Rep. Sherrill Of NJ Votes To Boost Military Spending For 2023

NEW JERSEY — The annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) took a big step towards the finish line on Wednesday, getting a thumbs-up from a key Congressional committee, including U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey.

Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot who represents the state’s 11th District, was among the members of the House Armed Services Committee to greenlight a mark-up of the NDAA for fiscal year 2023.

“The U.S. military employs 1.3 million Americans, with nearly 10,000 in New Jersey, and the NDAA is a critical piece of legislation that translates into economic benefits across the country,” the congresswoman said.

Federal lawmakers hammer out a new version of the NDAA every year, establishing defense priorities and providing guidance on how military funding can be spent. Congress has passed the NDAA for nearly 60 years in a row, and typically sees support from all but a handful of dissenters in New Jersey each year.

• See related article: Only 2 NJ Congress Members Vote Against Military Budget Hike In 2022

After a marathon session that lasted until Thursday morning, the House Armed Services Committee voted 57-1 to approve an amendment to the bill that raised its topline by $37 billion. This year’s NDAA now provides for about $840 billion in total defense spending for FY 2023, surpassing President Joe Biden’s proposal of $813 billion.

The House of Representatives will now bring the bill to the floor for a vote. The Senate still needs to pass its own version of the NDAA; the two chambers will then iron out the differences in the coming months, and send the final version to the desk of President Biden. Separate appropriations bills with matching dollar figures must also be passed for the increases to become a reality.

Some of Sherrill’s Congressional peers disagreed that the extra $37 billion approved on Wednesday is a good idea, however.

After the House Armed Services Committee held its mark-up of the NDAA, Rep. Adam Smith of Washington said that “more money isn’t necessarily the answer.”

“President Biden’s budget request will meet our country’s defense challenges, and the Department of Defense does not need more than it asked for,” Smith insisted. “I have always believed that the department needs more discipline, not more money, and I look forward to making that argument once again during a robust debate.”

Rep. Ro Khanna of California also questioned rising military spending in the United States. Khanna wrote:

"Part of me wonders when we are just going to get the amendment to have a trillion-dollar defense budget because it seems that’s where we are going. I mean, every year they are basically adding $30 billion more to what the president wants, and I think that’s what we really need to think of on this committee. If you’re supporting this amendment, you’re basically paving the way to a trillion-dollar defense. Is that what we want in this country? A trillion dollars more? More than a half of our discretionary budget is going into defense compared to all of the other needs, the security needs that this country has."

"I just want to be clear – there is no country in the world that is putting over half its discretionary budget into defense," Khanna added.

MORE MILITARY SPENDING: GOOD FOR NEW JERSEY?

According to Sherrill, some highlights of the current version of the NDAA include:

• Raising service member salaries by 4.6 percent, “the highest pay raise in decades.”
• More than $6 billion in funding for the European Deterrence Initiative, a “key bulwark against Russian aggression.”
• Nearly $4 billion in funding for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, a program “designed to counter Chinese ambitions in the Pacific.”
• Extension of the authorization for the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa program, so that the United States can “continue to work to keep our promises to our Afghan partners.”

Sherrill said this year’s version includes several provisions that will funnel millions of dollars to one of the largest employers in her home district – Picatinny Arsenal – which brings “well over $1 billion into the economy of New Jersey every year.”

“North Jersey plays a critical and strategic role in America’s national defense and security,” Sherrill said. “As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I am proud to advocate for major investments in our defense capabilities, including the critical research and development work at Picatinny Arsenal, as well as support for our brave service members and their families.”

According to Sherrill, some of the largest spending items on the list at Picatinny Arsenal include:

• An increase of $70 million for the Strategic Long-Range Cannon, a large artillery piece, intended to be able to hit targets at a range of 1,000 miles or more.
• An increase of $40 million for Platform Agnostic Remote Armament Systems, which allow Picatinny to continue to invent new and innovative armament systems.
• An increase of $35 million for Armament Digital and Mission Engineering, which will allow the Army to use analytics and simulations to better develop mission capabilities.
• An increase of $35 million for Tactical Network Technology Modernization, which will allow the Army to develop modern, cyber-hardened communications networks.

“With this year’s NDAA, we are also combating the urgent security threat of climate change by bolstering development of clean energy, reducing our reliance on foreign oil, and cleaning up PFAS, or ‘forever chemical,’ contamination,” Sherrill said.

“I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House and Senate to shepherd the committee-reported bill through the legislative process— cementing these wins for NJ-11 and our country,” Sherrill added.

Not everyone in the Garden State wants to see the U.S. military budget rise, however.

Some New Jersey advocates have argued that increasing military spending is irresponsible, and would rather see taxpayer money used for social programs or infrastructure improvements.

"There are over 800 U.S. bases around the globe," a group of anti-war activists recently said. "And yet in America on average every minute four people are served with eviction judgments, 30 million have no access to health care, $1.5 trillion is owed in suffocating student loan debt, and 63 percent of the population cannot afford a $500 emergency repair."

• See related article: Protesters Rally In New Jersey: 'End Wars, Cut Military Budget'

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