[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 190 (Wednesday, December 7, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7011-S7012]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   National Defense Authorization Act

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, yesterday evening, the Senate and 
House Armed Services Committee released its strong, bipartisan National 
Defense Authorization Act.
  As Republicans have said for months, and I repeated yesterday, our 
servicemembers, commanders, and civilian leaders should not have had to 
wait until mid-December to gain certainty for a fiscal year that is 
already more than 2 months over. We have to take our national defense 
military modernization, and defense industrial base as seriously as our 
rivals take theirs.
  Fortunately, this strong, bipartisan NDAA is a huge step in that 
direction. The bill tees up a significant and badly needed increase in 
defense funding--$45 billion above President Biden's insufficient 
request and roughly $75 billion over last year's level. Once again, 
Congress agreed on a bipartisan basis that President Biden's defense 
budget request was anemic and insufficient.
  This NDAA authorizes crucial projects like nuclear modernization. It 
directs critical investments in our defense industrial base so America 
can both defend ourselves and remain the arsenal of democracy for the 
world. It delivers for our servicemembers, their families, and our 
military installations and communities around the country.
  Thanks to the leadership from our colleague Senator Blackburn, among 
others, this NDAA will repeal the President's military vaccine 
mandate--a policy which this Democratic administration had stubbornly 
clung to, even as it had clearly undermined readiness and hurt 
retention.
  And just as Republicans insisted, just as our servicemembers deserve, 
this NDAA is not getting dragged down by unrelated liberal nonsense. 
Good, smart policies were kept in, and unrelated nonsense, like easier 
financing for illegal drugs, was kept out.
  I am glad this Democratic-led Congress finally realized that 
defending America is a basic governing duty. It is not some Republican 
priority that Democrats can demand unrelated goodies to be wheedled 
into.
  Neither party, let alone a sitting President's party, can ever have 
the mindset that they need to be goaded or bartered into supporting our 
troops. We made it clear we wouldn't be going down that road; our 
Democratic colleagues finally accepted it; and Senators Reed and Inhofe 
did a great job landing the plane.

[[Page S7012]]

  Now, that same lesson must carry over into our subsequent 
conversations about government funding. Democrats must be ready to 
actually fund the national defense, which this bipartisan NDAA 
authorizes.
  Just like on this bill, neither party has any standing to demand 
unrelated goodies in exchange for doing our job and funding defense. 
And let's hope this new acceptance of reality also helps shape 
President Biden's next defense budget request. We have yet to see a 
proposed budget from this administration that takes growing threats 
very seriously.
  Why do bipartisan majorities in Congress keep having to force this 
Commander in Chief to adequately resource our Armed Forces?
  Today is December 7, the anniversary of Pearl Harbor. No American 
wants us to ever receive another painful reminder like December 7 or 
September 11 of the painful price we pay when we let our guard down, 
soften our defenses, or diminish our worldwide presence.
  This strong NDAA is one important step in keeping our guard up. But 
only one. We need to put it on the President's desk quickly and then 
stay equally serious on this subject.