Blumenthal Statement on Senate Approval of NDAA for FY2016

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement on the Senate’s approval by a vote of 71-25 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2016:

“This vital defense measure – which I helped craft and voted to pass – bolsters our national security and makes our nation safer and stronger. I’m pleased it includes several provisions I helped lead, including $800 million additional funding for Virginia Class Submarines, $8.5 billion for F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft, $17 million for two new Connecticut National Guard construction projects, and measures to protect service members and veterans against financial fraud. 

“The safety and strength of our nation also require that Congress eliminate the rightly-maligned sequestration straightjacket for all federal programs. That is why I voted also today to force Congress to face its obligation to remove sequestration’s arbitrary, irrational constraints that undercut our national security and safety. We must support programs vital to our security – not only for the Department of Defense, but also the Departments of Homeland Security, and Justice, and others – to keep America working and secure.”

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