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Floor Speech

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Mr. KELLY of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in strong support of the fiscal year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act. Our military is facing unprecedented challenges in a volatile environment, and this body is charged with the duty of raising and supporting our military to ensure our safety both home and abroad.

As the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations, I am incredibly proud of the items in this bill that enable our intelligence and special operations communities to keep our adversaries at bay. I thank Chairman Gallego and my ISO colleagues for working in a bipartisan fashion to ensure ISO equities are represented throughout the NDAA process.

In particular, the codification of the Special Operations Command's 1202 authority is significant. This authority authorizes SOCOM to conduct irregular warfare operations. The expansion of this authority is critical to our ability to compete and win in a great power competition environment.

I remain concerned about our force posture and counterterrorism capabilities in Afghanistan resulting from last year's withdrawal. The administration has failed to provide the congressionally mandated report from Section 1069 of last year's NDAA. We continue to ask for greater detail on the so-called ``over the horizon'' capability the administration has touted. It remains clear this strategy was completely not thought out from the beginning.

That said, I do want to mention a few noteworthy provisions in this bill. This bill includes an amendment to fund the priorities that our Nation's top military leadership told us they needed but the White House failed to support. The topline increase counters this administration's dangerous ``divest to invest'' strategy, which would leave us ill-equipped to deter or defeat China, our pacing threat, in the next 5 to 10 years. It also provides an increase in military personnel pay and benefits to combat the impacts of inflation so that our servicemembers who dedicate their lives to our Nation do not struggle to support themselves and their families.

I also cannot understate the importance this bill has in securing our defense industrial base and ensuring millions of jobs for Americans. The hardworking Mississippians who work for our defense industry companies in my district and across the State to keep our Nation safe, secure, and prosperous deserve our support in Congress.

Colleagues, the spirit of patriotism is not enough to support our troops. We have an obligation to ensure our military is properly funded to compete and win wars against China, Russia, and any other adversary that threatens our way of life and democratic values. We have a responsibility to take care of our servicemembers and their families in this period of record-high inflation so that we retain the best talent, and we have a commitment to enact policies that honor our values, improve our national security, and empower our military leaders. We do all this by voting ``yes'' on this bill.

Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not thank my teammates on this committee and my staff for working tirelessly on this year's bill. Special shout-out to my ISO battle buddies: Chairman Gallego; professional staffer Patrick Nevins; my defense team, Rodney Hall and Lauren Emmi.

Mr. Speaker, I ask support for this bill.

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