"As a senior Member of the House Armed Services Committee and the leading advocate for Fort Drum and the 10th Mountain Division, I am honored to be chosen once again as a conferee to ensure the successful passage of this year's National Defense Authorization Act. As foreign adversaries like China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea bolster their military capabilities, this defense bill promotes peace through strength, ensuring a strong national defense by fully equipping our troops, increasing our military readiness, and supporting our brave Service members with a well-deserved pay raise. I am deeply grateful to our men and women in uniform, and their families, for the sacrifices they continue to make to defend our nation. I look forward to working together with my colleagues in the House and the Senate to conference a strong, bipartisan defense bill that will elevate the priorities of Upstate New York and the North Country to the highest levels."