[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 184 (Wednesday, November 30, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6870-S6871]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   National Defense Authorization Act

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, the global threat landscape today is more 
complex and dangerous than at any other time in recent memory. From 
Russia's invasion of Ukraine to the Chinese Communist Party's growing 
hostility to the West, to North Korea and Iran's nuclear aspirations, 
to a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, the threats we face today are as 
diverse as they are significant.
  The fact is, we are now facing the reality of a power contest in two 
theaters, both in Europe and the Pacific. This is a reality we haven't 
confronted since World War II. Our military has been engaged in a 20-
year asymmetric war against terrorism, meaning that our weapons, our 
materiel, our training, our doctrine, and our overall mindset has been 
focused on insurgent and terrorist threats, like the Taliban, like al-
Qaida and ISIS. The result is the Department of Defense international 
security apparatus has largely given up the post-Cold War numbers and 
size in favor of a smaller, more nimble, more agile fighting force.
  Unfortunately, we now face conventional military threats that we 
haven't faced for a long, long time, where not only the size and number 
matter but also the right type of weapons, be it ships, long-range 
assault vehicles, or modern aircraft like the F-35 and the V-22.
  In short, we are now in a position where we can't choose between a 
large force and an advanced one. We need both. When we talk about 
modernization, that is the goal. So to state the obvious, this shift 
can't happen overnight. It won't be the result of a single funding or 
authorization bill. A bigger, stronger, and more advanced military will 
require an ongoing commitment, from Congress and the administration.
  It seems self-evident that we need to supply our commanders, our 
professional military leaders, with the funding and the predictability 
that they need in order to prepare for the diverse threats just on the 
horizon.
  In order to do that, we need to work with them to understand what it 
is they need, when they need it, and how we can help them get it and 
plan for the future.
  Earlier this week, that answer arrived in the form of a letter from 
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. In that letter, he urged congressional 
leaders to complete a full-year funding bill.
  He wrote:

       Failure to do so will result in significant harm to our 
     people and our programs and would cause harm to our national 
     security and our competitiveness.

  There is not much nuance or subtlety here. It is clear: an urgent 
warning from our Nation's top Defense official.
  His letter didn't arrive completely out of the blue. It came 
following a widespread rumor that Congress would skip the regular 
appropriations process this year entirely and potentially maintain 
current funding levels through the next year, something we call a CR or 
continuing resolution.
  A number of our Members have floated that idea, and reports indicate 
that the White House has begun preparing for that possibility.
  In his letter, Secretary Austin outlined the long list of problems 
that a continuing resolution would create. Another short-term funding 
bill would hamstring the procurement of those needed weapons and other 
military assets. It would lead to delays in all three legs of the 
nuclear triad, stall our research and development efforts, delay 
critical investments in barracks, childcare centers, and other 
infrastructure projects. It would disrupt the training schedule for our 
brave servicemembers. It would cause unnecessary disruptions of 
military families, who already are sacrificing a lot, and it would 
hamper our recruitment efforts in an all-volunteer military.
  We are already dealing with record inflation and supply chain issues, 
making the process of granting and fulfilling defense contracts even 
more challenging. Given the threats that I have outlined around the 
world, America's Defense Department cannot afford for Congress to 
create even more obstacles for them to achieve their mission.
  We all need to understand that a continuing resolution is not a 
consequence-free way to keep the doors of government open or the lights 
on. Continuing resolutions prevent the leaders of every Department and 
Agency in the U.S. Government, including the Department of Defense, 
from operating with the certainty and the predictability that they 
need. Stopgap funding bills should only be used as a last resort. They 
are not a responsible way for Congress to operate or for the U.S. 
Government to govern.
  Now, our Democratic colleagues have had a majority in both the Senate 
and the House, and despite having ample time, they failed to advance 
any appropriations bills so far this year.
  In September, they punted to December 16, which is when the current 
continuing resolution expires. That is 2 weeks from Friday. It doesn't 
look like we are much closer to a funding deal now than we were then.
  Again, Secretary Austin says:

       We can't outcompete China with our hands tied behind our 
     back for three, four, five or six months of every fiscal 
     year.

  On-time appropriations bills are absolutely critical to our national 
defense. We can't expect our military leadership to operate in this 
sort of chaotic environment.
  And it is a chaotic environment of the congressional leadership's own 
making. Our Democratic colleagues have the chairs of the relevant 
committees. Senator Schumer is the majority leader. He is the one who 
schedules votes on legislation on the floor. But, so far this year, we 
haven't gone through a regular appropriations process at all. It is all 
pushed back against the deadline of the end of the year, frankly, which 
diminishes the significance of individual rank-and-file Members of the 
Senate and the House, and we are left only with the option of voting up 
or down on a bill that could well approach $1.6 trillion in an Omnibus 
appropriations bill. A CR would be slightly less than that because it 
would continue current appropriation levels.
  This is a miserable way and, frankly, an embarrassing way for 
Congress to do business, and it is potentially dangerous, too, as I 
said.
  Well, it isn't because of lack of effort, particularly when it comes 
to our national security. Speaking now about the National Defense 
Authorization bill, the Senate has so far this year failed to bring 
that bill to the floor for a vote. And, again, Senator Schumer is the 
majority leader, and he is the only one who can schedule that vote.
  But it is not for lack of preparation. This is by design by the 
majority leader. Our colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Committee, 
led by Senators

[[Page S6871]]

Reed, a Democrat, and Senator Inhofe, a Republican, completed their 
work on the National Defense Authorization bill last summer.
  This year's National Defense Authorization bill was filed on July 18, 
4\1/2\ months ago. I was hopeful that the Senate would advance this 
bill in September and work with our colleagues across the Capitol to 
send it to the President before the end of the year. But that obviously 
didn't happen--again, not an accident but by design.

  Now we are at the end of November and the National Defense 
Authorization bill hasn't even hit the Senate floor. So not only are we 
talking about not appropriating the money so that our national security 
leaders can plan and implement the sort of needed investments that are 
critical in a great power competition; we don't even have the 
authorization bill on the floor.
  I hope that will change in the next couple of days, but we have 
already wasted most of the year, and we can't get any of that time 
back.
  So my point is that in order to plan for and prepare for the future--
a dangerous future--our military commanders need predictability. They 
need to be able to plan. That is why Congress has passed a Defense 
authorization bill for each of the last 61 years. We can't skip this 
important responsibility or delay it any longer. Congress needs to pass 
the annual Defense authorization bill without further delay.
  Now, Members of both parties, on both sides of the aisle, myself 
included, have been incredibly frustrated by this process--again, not 
by accident but by design--and we are eager to take up and pass a 
strong Defense authorization bill and then to pass the appropriations 
required for our Department of Defense and our national security 
leadership to do the job we expect them to do.
  But it is not our frustration that is important. It is the jeopardy 
to our national security that has resulted from this chaotic 
environment and the slight--I don't know how you can interpret it any 
other way--to our men and women in uniform that what they do is not our 
highest priority; it is just not that important. That is not the 
message we should be sending to them.
  There is no question that we have to get this done before the end of 
the year. We can't wait until next year or any longer. We need to pass 
a Defense authorization bill now, without further delay.
  The bottom line is, we can't match the high stakes global threat 
landscape with continuing resolutions and past-due authorization bills.
  The Defense Department needs to plan every single day to equip and 
train and, hopefully, deter military conflicts anywhere around the 
world. Our adversaries are watching us, and when they see us inflicting 
self-inflicted damage to our credibility and our commitment to national 
security, they don't fail to notice.
  By failing to pass the National Defense Authorization bill and the 
appropriations bill, we will be stealing time that the Defense 
Department does not have.
  General Douglas MacArthur said the history of failure in war can be 
summed up in two words: ``Too late.'' ``Too late.''
  For the sake of our country, I hope our Democratic colleagues will 
quit dragging their feet and allow this Chamber to advance bills to 
both strengthen our national defense and to fully fund it.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Arizona.
  Mr. KELLY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. KELLY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the vote 
scheduled begin immediately.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.