Congressman Rick Allen (R-GA) says he is lobbying his colleagues on Capitol Hill to pass the National Defense Authorization Act as the $826 billion to $886 billion measure makes its way to the floor.
The current bill contains $2 billion more than was requested by the Biden Administration.
The bill is expected to pass Congress early next week, once amendments are finalized.
Allen says the bill benefits District 12 as it vastly expands the role of the soon to be renamed Fort Gordon in its cyber security efforts with $163 million earmarked for the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence Training School.
“We all understand that cyber is the new frontier in warfare. We are one of the few bases in the nation that is still growing. If we can get the infrastructure, they could move another 8,000 soldiers in there,” Allen said.
The bill has received bi-partisan support, with the lone no vote to bring the bill to the House floor being cast by Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), according to The Washington Examiner.
However, there has been contention within the ranks of Republican majority with members of the Freedom Caucus bristling over Biden’s request for $40 billion to be spent on what the caucus terms “woke ideology.”
“We cut that out, they won’t be teaching Critical Race Theory or drag queens and drag shows, that’s gone,” Allen said.
In a further attempt to rein in Iran, the bill gives even more material support to the state of Israel allowing for surplus airborne tankers to be delivered to the country as well as an extension allowing the U.S. to maintain a weapons stockpile in Israel through 2028.
The bill also bars the U.S. government from selling strategic oil reserves to Iran or giving that rogue government funding for any reason. Allen says that the language prevents another nuclear deal like the one negotiated by the Obama administration that netted Iran billions of dollars in cash.
“We can’t allow that to happen again. I have sat and talked with Prime Minister Netanyahu and we all agree that Iran can never have nuclear weapons. Once one of those countries gets them, they will all want them,” Allen said.
Critics of the bill state that it does not frankly address the war in Ukraine and the U.S. spending, according to Council on Foreign Relations, over $75 billion in aid to the beleaguered country. Other estimates put the figure closer to $113 billion.
The bill allows for “emergency” spending by the Biden Administration; however, Allen says that the bill only addresses direct military spending and not expenditures that amount to foreign aid.
“Those are two separate things. This bill is about building up our military forces and making sure our soldiers have the best technology to fight,” Allen said.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Investigative Reporter and Editorial Page Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
