[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 136 (Friday, July 31, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E718-E719]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT, 2021

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. STEVEN M. PALAZZO

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 30, 2020

  Mr. PALAZZO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the appropriations 
bill before us today. The bill we are debating is as partisan a bill as 
I have seen in my years on the appropriations committee. Not only does 
the package spend billions over the current bipartisan budget 
agreement, the bill also contains many policy items that have no place 
in an appropriations bill.
  Despite ongoing negotiations for a new coronavirus relief package 
this bill adds another 24 billion dollars in coronavirus relief funding 
. . . this is in addition to the 3 trillion in supplemental funds that 
were passed in May and adding more funding beyond what was outlined in 
the Senate's HEALS Act.
  This may seem like a worthy cause if we knew the bills were going to 
be signed by the President in the coming days, but that's not the case. 
Instead, we are sitting here wasting time and energy inserting these 
provisions that guarantee the bill will never be signed into law as is.
  This bill contains seriously dangerous provisions that place our men 
and women in uniform in harm's way by repealing the AUMF's that guide 
our counterterrorism operations, it ties the president's hands with 
regard to Iran, and undercuts America's dominance of space and our 
ability to counter nations like China who want to gain supremacy there. 
Further, it eliminates several long-standing, bipartisan Second 
Amendment protections while also defunding the police and targeting law 
enforcement through overreaching regulations.
  The amendments that have been made in order by the rule undercut our 
military leadership even further by making exemptions to policies put 
in place to preserve good order and discipline, turning our military 
into a social experiment instead of maintaining our readiness and 
capability as the world's preeminent fighting force.
  Despite the inclusion of South Mississippi's priorities in this bill, 
such as ship and boat building in Pascagoula and Gulfport, rocket 
propulsion testing for Stennis Space Center, and many other coastal 
priorities, this bill fails to deliver what's necessary.
  At a time where America is suffering, the country is in turmoil, and 
we are working to regain our footing as the world's top economy, this 
bill does more harm than good.

[[Page E719]]

  I urge a no vote on the legislation.

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