House Republicans Fight to Stop Devastating Cuts to Our Nation's Military Forces

Statement

Representative Scott DesJarlais (TN-04) issued the following statement upon passage of the Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act:

"House Republicans have put forth and passed a common sense deficit reduction package that will stave off the draconian cuts facing our military. By cleaning up programs that are rife with waste, fraud and abuse we can both achieve long-term debt reduction and ensure that our military men and women do not end up paying the price for Washington's fiscal irresponsibility.

"One of the provisions included in this legislation is my SNAP Act, which eliminates taxpayer funded bonuses given to states for efficiently signing up individuals for food stamps. The SNAP Act will save nearly $50 million dollars a year. Certainly we can all agree that those funds would be better spent ensuring our servicemen and women have the resources they need to properly do their job.

"Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has called these defense cuts "unacceptable' and has stated that they would "do real damage to our security, our troops and their families, and our military's ability to protect the nation'. I hope that President Obama will heed the words of his defense secretary and call upon the Senate to take up and pass this legislation."

According to the House Armed Services Committee, under the current sequestration law, the cuts to the nation's defense capabilities would result in:

· The smallest ground force since 1940.

· The smallest fleet of ships since 1915.

· The smallest tactical fighter force in the history of the Air Force

Source