICBM replacement program, known as the Ground-Based Strategic
Deterrent, is slated to receive the necessary increased funding in
fiscal year 2019 so that we can accelerate that program. But for these
resources to be effective, Mr. Speaker, we must make sure we get the
additional funding to the Air Force on time.
As my colleague from Texas talked about, Mr. Speaker, the Air Force
faces readiness and modernization challenges, and the ICBM replacement
is just one of those.
Once again, Mr. Speaker, we have to stop allowing our dysfunction and
we have got to stop allowing the demands, frankly, by some on the other
side of the aisle to hold our defense funding hostage. We have got to
stop allowing those political debates to put our men and women in
uniform at greater risk and, frankly, the long-term national security
of this Nation at risk.
Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of this resolution, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from Wyoming (Ms. Cheney) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 1010.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
[[Page H7650]]
____________________