by the way, at the same time, defense spending was cut by 25%, russia was increasing defense spending by 34%, and china was increasing by 83%. so let me just give you an example, mr. president. these numbers actually were classified. they have been declassified since, but in 2015, when i arrived in the senate, these were some of the numbers relating to readiness. remember, we're supposed to be in charge of readiness here. three of the 58 brigade combat teams in the u.s. army, -- a brigade combat team is the 5,000 men and women deployed bloc in our military. three of 58 were at the tier 1 level of readiness that you wanted for a deployed unit. you can understand why that was classified in 2015, because we certainly didn't want our adversaries to know that. so 5% of the u.s. army was fully ready to fight. less than half of marine corps navy aviation could fly. another classified number, now unclassified. training and flight time for all military pilots plummeted. when i arrived here in 2015, the obama administration proposed a cut of another 40,000 active duty troops for the u.s. army.

and makes investments in missile defense by funding two of the missile defense agents highest priorities, including the 10 sm 3 block 2-a. the ndaa will provide support to the people that defend our country. our troops are receiving a 3% pay raise for the second year in a row. this bill expands the rights of men and women in uniform and their families residing in military housing, it provides more oversight over the private companies responsible for maintaining the health and safety of these homes. this bill also provides remarkable strides in military justice over the -- justice. this bill also provides protection for sexual assault victims. they are getting more rights on appeal, greater access to court records, and adigal protection for retaliatory punishment. i want to thank congressman brown for his work on advancing diversity and equality in our service member ranks. i was proud to work with congressman brown to advance concrete steps to promote diversity. this year's ndaa creates the position of chief diversity officer for d.o.d. and establishes a diversity and inclusion advisory

the bipartisan budget act sets overtall defense funding -- overall defense funding levels for fiscal year 2021. longer-term funding is necessary, but it's uncertain. democrats have proposed stronger defense funding in the past -- they have opposed stronger defense funding in the past especially during the obama-biden administration. this history suggests that if democrats win the election, they will slow our nation's critical defense investments. the ndaa strengthens america's hand to stand up to foreign aggressors, to stand up against those people who are against american values. our ndaa will protect american

we can cut defense without consequences and we can hide our head under the covers and cut defense and assume the threats are going to go away, but they don't. those who don't share our values will step into the void. the world will grow more dangerous and americans and america national security will suffer as a result. that's the fact. history proves time and time again, weakness begets aggression. that's what this bill tries to avoid. i hope on a bipartis 116-457. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i have an

and makes investments in missile defense by funding two of the missile defense agents highest priorities, including the 10 sm 3 block 2-a. the ndaa will provide support to the people that defend our country. our troops are receiving a 3% pay raise for the second year in a row. this bill expands the rights of men and women in uniform and their families residing in military housing, it provides more oversight over the private companies responsible for maintaining the health and safety of these homes. this bill also provides remarkable strides in military justice over the -- justice. this bill also provides protection for sexual assault victims. they are getting more rights on appeal, greater access to court records, and adigal protection for retaliatory punishment. i want to thank congressman brown for his work on advancing diversity and equality in our service member ranks. i was proud to work with congressman brown to advance concrete steps to promote diversity. this year's ndaa creates the position of chief diversity officer for d.o.d. and establishes a diversity and inclusion advisory

defense it's no good. i'll be much more interested in every year being able to say i have to be able to defend forward basis from large quantities of incoming weapons. i don't care how i do that, i don't care with what i do that. the question is can we field a better solution that reduces the likelihood things will drive the expensive resources. will probably require that to reiterating on that there is an understanding of what ever lives will get funded welcome that brings me to it initial property rights and how do we design software there's part of systems of systems. went to incentivize people to do this you don't give up all of your it in the process of competing there's opportunities to create a model or environment were companies can maintain their property rights. try to integrate those with your own that's one of the core problems we have the right to criticize industry or argue to criticize itself too often in recent years beholding to proprietary solutions for the locked-in black boxes they've b

in the air defense artillery. fires, twoprecision of the top six it's modernization effort are based out of there. most the largest and sophisticated in the world. if i started listing everything in this bill that was important to me or my constituents, the 20,000 work, i'd be there a long time. i want to thank again the chairman and the ranking member for the manner in which the conduct committees. we've been friends for a very long time. john kline from the great state he wouldn't tell me he was leaving until two minutes before he dropped the press release. i immediate he called him up to try and talk them out of leaving which i would have and complained about this and said if you are leaving, whom i going to smoke cigars with entering bourbon with now? immediately the reply came back is calvert leaving two. we've been good friends and i very proud of the work he's done on that committee. i think he is a deep knowledge of defense. the chairman said for every subcommittee we have. i've watched you in my decade on

has tied the reduction to germany's defense spending. a historic reduction in the number of american troops stationed in germany even more will be leaving than expected. the u.s. secretary of defense mark asper announced the withdrawal downplaying its significance it is important to note that in nato 71 year history the size composition and disposition of u.s. forces in europe has changed many times but u.s. president donald trump said the move is meant to send a message to germany. for a good. thing trump often points out that germany does not meet a nato guideline that all members should spend 2 percent of their economic output on defense germany only spends 1.4 percent but that guideline refers to spending on each country's own military not directly to nato medo members are now seeking answers as to how the new u.s. plan will be carried out and what it will mean for the future of european security there has been pushback from the u.s. congress and analysts say even the pentagon was reluctant to carry out trumps demand for troop withdr

on defense department authorities related to civilian law enforcement. this is live coverage. they must be visible on screen within the software platform for the purposes of identification for maintaining a forum, participating, and voting. we will not be voting. participating members must use the software platform video function while attending the proceedings unless they experience connectivity issues or other technical problems and are unable to fully part is a bit on camera. if a member who is participating difficulties,es please contact us and we will help you. participation will be broadcast in the room via the television feed. members are asked to mute their microphones when they are not speaking. members will be recognized normally for asking questions, what if they want to speak, they must seek recognition verbally. members are reminded to unmute their microphone prior to speaking. members should be aware that there is a slight lag between when you start speaking and camera shot switching to you. members are reminded to keep the software platfor

germany's defense minister. has ordered the partial dissolution of germany's elite commandos following reports of right wing extremism in their ranks reports say the unit which specializes in anti terror and rescue operations may face a major reorganization and up to 70 of its $1400.00 personnel could be cut now military investigators announced this year that they suspected some 20 tehy escaped personnel off holding it stream right attitudes media reports quote the defense minister saying that the unit has a toxic leadership culture and cannot continue to exist in its present form. and for more on this let's bring in our political correspondent simon young hello simon so the defense minister's words he arrived at toxic leadership culture within germany's elite commando how serious is the. christine i think it's pretty serious because there have been repeated incidents perhaps not a general culture but isolated incidents repeatedly in germany's armed forces the bullets fair in recent years of soldiers with sympat

quote didn't want to be suckers any more defense secretary marc esper announced the move as part of a redeployment of forces in europe that he says will strengthen nato. the current eucom plan were a position approximately $11900.00 military personnel from germany. from roughly 36000 down 224000 in a banner that will strengthen nato and hance the deterrence of russia and meet the other principles i set forth of the 11900 nearly 5600 service members we will be repositioned within nato countries and approximately $6400.00 will return to the united states though many of these or similar units will begin conducting rotational deployments back to europe and that's defense secretary marc esper speaking earlier all right let's get you a perspective from germany from tritton he is a member of the green party and sits on foreign affairs committee in the german going to stack a very good day sir how let me 1st get your reaction to this recent decision from a military point of view the u.s. . planning to shoot themselves in their neat scenario that's something we can see very clearly on the 2nd

but i think in terms of standing up to defense board and ultimately the defense advisory committee that is mirrored, i want to believe in some ways it's an historic step, a major step forward to really get at this underlying issue that has hung around the neck of our country for well over 200 years and to address the fundamental problems of racism and discrimination, prejudice, and bias, both conscious and unconscious, because at the end of the day, it's about having a cohesive, unified, ready force, and we rely heavily on persons from all backgrounds, races, ethnicities, genders, etc., to make us the greatest fighting force in the world. >> thank you, secretary. i want to ask another question. general millie and secretary esper, i would like to also take a moment to commend you regarding the statements you made at lafayette square, being there, you think -- you make mistakes and you learn from it. i believe there are many moments we can all learn from. regret is one thing, but what would you do different in a similar situation? and while i understand we are having reports on specific i

and off 2 years off a ledge right wing extremism among germany's the need on the commanders for the defense ministry say is the case is about to be partially disbanded. hello i'm christine welcome to the program police in hong kong have made the 1st arrest since the new and controversial security bill imposed by beijing came into force they used water cannon to disperse protesters who had gathered in the city shopping districts dozens were arrested now under the new told the simple act of publicly displaying a pro independence band flag has become a criminal offense. despite the new law and a ban on holding marches during the corona pandemic hundreds of protesters showed up. after a short warning it just took minutes for the police to roll into action. one protester was arrested for holding the hong kong independence flag dozens more were arrested later at a news conference pro-democracy lawmakers found themselves in a peace sign a situation now not allowed to speak english or dress the media. i usually say a few words of english to the international community and the media but not our part

defense and capabilities as well.gao or going back to 2014, provided a number of recommendations to the deity, the project manager which we haven't focused on a lot of the, including trying to create a performance measurement for alis back in september, 2014. were those recommendations adopted by the dod? >> the recommendation has not been adopted. in a march report in congress to ensure that that happens. [inaudible] >> you would think with the stakes this high on the program, the dod will run, not walk, to make corrections to a system that was defective, and you documentedocumented it, but forx years ago. >> i completely agree we want to see the recommendations as quickly as possible, but they haven't done it yet. >> why not flex >> over the years we heard from them that they have a number of other issues to address. we are talking about the sustainment challenges that they are facing. it's also difficult for them to do. we think it is vital to. >> but now we are in a place where sustainment is a major problem becau

no input from congress or the secretary of defense are needed . we don't mean to single out president trump here. of course his impulsiveness and disregard for expert opinion might highlight these concerns in the current moment but we want to be sure all presidents make mistakes. all our human and that is why we strongly feel no single human should control the future ofhumanity . we the american people choose to give presidents this absolute power. why? why do we choose to live so close to the brink ofdisaster ? this is one of the main themes of the book and we think it's because us nuclear policy is focused on the wrong threats. so let's get to the central arguments. the central arguments we make in the book is that us policy is focused on the wrong threat of a surprise attack from russia. such an attack is highly unlikely for the simple reason such an attack would mean the utter destruction of both sides and yet us nuclear policy has been based on this threat fordecades . so the problem here is that this is taken threat assessment undermines us

president trump's wish to punish germany because he says the country doesn't contribute nearly enough to defense also coming up coronavirus infections so war in europe with many people traveling just as europeans head to the beaches governments are really imposing restrictions will look at what could lie ahead for europe clubs using sniffer dogs and excavators police searching a german garden plot for a 2nd day looking for clues in the disappearance of madeleine mccann the good news linked to a man identified as a suspect and feeling close to one's god while keeping a distance from others the annual hodge pilgrimage one of the world's biggest events which normally draws millions of worshippers begins under tight pandemic restrictions drastically scaled down. thank you so much for your company everyone well we start this broadcast with breaking news because moments ago the united states and now state it will withdraw nearly 12000 troops from germany defense secretary mark esper and now it's the move as part of a read of. point to forces in europe that he says will strengthen nato president all tr

president trump sent missile defense forces to help. we had ships in the gulf attacked, that would have been a good excuse to attack. he put together a naval task force to defend the troops. we had u.s. soldiers attacked by iranian proxies. did the president respond within attack? no, he attacked iranian proxies in iraq. have aen we finally threat against the american embassy did he act. did he act by attacking iran? he did not. he took out a known terrorist who had killed hundreds of american troops who was in the region orchestrating other forces to attack us. that is not the pattern of someone who wants war with iran. --s is a regime that would that deserves. it is a leading sponsor of state terrorism in the world. it has killed hundreds of american soldiers. if the president wants to play tough against people like that, it is the appropriate thing to do. this amendment would send the wrong message at the wrong time to a very dangerous enemy of the united states. for that reason, i urge its rejection. >> if there is no further debate

announcer: defense secretary mark esper and general mark toley were on capitol hill testify on defense department . they were also asked about alleged russian bounties over u.s. troops and military bases named after confederate soldiers. chairman smith: i call the meeting to order. i welcome our witnesses, secretary of defense esper and chairman of the joint chiefs of staff milley. we appreciate you being here today. i do have to read an opening statement here about procedure in light of the fact that we do have members who are participating remotely in his hearing, in accordance with house rules. so i will do that and then a couple other programming notes and we will get started. i would like to welcome members who are joining today's markup remotely. those members are reminded that they must be visible on screen within the software platform for the purposes of identity verification for maintaining a coram participating, and voting. we will not be voting, but participating members must use the software platform video function while attending the proceedings unless they experience conn

following years of alleged rightwing extremism among germany's elite army commandos the defense ministry ses the king is about to be disbanded. welcome to the program germany today takes over the rotating presidency of the european union and chatted but. has been discussing how plans for the 6 months with lawmakers in the federal parliament the bundestag overnight germany kicked off its by projecting the words together for europe's recovery on. nick brandenburg gate the slogan refers to the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic which merkel has described as the greatest challenge the e.u. has ever faced. the president says merkel's last major role on the european stage before shooter titles later next year she's taking time legacy on a massive economic recovery plan for the e.u. and she talked about it in her to address to the board as dog there will be a shot cut by european council discussed an e.u. wide recovery plan for the 1st time 2 weeks ago we agreed that this extraordinary situation requires extraordinary solutions to ensure that europe can emerge strongly from this extraord

defense -- defense industrial companies have done a great job to ensure that their suppliers, primarily thousands of small businesses, stay open and keep employees paid. in the cares act we gave the d.o.d. the authority and the tools to reimburse these companies to keep the defense workforce strong but the d.o.d. needs the money to use these tools. now, if we don't help these companies, defense weapons programs and maintenance will suffer more costly overruns, and the defense industry will lose experience, trained workers, meaning scheduled delays are more likely. and, mr. president, these are primarily the small companies. these are not the giants that are up there. so that would be a good investment for our national defense and a good investment for the american taxpayer. now is simply not the time to be cutting our defense budget when we should be acting. i know the author of the bill that would cut defense spending by 10% is very sincere and really believes in his bill. it is not the time to do it. i hope the people understand that we are now in a position, if we actually have diffe

spending here is defense secretary marc esper speaking earlier. the current eucom plan reposition approximately 11900 military personnel from germany from roughly 36000 down 224000 in a manner that will strengthen nato enhanced the deterrence of russia and meet the other principles i set forth of the 11900 nearly 5600 servicemembers we will be repositioned within nato countries and approximately 6400 will return to the united states though many of these or similar units will begin conducting rotational deployments back to your defenses secretary esther speaking of their earlier let's take you now to simon young he is standing right outside the u.s. embassy here in berlin 1st of all have there been any official reactions to this decision. well i know there's been plenty of critical reaction to this decision for is that snow but what can the defense expert from angela merkel's party who's saying really this goes against the u.s. own strategic interests because germany's important for the u.s. military as a logistical hub for its international operat

secretary of defense nick clinton administration defense policy arms-control and along undistinguished history at stanford he is a senior fellow at the hoover institution as well part he was the codirector of the center for international securities in 1998 to 1993 and completed both his bachelors and masters degree in mathematics here at stanford which is particular impressive to me because i did not get into stanford either as an undergraduate or graduate. he's now the michael and barbara emerita at stanford. it's great we can see you today, we also are thrilled to have his co-author here. so tom is a director is 30 years of washington d.c. experiencing nuclear weapons, missile-defense and issues but he has senior position at the arts control and the institute for science and international security. he has been directly involved with efforts to end nuclear testing, extending treaty tom also has a degree in international relations from cornell. but tommy will not hold that against you. cornell is a pretty good school too. i'm also pleased to introduce my colleague and good friend rose

staff, joe and of the ow friend department of defense, major. their dedicated service, for their acumen and generosity of spirit. the bill continues to focus on the well-being and morale of in uniform as well as their families and d.o.d. communities. their the bill provides an additional $16 million for up -- $116 upgrades to childcare facilities and the report contains language irecting the military services to present innovative ideas to address the serious backlog of childcare. provides $1.49 billion for environmental restoration which is $415 million above the request. we provide $327 million to address the ongoing epidemic of sexual assault in the military and at the service academies, which is $49 million more than requested. despite dire warnings, the department's budget for sexual assault prevention and response remains stagnant. the department has got to do a much better job. another area of deep concern for me is the department's lack of compliance with many congressionally directed reporting requirements. for example, last year the co

involvement in in the security and defense of euro looking at transatlantic trade agreement there are clear majority in some cases super majorities within the american populace so i think moving forward of course november is very important when it comes to whether that whether that consensus will be a catalyst for cooperation between the united states and the european union on those issues but it's certainly refreshing now in response to you under the americans departure of course her or her response to the pandemic has certainly influenced the results we've seen in regard to germany in terms of germany's influence within europe and her departure departure next year will surely be felt than the transatlantic community as was on the international stage yet it will be interesting to see what the transatlantic trends 2021 looks like when you guys put that out next year brandon born with the betterment foundation joining us tonight from washington brandon it was going to have you on the show and come back and talk with us again thank you thank you so much. it is a question that can make g

defense secretary he'll say this is strategic and investment to better deter russia and china but if you ask donald trump he'll say this is about sticking it to america's freeloading friend germany the country trump claims that refuses to pay its own way i'm burnt off in berlin this is the day. let's be clear i think germany is the wealthiest country in europe germany can and should pay more to its defense well i think this is of those that really challenge east a very hard to think defense relationship this is something we want to do we feel very good about and with regard to how quickly units will move i said i'll just say a matter of weeks that. we're. dealing. also coming up tonight now says latest mission to mars and why it could open a new chapter in space exploration in the 1st time in history when nasa has dedicated a mission to what we call astrobiology the search for life maybe now or ancient life on another world. to our viewers on p.b.s. in the united states and all around the world welcome we begin the day with plans to shrink the u.s. military here in germany today the

for what reason does the president not fully implement the defense bill? in hospitals and places that care to people with there is not enough ppe, personal protective equipment, not enough equipment but we could have it if the president executed the defense production act. we called for in the cares act yesterday, on -- not yesterday, the fourteenth. colleagues wrote to the secretary of defense and the secretary of health and human service and asked why the defense, not used in the legislation, and assessment of the amount of each of the categories we need ppe, diagnostics and other treatments for covid-19, other medical supplies and equipment, the list goes on. this is such a massive dereliction of duty, people are dying. what we are saying to the senate, join us in asking the president to use executive action for good instead of ill, as he has done. and pass the heroes act which as you know -- let's just focus on what it would mean for our schools. across the country, the next -- the anxiety they have about their children, the decision as to whether to s

this top turkish deliberation that included the defense minister. along with the chief of staff and military commanders who met today with libya's internationally recognized prime minister of. the chief of staff of libya's chiefs and also the interior minister to push other and also libyan military commanders government tripoli says that this visit is trying to look into a future a strategy is to build libya's defense and security capacities it seems to be this is the. pre war stage that libya's internationally recognized the government is keen to build by turkish expertise by turkish hands that's also based on the turkish libyan military security and military agreement that was signed by libya's prime minister faisal raj and the president. last november the victory achieved by the government forces over half to his forces in the west of libya regaining recapturing the whole worst of libya after one year of heavy fighting that is attributed mainly to military support russia is reopening its embassy in libya whole though its head will be based in nei

and we are pleased to have with us, assistant secretary of defense kevin fahey. i want to thank all of the witnesses for being here today and i would like them to please stand so i may swear them in. please raise your right hands. do you swear or affirm that the testimony you're about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you god? you may be seated. let the record show that witnesses answered in the affirmative. without objection, your written statements will be made part of the record. rear admiral polowczyk, you are recognized for five minutes for your opening statement. >> good morning, chairman clyburn, ranking member scalise and distinguished members of the committee. i am rear admiral john polowczyk vice director for low fwisices and joint staff. thank you for the opportunity to discuss the federal response to the covid pandemic and strategies for future planning. let me start by offering my condolences to the families and friends who have lost loved ones to this pandemic. on a personal note, let me share that this pandem

america's tech titans are on the defensive facebook's mark zuckerberg alphabets sundar pichai amazon's jeff bezos and apple's tim cook all face the virtual grilling on capitol hill lawmakers say the c.e.o.'s and their companies are abusing their position and crippling the competition many of the practices used by these companies have harmful economic effects they discourage entrepreneurship destroy jobs high cost and degrade quality simply put they have too much power what for hours these big tech c.e.o.'s addressed allegations including abuse of power by data survey lines and political censorship why does google steal content from honest businesses i disagree with that characterization just last week or many many small businesses in fact today we support one point $4000000.00 small businesses are supporting over $385000000000.00 and they are economic activity amazon has nearly 7 times the market share of its closest e-commerce competitor one seller told us that and i quote amazon continues to be the only show in town no matter how angry sellers get they have nowhere else to go so are

whether it's preemptive in nature or defensive? gen. mcconville: i think, you know, we want capabilities. when it came to long-range precision fires. we are developing a hypersonic capability which has a very long range. we're developing mid range capabilities that will have an anti-ship capability. to ertainly want to bring the national leadership options that they can use if required for an anti-access capability and the question becomes with the position, what the posture would be a decision that would come later. ms. hicks: you've been so gracious with your time. i want to ask one last question. it loops back to your earlier comment you mentioned the joint concept being developed as well as the army's efforts. is there a sense of a timeline for the process at least the first iteration of the process of the concept development and what we might look for for signs that those concepts are beginning to influence organization design as you mentioned and modernization? gen. mcconville: what we see right now is really, it's happening as we

including thru defense production act as you mentioned today. as of june 26, efforts on the part of fema, h.h.s. have led to the delivery of 167.1 million n95 respirators. 682.5 million surgical masks. face shields. 292.2 million surgical gowns and cover yawls and 17.1 billion gloves. as far as ventilators go the administration is assured that we have more than enough. so much so that some states are returning ventilators to the strategic national stockpile. washington state returned 400. california 500. instead of working with the president to help americans, my colleagues across the aisle would rather politicize this public health crisis. in one sentence the majority's leadership said, quote, we're not here to place blame, end quote. the next sentence they bashed the president suggesting his culpability in the deaths of americans. that happened just today. we can't have a true assessment of our response because this hyperpolarized environment makes every single action a political failure. we've got to get past this in our country if we're to c

defense. then we will hear from ,ieutenant general eric t fick executive officer of the f-35 joint program office at the department of defense. next we will go to ms. diana mauer, who is the director of defense capabilities and management of the government accountability office. we will also hear from ms. teresa hull, who is the assistant inspector general at the apartment of defense, office of inspector general. finally, we go to gregory m. ulmer, vice president and general manager of the f-35 lightning two program that lockheed martin corporation. the witnesses will be unneeded so they can be sworn in. please raise your right hand. do you swear or affirm that the testimony you are about to give is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you god? let the record show that the witnesses answered in the affirmative. thank you and without objection your written statements will be made part of the record and with that, undersecretary lord, you are now recognized for your test

dollar covert 19 response package is a nice $8000000000.00 into pentagon weapons systems built by defense contractors like boeing lockheed martin and general dynamics and what kind of virus and disease fighting weapons will this $8000000000.00 buy us taxpaying citizens well time magazine goes on report that the bill would deposit $2200000000.00 in pentagon ship building accounts it would boost missile defense systems in california and alaska and deliver about $1400000000.00 for the c 130 transport planes and f. 35 fighters manufactured by the good folks at lockheed martin. and as journalists and activists around the us begin to uncover this latest $1000000000.00 defense contractor gift basket they are being labeled as adversary by the pentagon politico is now reporting that a new mandatory pentagon training course aimed at preventing leaks refers to protestors and journalists as adversaries in a fictional scenario designed to teach defense department personnel how to better protect sensitive information adversary is the term they use yes those working on the front lines of the 1st amendme

thank you for that heidi castro keeping an eye on that hearing on capitol hill today with the defense secretary marcus the united nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings as presented to her annual report to the u.n. human rights council and she's raised concerns about the growing use of armed drones for targeted killings i just cannot have previously declared the u.s. drone strike in january that killed top iranian general carson so their money as a legal she says now's the time though to regulate drones fearing some countries are using them without any accountability drawn so i'll be coming. here pedia smaller more lethal and can be or parried to by teams located thousands of kilometers away and in my opinion and the opinion of all the experts so you have confronted over the last 6 months these is bringing the world to a critical point in regulating the use of armed drones and the use of force who armed drone. sedans prime ministers asked the government to resign the been large protests in recent weeks demanding faster reform the country is transitioning towards democrac

this year's defense bill meets that. with your leadership and that of ranking number calvert, we have a number of products i am proud of. the bill includes a number of provisions i was proud to work on with the chairman and staff. we boosted oversight of the new contract removing services for military men and women, an important function impacting the lives of our servicemembers and their families. we also promoted greater access to classified contracting opportunities for small and nontraditional businesses, who face significant hurdles while trying to share their innovations and expertise with the d.o.d. and we directed the department to do a deep dive on the ways to help small businesses gain affordable access to secure steps so more businesses can participate in the contracting process. lastly i want to thank the chairman. not for just his decades of hard work and dedication as a staffer , of course a member and ultimately as chairman of our subcommittee, but for his friendship and his membership. working with you ha

the bipartisan budget act sets overtall defense funding -- overall defense funding levels for fiscal year 2021. longer-term funding is necessary, but it's uncertain. democrats have proposed stronger defense funding in the past -- they have opposed stronger defense funding in the past especially during the obama-biden administration. this history suggests that if democrats win the election, they will slow our nation's critical defense investments. the ndaa strengthens america's hand to stand up to foreign aggressors, to stand up against those people who are against american values. our ndaa will protect american leadership in the world, enhance our standing with adversaries and allies alike. above all, it sends a clear message to our enemies, cannot defeat the united states so don't even try. every senator, mr. president, should support this smart, strong, strategic approach to america's defense. let's honor this proud tradition. let's support our troops, and let us once again pass the ndaa, this for the 60th time. mr. president, i do ask unanimous consent that brook hornburger, an in

in my case, it was the national defense strategy.strategy basically said we're going to have to continue to deal with the terrorist threat. it's an ambient threat. it's just going to be out there. but the primary threats to the country, to go to your question, david, are clearly authoritarian regimes that are acting badly. and in terms of urgency, it would be north korea. in terms of power, it would be russia. and in terms of political will, it would be china. we're going to have to address those, so we wrote a strategy accordingly. david: when do you think the united states will be able to, if at all, get out of afghanistan with our military? gen. mattis: the point i would make is you can want a war over, you can even declare a war over, and you can even order troops home. and then there's something the military says, "the enemy gets a vote." so, the idea that you can declare the war over, you can say it's not going to bother me anymore, number one, those problems don't stay over there. and you're going to have to deal with the worl