McCain On the National Defense Strategy

Press Release

U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement today on Defense Secretary Mattis's release of the National Defense Strategy, a requirement of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017:

"I am very pleased with Secretary Mattis's National Defense Strategy. It gets the big decisions right, prioritizes the threats we face, and offers clear guidance for making tough choices. This is the kind of effort the Congress wanted to see when we required the National Defense Strategy in the FY17 NDAA.

"Through significant investment and military modernization, Russia and China are rapidly eroding America's military advantage. Meanwhile, inadequate funding and budget uncertainty here at home are harming readiness, stalling modernization, and eroding our technological edge. A new era of great power competition has emerged, and this strategy prioritizes that reality.

"The window of opportunity to restore and maintain our military advantage is quickly closing. Congress must immediately reach a bipartisan budget agreement to provide the funding necessary to implement this strategy. Reversing the readiness and modernization crises will require significant investment, and we must start now. But a larger defense budget alone is insufficient. Even with adequate resources, we must make difficult choices about the threats we face, the missions we assign to our military, and the capabilities we prioritize for investment.

"The Senate Armed Services Committee will conduct oversight of this strategy and its implementation. We will ensure the FY19 NDAA reflects the priorities that our committee and this strategy share. And we will work to provide the resources necessary to implement this strategy in a predictable and timely manner."

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