Conference Report On H.R. 2647, National Defense Authorization Act For Fiscal Year 2010

Floor Speech

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Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I want to explain my vote in opposition to the Conference Report to H.R. 2647, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010.

I absolutely support ensuring that our brave men and women serving in the Armed Forces have the necessary and best possible training, equipment, and other resources to accomplish their missions as quickly and safely as possible.

I sought a seat on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs in my first term so I could in some small measure help repay our debt to past soldiers and their families by protecting and strengthening their health, disability, and retirement benefits.

I have introduced legislation to increase the pay of members of the military, provide tax cuts to active duty military personnel, give tax credits to our military to help them purchase homes, allow for concurrent receipt of military retired pay and disability compensation, and encourage employers to hire members of the Reserve and National Guard.

I have also traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan to visit with our troops and let them know that I understand and appreciate what they are doing and will do whatever I can to support them.

Very simply, I believe our brave warriors who are standing in harm's way to keep us safe are the true heroes in our society and deserve our complete and unfettered support. That is why I supported the House-passed defense authorization bill earlier this year. I am terribly disappointed that I cannot vote for this conference report, however, because it includes several misguided provisions that should not become law.

This bill is shamelessly being used to enact unrelated and controversial hate crimes legislation, to which many, including me, strongly object. The inclusion of this language in a bill to ensure our national security and meet our commitment to the troops is unconscionable.

I believe that all crimes should be vigorously prosecuted and the convicted should be swiftly and appropriately punished. I do not believe that the federal government should be in the business of criminalizing thought and creating classes of people who supposedly are more deserving of protection than others.

The bill cuts funds for missile defense by more than a billion dollars from last year's level and permanently prohibits the deployment of long-range missile defense interceptors in Europe; unless a lengthy certification process occurs, effectively shutting down a system that would protect us and our European allies from nuclear attack.

The bill also strikes funding included in the House-passed bill for the production of additional F-22 fighters. These provisions leave us more vulnerable to attack from nuclear nations and those countries developing more advanced air assets.

Mr. Speaker, I will not play along with this political charade and allow our men and women in uniform to be used as cover to pass controversial social policies that cannot be enacted on their own. My constituents know how strongly I support our troops and our military efforts to prevent terrorists from striking in this country again like they did on 9/11.

I hope the next time we consider a defense authorization bill we do so in a manner that reflects and upholds the very ideals that our troops are fighting for, unlike the shameful process that brought us to this point today.

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