As your Congressman, I am committed to a strong national defense. We must ensure that our troops are the best trained, best prepared and best equipped for the battlefield. This posture of strength is our best defense. We must recognize that the world is a dangerous place and we must remain vigilant. Fulfilling our commitments to those veterans who have served is not only the right thing to do; it is key to preserving our all-volunteer force.
Like all areas of the budget, our national defense budget needs to become leaner and we can do this without cutting vital national security needs and essential training, vital facilities and operations like those at Patrick Air Force Base, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and the Naval Ordnance Training Unit.
Sequestration of our national defense budget was harmful to our national defense which is one of the key reasons I opposed the budget deal that put budget sequestration in place. Spending restraint needs to be more targeted and direct, rather than across the board as such indiscriminate cuts jeopardize our priorities while ignoring the real waste and lower priority budget items.
Space is the ultimate military high ground. China and Russia have tested space weapons and are developing hypersonic weapons that could cripple our military advantage and undermine our national security. We must be prepared to counter any aggression by China, Russia, Iran, North Korea or others and that means investing in advanced space capabilities. We cannot afford to be complacent in any area of our national defense and as a member of the House Space Subcommittee I am working to ensure that U.S. leadership in space remains unmatched.
In 2018 my CAPTIVE Act was signed into law as part of the Anti-terrorism Clarification Act. My bill provides justice to American victims of terrorism by allowing the seized assets to be used to satisfy a person’s court-awarded judgment.