National Security

Floor Speech

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Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I have a short article that I want to put in the Record, and I want to describe it before I ask permission.

In a column published in the Wall Street Journal on Monday, October 13, Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorganChase, called out the need for investment in national security. He mentions many areas that have been talked about a lot in Washington, like securing supply chains for critical materials like rare earth elements, ramping up defense modernization and innovation, energy independence and resilience, and accelerating advancements in strategic technologies.

The problem is that in Washington here and particularly in the Congress, it has been mostly just talk.

As a private sector leader, Jamie Dimon is putting his money where his mouth is. Congress ought to take note and follow his lead.

13, 2025] Investments for National Security (By Jamie Dimon)

The brutal invasion of Ukraine, the indescribable terrorist attack on Israel and other major conflicts should dispel any illusion that the world is safe. The U.S. has allowed itself to become too reliant on unreliable sources of critical minerals, products and manufacturing--all of which are essential for our national security.

America remains the bastion of freedom and, equally important, the arsenal of democracy. Our own security is predicated on a strong and resilient domestic economy, which guarantees our ability to build, innovate and to maintain the most capable military in the world. Global peace and world order depend on it.

Our adversaries and potential adversaries aren't waiting-- we no longer have the luxury of time. America needs more speed and investment. It also needs to remove obstacles that stand in the way: excessive regulation, bureaucratic delay, partisan gridlock and an education system misaligned with the skills we need.

That is why JPMorganChase is launching the Security and Resiliency Initiative, a 10-year, $1.5 trillion effort to facilitate, finance and invest in industries crucial to national security and economic resilience, from critical medications and minerals to military equipment and semiconductors. This will also help create economic growth, innovation and jobs in America. It will include direct equity investments of up to $10 billion of our own capital in select companies. This effort will cut across investment banking, middle-market banking and commercial banking. It will include special research on private industries and important issues like supply-chain weaknesses on rare-earth metals. It will also include trying to design policies that can accelerate these efforts, including training, research and development, permitting, and regulations conducive to growth.

Our efforts will focus on four priority areas:

Supply chains and advanced manufacturing to strengthen the production of critical materials, pharmaceutical precursors, robotics and components such as semiconductors and rare-earth elements.

Defense and aerospace to support innovation and scale production for modern deterrence, including drones, autonomous system and next-gen connectivity.

Energy independence and resilience to modernize the U.S. grid and invest in reliable clean power like battery storage to meet surging demand.

Frontier and strategic technologies to accelerate breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and quantum computing.

Consider two examples: U.S. drug manufacturers depend heavily on foreign sources for active ingredients for medication. Seventy-seven percent of those facilities are overseas. There is an opportunity for America to rebuild and invest in its ability to manufacture lifesaving pharma ingredients and avoid supply-chain challenges and the risk of shortages of essential drugs.

Similarly, the U.S. electric grid is rapidly aging and ill- equipped to handle the massive increase in demand from AI and advanced manufacturing. Strategic investment can modernize transmission lines, harden energy systems, and reduce blackout risks.

As a top investment bank for the defense, healthcare and energy sectors, and a manager of trillions of dollars in clients' assets including in infrastructure and AI, we know how to put capital and expertise to work to solve big challenges like this.

Policy will be essential, too. America needs a permitting process measured in months, not years. Vocational and apprenticeship programs must be expanded to close the manufacturing skills gap. And we must create consistent long- term incentives for private investment in these critical industries so that more capital is available. Fortunately, bipartisan legislation has begun to modernize procurement and streamline industrial policy, and new federal initiatives are encouraging domestic production of chips and critical medications.

We hope that America will come together to address these challenges, as we have in the past. We need to act now.

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