Should we be at war in yemen . Should we be at war in iraq, syria, afghanistan . President obama ran on ending the wars and yet he ended up taking the war and Bombing Campaign to seven countries without authorization. Intriguing the left was relentless in criticizing george bush and yet george bush did come to congress. We had a vote to go after those who attacked us on 9 11. We had an ill Fought Campaign of the iraq war and voted on. But we havent voted in a generation. Should one generation be able to bind another generation . Realize if we dont force these authorizations to expire, this war could go on forever. You know, this is 1984. This is George Orwell saying oash anna has always oash anna has always been at war with asia and then saying oash anna has always been at war with your asia because no one is stepping up to say no. Thats what congress is supposed to do. We are supposed to be a voice that debates and says should we go to war. Its part of doing our job but the only way to get congress to do their job is to actually let these expire. We should have a fullthroated debate over who initiates war. Theres no murkiness to the constitution. The constitution is explicit. The initiation of war, the declaration of war, that power lies with congress. But the war in afghanistan has gone on 16 years now. We have people who will be fighting in the war. Our young men and women will be fighting in the war in the next year or so who were not yet born on 9 11. Weve long since killed the people who perpetrated 9 11. With the killing of bin laden there is no person left in the leadership of al qaeda or taliban that was around that period of time. We say well, still the taliban. If youre going to say were going to fight til the end of time, were going to have a perpetual war to the end of time and kill every radical islamist in the world, its an impossibility. What i would say is lets the very least have a debate. If that is your purpose and that is your goal and that is what you stand for, step forward and lets have a debate. Lets debate the war in yemen. Lets debate the war in somalia. Lets debate whether we should be bombing people in nye jeer gentleman. Lets de nigeria. Lets debate whether we should be in syria, iraq, iran. Lets have a debate about all these different wars. Lets not meddle on and say the president can do what he wants. Because realize the people in this body who are for perp pettual war perpetual war, they dont think we should have any role in it. They tell me quietly every day the president can do whatever he wants under article 2 of the constitution. Thats absolutely false. It goes absolutely against everything our Founding Fathers read the federalist papers. There is extensive debate over the warmaking power, and they very explicitly from washington to adams to jefferson to madison all said we give this power to congress because we fear the perpetual wars that we have seen in europe. We fear the wars of brother fighting brother and brother fighting cousins within these royal disputes that went on endlessly in europe. So we set up our founding document to try to make war difficult. But when weve been attacked, its been easy to come together. 9 11 virtually unanimously we came together within three days. Pearl harbor within 24 hours. So what i would say to my colleagues is, lets do your job. This is your constitutional role. Lets let these expire. And over the next six months, lets debate whether we should be at war and where. But i for one am one who says that we should oppose unauthorized, undeclared, unconstitutional war. At this particular time, there are no limits on war. The 9 11 proclamation has been so interpreted so widely that it could mean anything. So you have people who interpret is widely and you also have people saying the constitution says the president can do anything. Its not what our Founding Fathers intended. its proud to be part of and an instigator of a debate for the first time in 15 years the full senate will vote on whether or not we have a role in initiating war, whether we should continue to be at war, or whether we should even vote on whether we should continue to be at war. I urge the senate to adopt my amendment which will be a sixmonth moratorium, a sixmonth sunset on the 2001 and 2002 resolution so we could then have the real debate. But mark my words, those who will come out and say theyre for the real debate are not really for it unless theyre willing to sunset it. Because weve been going 16 years without a real debate. There will be no real debate on war unless we pass this resolution. I yield back my time. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from rhode island. Mr. Reed thank you, madam president. Senator paul has been relentless in doing something that has to be done, which is the revision of the aumf both in 2001 and 2002. But theres sort of a simple notion you cant replace something with nothing. And we have nothing. This is six months of more time when in the last 16 years, even at the request of a president , we have not been able to come together as a senate, and i dont know where the house is on this but i think equally befuddled to provide the kind of specific language that we need for an aumf. This would be a different debate and a different vote if we had before us an actual aumf which would immediately supersede the existing authorities. Without such an aumf, we are going to cause confusion. We are going to cause disruption among our forces and our allies. And having spent a little bit of time in the service, when there is a possibility that in six months you will have to cease operations, you begin planning almost immediately for those operations. By the time we get around to actually even considering this since i dont think there are any plans to do it immediately, we could see three or four of those months evaporate. And with each passing day, the concerns about redeployment and repositioning and authorities become more pressing to the military. Not only that, but our allies will read this even if theyre sophisticated to understand it is not the law yet of the United States, they will see it as a signal that we are weakening our cooperation. And what we have seen over the last several months in iraq particularly has been Effective Iraqi indigenous forces with close cooperation from u. S. Special operations and other forces, and they have made progress. They will have political blowbacks in baghdad and kabul especially if this provision passes. Then i think our adversaries will take advantage of this very droitly. The newspapers, the social media that they control and unfortunately they control a great deal in all parts of the world will make this very simple. U. S. To leave. U. S. Restricting authority. Thats those are the practical consequences. Again, this would be an entirely different debate, an entirely different vote, i think, in we were looking at a real replacement for the aumf of 2001 and 2002. So i would urge my colleagues to think not just about the constitutional imperatives, the congressional authorities to declare war, president ial authorities under article 2, but to think about the practical and almost immediate consequences to those in the field, to our allies, and also t the possible ways in which this act could be used by our adversaries. With that, madam president , i use yield the floor. Mr. Mccain madam president . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain madam president , i want to discuss the amendment which is the importance of the authorization for the u. S. Use of military force to the ongoing u. S. Operations against violent extremist organizations. First of all, lets point out that its important to acknowledge why our current fight against terrorism is necessary. Earlier this week we commemorated the anniversary of the september 11 terrorist attacks that took the lives of thousands of innocent americans, shook our nation to its core, and importantly, brought us together in common resolve to make sure that that kind of tragedy would never ever happen again. In pursuit of that noble goal, thousands of brave men and women in uniform are currently deployed in afghanistan, iraq, and many other places. No matter what else we do in this body and on this legislation, we must always ask ourselves if we are doing everything we can to support those Service Members as they risk their lives to defend us. At the same time, we must recognize the ways in which the current conflict is different and from when Congress Passed the first authorization for the use of military force in 2001. The landscape of the global fight against terrorism has changed dramatically with the emergence of isis and the spread of the threat beyond afghanistan and iraq. Thats why i and many others have long called for updating the aumfs and yet the nature of the conflict remains the same. Terrorist organizations continue to work the religion of islam and promote a radical ideology to recruit new fighters and plot Violent Attacks as part of their jihad against the United States of america and all that we stand for. As chairman of the senate arpd services arled Services Committee armed Services Committee, im open to a process that would develop a new aumf specific to the current fight against isis and other terrorist organizations as identified by the administration. I would be very willing to work with my colleagues, including the chairman and Ranking Member of the Foreign Relations committee as well as the senator from kentucky to ensure that the legislation proceed under regular order, includes hearing, a committee markup, and for amendment process that ensured each member of this body was able to have his or her voice heard. Madam president , havent we had enough of bringing things to the floor without hearings, without amendments, without debate . Im confident that an overwhelming bipartisan majority of my colleagues would agree to approve the use of military force against the vicious, brutal enemy we face in isis and its associated forces. The amendment before us now falls far, far short of that process. Repealing the 2001 and 2002 aumfs without simultaneously passing a new authorization would be premature. It would be irresponsible, and it would threaten u. S. National security and it would inhibit our democrats building efforts abroad. As we speak we have troops employed overseas in the fight against isis, al qaeda, the taliban and other violent extremist organizations. Repealing the existing aumfs without a replacement would jeopardize the Legal Authority for ongoing military operations. I cannot stand by silently as this body considers taking any action that would put our currently deployed Service Members at risk. Its also important to recognize that adopting this amendment would embolden our enemies. It would send a signal to the members of the u. S. Armed forces serving in afghanistan and iraq and elsewhere that congress and the American Public no longer support their mission and their sacrifice. We cannot send that message because its not true. In closing, i agree with those supporting this amendment that the time has come for a new authorization for the use of military force in the global fight against terrorism. This amendment is simply not the way to do it. Rather than repealing the existing aumfs without passing a new authorization, i urge my colleagues to Work Together on a new bipartisan aumf that addresses the threats we face today. There are many members on both sides of the aisle that have been working together on aumfs, including the chairman of the Foreign Relations committee. That is a process in which i would be proud to participate and its one that would honor those currently deployed in harms way fighting to make sure that our nation never sees another day like 9 11. But i cannot support anything that fails to provide our men and women in uniform with everything they need, including the Legal Authority to keep our nation safe. The presiding officer the senator from tennessee. Mr. Corker madam president , i agree with so much of what the senator from arizona just said. We are getting ready to go through a procedural motion that i just want to explain briefly. Senator paul has offered an amendment. I would prefer that we have an upordown vote on this amendment personally. I do not support the amendment, for many of the reasons that senator mccain just laid out. But in order for senator paul im doing this out of respect for his desire to have a recorded vote i am going to motion to table, to table his motion which allows him to get an upordown vote. Otherwise he would have to have unanimous consent for this to occur. He cannot get this. So this is not a hostileage of he is sitting right next to me. He understands what i am doing. So i am going to move to table this shortly. I do not support the substance of this. I agree that we need to take an action on an aumf, even though the administration believes and i agree with them that they have a legal basis to do what theyre doing now against isis per the 2001 and 2002 aumfs. I am all for updating. Our committee intends to do so. Theres been an offered amendment, a bipartisan amendment by committee members, where we hope to take up an aumf. But doing away with the legal basis under which were going against isis today before weve implemented and put in place another one, to me, is not prudent. It would mean we would immediately need to begin winding down our operations. And it is not in our National Security interest. So out of courtesy to the gentleman from kentucky, who serves on our committee, i am going to move to table the paul amendment number 871 and ask for the yeas and nays, and this will allow him to have a recorded vote. With that, i yield the floor. The presiding officer there a sufficient second . There appears to be. Question is on the motion to table. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or to change their vote . If not, the yeas are 61, the nays are 36. The motion to table is agreed to. The majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell i call up amendment numbered 545. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk the senator from kentucky, mr. Mcconnell, for mr. Mccain, proposes an amendment numbered 545 to amendment numbered 1003. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i have six requests for committees to meet during todays session of the senate. They have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. The presiding officer duly noted. Mr. Cornyn madam president. The presiding officer the majority whip. Mr. Cornyn madam president , the senate is not in order. The presiding officer the senate will be in order. Mr. Cornyn thank you, madam president. Madam president , the rape is no longer falling in houston, but the streets are still being flooded as the corps of engineers lets water which threatens the integrity of dams located north of houston, lets water out of those dams, actually reflooding some of the neighborhoods that previously had been flooded, even after the rain has stopped for a number of days now. And the weight of Hurricane Harvey is still pressing down on my home state of texas. Many are struggling for some good news and a breath of fresh air. The latest numbers that i have seen are that roughly 100,000 people have lost their homes. 70,000 are still living in shelters or in motel rooms. Others more are living with friends and family, and more than 700,000 people have registered for individual assistance with the federal Emergency Management agency, more than 700,000. Now, with the water drained in most parts of the city and the area, mold is the next thing that pops up in buildings and houses, and then come the mosquitoes. The mosquitoes arent just a nuisance. They are a Public Health hazard as well. We happen to live in that area of the United States where the particular mosquito that carries the west nile virus and the zika virus is present, so this represents a Public Health challenge as well, and these are just some of the aftereffects that i heard about as i traveled the state last week. And those are more the more localized problems. As we know, there are others that spread far beyond brick homes and ranches with barbed wire fences. For example, the challenges, coordination, Logistical Support between many actors is usually one of the biggest problems that we saw demonstrated in hurricane katrina. But having learned the lessons of hurricane katrina, i cant tell you how proud i am of the great collaboration and consultation and support that we have gotten from the president at the federal level all the way down to the state and local leadership, which have stepped up and i think made all of us proud. So while some say it takes a village, my experience in texas is that it also takes an army. Indeed, harveys devastation has been so vast across swaths of the state that we have called in help from our armed forces. Members of our military have served crucial roles throughout the storm and continue to do so now that the waters have begun to recede. These include the u. S. Coast guard and marine corps, the army, navy, and air force. More than 12,000 Texas National guard were activated by Governor Abbott alone, and thousands more have been sent from other states to help out in the rescue and recovery effort. What did these troops do in their humvees, helicopters, amphibious boats and warships . Well, they did a lot. The army National Guard alone delivered more than 75,000 pounds of hay to flooded ranches and stranded cattle. Other troops showed up to provide medical services and Disaster Relief supplies. They assisted with debris management, route clearance, and in scenes we have all seen on tv, heroic search and rescue operations. But thats not all. they provided Surveillance Aircraft so that imagery can be provided to fema of the impact area while state guard members ensured that people who were evacuated were part of an emergency tracking system. Now, these members of our military are responding to Hurricane Irma in florida as well. Earlier this week the pentagon literally sent ships, aircraft, and, of course, fuel to the region to help. So our military has helped in ways that perhaps most of us dont really appreciate. They dont exist to just fight and win our wars, they respond to natural disasters like Hurricane Harvey and irma as well. Thank goodness they are there to do that. As the past few weeks have shown, there are always unforseen events and with that we know there are troops being stretched awfully thin. With that importance, we need to make sure that we do everything that we can for real support for our men and women in uniform by passing the National Defense authorization act. Thats why this is so important this week because not only does it affect our readiness, as i said earlier, to fight and win our nations wars in places around the world, its also important to our ability to respond to natural disasters like irma and harvey. So the ndaa, in addition to natural disasters, allows us to address ongoing Readiness Challenges that we have inherited to once again cash the peace dividend when there is no peace. My colleague and friend mack thorn thornberry Mack Thornberry has spoken on this topic. He calls past inaction a funding paralysis, a financial strait jacket. This is one that we need to desperately break out of when it comes to funding, equipping, and training our military to be ready when we call them. Today i want to emphasis several amendments that i plan to file to the ndaa, the National Defense authorization act. Theyll help make sure that america is safer, and importantly, take steps to correct some of the Foreign Policy mistakes that we saw under the Previous Administration. Let me sawc about three of those. Let me talk about three of those. The first is to counter the foremost sponsor of terrorism, iran. The amendment targets mahan air, that countrys largest commercial airline. This airline has repeatedly played a role in deporting terrorism around the world. It is a governmentcontrolled airline parading as a commercial enterprise. You can go online right now and purchase a ticket to fly to nearly 40 National Airports on mahan airline, including countries that we have a visa waiver agreement. Yet mahan supports irans National Guard to purchase weapons and transport them to syria and iraq and supports hezzbollah as well. It bypasses normal security procedures, it falsifies documents for maintenance purposes. And in doing so, it undercuts the interest of the United States and, of course, our ally in the region, israel. Today mahan air is working to add more interNational Airports to its flight patterns including to europe. Given its links to terrorist activity, we have to have concern for americans that fly in and out of airports. My amendment will require the department of Homeland Security to list where mahan operates and require the department of Homeland Security to assess what security should be imposed on those flights. I hope my colleagues will agree this is a commonsense proposal and i hope they will join me in supporting it. The Second Amendment i want to talk about, madam president , involves a different kind of flight risk. This one is domestic instead of international. It addresses the development and deployment of Wind Turbines and other structures around military installations, particularly where our pilots train and fly. Some of them are being built along flight routes in Wichita Falls and Corpus Christi and other states. Currently base commanders have no say and no real opportunity to indicate the risks these wind farms in close proximity to military training pose to Pilot Training and other operations. But commanders really are in the best position to understand the nature of the training that needs to be done and to offer suggestions about how risks can be mitigated, if not eliminated entirely. My amendment would preserve the voices of the base commanders in the evaluation process. It would require them those base commanders impacted by a proposed wind turbine project to weigh in regarding possible risks, including risks to our ability to train and make ready our pilots, but also problems with the radar and other ways that its not only a danger to our military men and women but also to civilian aircraft as well. Clearly base commanders have expertise and knowledge that must be considered during the proposed Construction Projects in close proximity to installations. Their voices are vital and i hope my colleagues will join me in supporting this amendment and ensuring that our base commanders are always heard when it comes to security risks and threats to readiness like this. And, finally, the third amendment i want to talk about is one that would grantfree status to u. S. Troops deployed in the Sinai Peninsula in egypt. Last year i had the chance to visit International Peacekeeping forces with troops deployed primarily to sinai. Our troops play a strategic role of maintaining peace in that critical region. Their work is often difficult and it is always dangerous. The north camp is located just 15 miles from the gaza strip. Troops there face mortars, rockets, and explosive attacks and a number have been wounded during patrols. By granting our troops on the sinai taxfree status, we can put them on equal footing with others in war zone areas like afghanistan and iraq. All of them enjoy the same tax benefit when stationed in those combat zones. And what we would like to do is to establish equal footing and parity for these military troops engaged in these peacekeeping missions in the sinai. This will also bolster morale. I hope my colleagues will join me in join me in passing this measure. Mr. President , i hope that after an open amendment process that well be able to get other commonsense amendments added to this legislation before we pass it next week. I know senator mccain, the chairman of the armed Services Committee, always says we have never failed to pass a National Defense authorization bill and we shouldnt start this week or next. So i hope we will pass the bill and im glad to offer these three amendments and would welcome support from all of our colleagues. With that, mr. President , i yield the floor and i note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call soo mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from delaware. Koon koon. Mr. Coons mr. President i ask unanimous consent to vitiate the proceedings under the quorum call. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Coons i would like to speak briefly about the amendment brought forward by senator paul. As my colleagues know, the paul amendment would have repealed the 2001 authorization for the use of military force, or socalled aumf, which authorized military operations against al qaeda and the taliban, it would these repeals would take effect six months after the adoption of the 2018 National Defense authorization act. Mr. President , senators of both parties owe it to the men and women of our armed forces to debate in public the merits of continued conflict against isis, al qaeda, and the taliban in places like afghanistan, iraq, and syria, where the brave men and women who serve us and keep us safe are currently engaged in service to our nation and security. I am very sympathetic to my colleagues concerns about the potential consequences of repealing the 2001 and 2002 bill. I tonight want to see our enemies emboldened. I, however, chose to support the paul amendment but my commitment to our troops and my commitment to with defeating our enemies is at strong as ever. This body can and Must Immediately get to work to craft a legal authorization relevant to our current conflicts. Thats why i supported the paul amendment which would have provided a sixmonth window to allow congress to demonstrate oversight, vigorous review of the status of our military operations of around the world and to pass a new authorization relevant to our current National Security threats. In other words, mr. President , it would have required congress to do its job. Although the paul amendment was tabled, i look forward to continuing to discuss this important and pressing issue with my colleagues on the Foreign Relations committee where it more appropriately should be debated and to bring it forward for a final vote in this chamber. If we are to do our job under the constitution of the United States, we owe those who fight and serve and strive to keep us safe nothing less. In clarity about congresss willingness to do its job under the constitution and our willingness to consent to the actions that are essential to keeping us safe. Now, mr. President , debating and passing a new aumf is not the only policy area in which Congress Needs to get to work. Because of the difficult decision by the Trump Administration to end the deferred action for childhood arrivals, or daca program, congress has just six months to pass a legislative fix for the nearly 800,000 dreamers in the United States today. I will start by thanking other colleagues who have given a voice to our nations dreamers. I am proud to speak with them today. Since 2012 the daca policy has held more helped more than 750,000 dreamers contribute to our society free from fear of being forced to leave, the only home they have known. Many of these young and women are our classmates, coworkers, colleagues, folks who are just as american as any one of us because that is what it means to be an american, whether you have been here a month, a decade, or seven generations. Those who are willing to serve, contribute, and engage in our society, pay taxes and play by the rules we welcome as americans. These are people who were brought to our country as children without authorization but through no fault of their own. In my view they deserve the opportunity to demonstrate that they want to contribute to our community and our country and to come forward and live their lives out of the shadows and as proud americans. Daca provided these dreamers with that security, but the president s announcement to end the program has left them in a state of uncertainty and fear. I am eager and willing to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass comprehensive immigration reform, but targeting this group of overwhelmingly hardworking and taxpaying dreamers is not the way to fix our broken immigration system. My view it is in some ways a capitulation to the harshest, most nativest antiimmigrant forces to our country. I believe americans are strengthened by welcoming immigrants and refugees into our country. I believe this as someone who understands that immigration has strengthened our economy. I believe this because i know america was founded largely as a nation of immigrants and thrives because of its diversity, not in spite of it. I believe this as well because of my faith which calls on all of us to welcome the stranger and the foreigner. But these dreamers, frankly, arent strangers at all. They are already our neighbors whose lives and freedom are now in jeopardy. Were talking about young men and women serving in our military, graduating near the top of their classes, working as doctors, teachers, engineers, and first responders. When we talk about dreamers, i think its important to talk about specific people. So allow me to share with you the stories of three young dreamers in delaware. First, were talking about a Stephanie Martinez gonzalez, a current sophomore at Delaware State University whos studying criminal justice and plans to join our Law Enforcement communities of police officers. She was brought to georgia in 2003 when she was just 8 years old. She and her sisters today are all enrolled in college and stephanie even earned a scholarship due to her high achievement in high school. When we talk about dreamers, were talking about roman jamaro, a 30yearold delawarean who has been in the United States since 1994, a young soccer star, he was being scouted for collegiate scholarships while in high school, but he never saw high school excuse me college as a possibility for him because he knew he was undocumented. In 2013 taking advantage of the opportunity offered by the Previous Administration, he stepped forward and enrolled in daca, was able to obtain a drivers license and take classes at deltech college in my home state of delaware. The daca program, he says, gave him a whole new outlook on his future and allowed him to finally pursue his dreams in the country he knows as home. Mr. President , when we talk about dreamers, were talking about people like endira ilslas pictured to my right. He came to the United States at 6 years old with her parents and two younger sisters. Now a College Student at Delaware State University, she has said and i quote, home to me is gainesville, georgia. It always has been and always will be. It is home because i poured out my heart into that town. She is studying in delaware to become a pediatric oncologist, as her own parents once were, but fears that her family could be torn apart before shes able to fulfill her dream of treating children with cancer. Delaware alone, our small state, one of the small etion of the 50 smallest of the 50, is home to 1,400 dreamers. Without them the United States would lose nearly 90 billion in g. D. P. Every single year. Let me say that again. Without the dreamers, studies suggest that we would lose tens of billions of dollars in american g. D. P. Every year. The Economic Impact would be significant in every state across the nation. Because of the roll that dreamers have flaid in our nations played in our nations economic, social and culture fabric. Some states may have a smaller population of dreamers whereas in others they are very large, but across the country as a whole its undeanably they have contributed to our economy. Just listen to the american c. E. O. s who came forward last week to voice their support for finding some legal path forward for these dreamers. From the Koch Brothers to mark zuckerberg, u. S. Business leaders appreciate the hard work, contributions and potential of our immigrant brothers and sisters known as dreamers. And its not just their economic contributions that moves me to speak this morning. Dreamers also help keep us safe. Thats because approximately 900 men and women in the United States armed forces are able to participate in serving our nation because of the daca program. Most of these individuals applied for the military accessions vital to the National Interest for the Pilot Program which selects immigrants who possess vital skills for our National Security to serve in the military. These very individuals include physicians, nurses, and those with skills in critical middle eastern and asian languages like arabic and chinese. They are vital to the success of the u. S. Military and to our National Security. Should we have recruited them, trained them, supported them, deployed them, and now because of an abrupt change in National Policy reject them and deport them . L i think not. Them . I think not. Mr. President , dreamers like endera are americans. They grew up here. Theyve gone through a rigorous process to become part of this program, and they want from this point forward to play by the rules and to succeed. Im calling on my colleagues here in congress to protect the lives of our dreamers and pass the dream act. Im grateful to senators durbin and graham for their bipartisan efforts to move this bill forward, and im proud to join them in supporting this effort. We know we cant count on the administration at this point to protect the 800,000 dreamers who know no home but the United States. So as is appropriate, the job falls to us, to congress, to take this issue up, to act, and to legislate. We cannot let them down. Thank you, mr. President. With that i yield the floor and subject the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call the presiding officer the senator from south dakota. Thune tune are we in a quorum call . The presiding officer we are. Mr. Thune i would ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be lifted. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Thune mr. President , last week came down to the floor to talk about the need for tax reform, one of the most important things that we can do to help our economy and American Families recover from years of economic stagnation under the Previous Administration is to reform our tax code. The tax code affects every aspect of our economy. It affects how much money you have left over to save or to invest. It affects whether or not a new business can get off the ground. It affects whether or not an existing business might have the money to raise wages or to hire new employees. And its often the determining factor in whether or not american jobs go overseas. Right now our tax code isnt do much to help anybody. It affects how much money you have i should say, it is increasingly strangling our economy, depressing job and wage growth, and discouraging new business creation and pushing american jobs overseas. And its place ago heavy burden on working families who see far too much of their paychecks left here in washington, d. C. Thats why republicans are making tax reform a priority this fall and were hoping the democrats will joins. Last week i mentioned the five principles that will guide any republican tax reform legislation. Any bill that we pass will have to do these things. One, result in increased wages, jobs, and economic growth. Two, provide tax relief for the middle class. Three, keep goodpaying jobs here at home. Four, increase America Competitiveness in the global economy. Finally, mr. President , it has to simplify the tax code. Last week i spent some time discussing the first principle, which is increasing wages, jobs, and economic growth. This week id like it take just a few minutes to focus on the second, providing tax relief for the middle class. Hardworking americans have had a hard time of it in recent years. Wage growth was almost nonexistent during the Obama Administration. A recent survey found that 50 of people in this country consider themselves to be living paycheck to paycheck. Families who once looked forward to a secure future have found themselves wondering where the next mortgage or rent payment is coming from or if theyll be able to afford to put anything toward their kids College Savings or toward their retirement. Fortunately, there are a the although of tax relief measures that we can take that will help middleincome families. And any plan for relief has to start with lowering tax rates for the middle class. The federal government is simply taking too much money each month from working families. Mr. President , we need to fix that. American families can do a much better job spending their money than washington bureaucrats and any new tax bill needs to leave more money in americans wallets, money that they can put toward their familys needs paying for a childs braces or saving for child. Relief starts with lowering tax rates, mr. President , but it doesnt end there. There are other things that we can do to help hardworking families. Closing loopholes and ending a variety of special interest tax breaks will boost our effort to significantly lower rates. And simplifying familyfocused provisions of the tax code will make them easier for families to access. We need to look at provisions like the earnedincome tax credit and the Child Tax Credit to make sure they are delivering the tax relief the congress intended and to look for ways to make them more efficient and effective. Education tax benefits is another example of where it can deliver to middleincome families. There are more than a dozen income tax provisions relating to education from the American Opportunity tax credit to 529 savings accounts and of course these provisions come with approximately 100 pages of i. R. S. Instructions, special forms, schedules, not to mention the professional tax prepareer that too many families have to hire to figure it all out. We can certainly do a better job than that. Simplifying and possibly consolidating the education provisions of the tax code could allow more families to take advantage of these provisions and significantly reduce the time families have to spend trying to obtain these benefits. Another thing that we can do is make sure that the tax code encourages savings and investment. Well be taking a look at the tax treatment of Retirement Savings to ensure that it maximizes individuals ability to achieve a secure retirement. Another thing that we need to do is finally do away with the alternative minimum tax. This tax which was originally designed to hit the very wealthiest americans eventually ballooned to ensnare huge numbers of the middle class. What congress has partially fixed this problem, too many families still have to waste time calculating their taxes twice, once for their regular return and once to see if they have to pay the alternative minimum tax. Imagine the frustration of having to do this extra calculation only to find occupant you dont owe the alternative minimum tax. But if you dont spend the time or hire a professional to figure it out and decide to take your chances, youll certainly hear about it from the i. R. S. If you guess wrong, usually with penalties and interest. Congress has acted to protect a lot of middleincome taxpayers, but there are still middleincome taxpayers who have to pay the alternative minimum tax. It is time to eliminate this tax which has long outlived its original purpose. Mr. President , there are a lot of other things we can do to make the tax code better for middleclass families. Throughout this process republicans are going to make sure that hardworking americans are at the forefront of our efforts. We know American Families do the best job of spending their own money and any tax reform bill we pass will allow them to keep more of their hardearned dollars. Mr. President , before i close, i would just like to spend a couple of minutes talking about the National Defense authorization act which well be considering here this week. Our military often got the short end of the stick during the Obama Administration and we have a lot of work to do to bring our military back to full readiness and to modernize our resources. Recent events from the increased aggression of the north korean regime to the anniversary of september 11 remind us of the importance of making sure that our military is ready to meet any threat. A key element of keeping the peace is making sure that we have the military strength to deter aggressors. Take north korea. Our main focus needs to be on a diplomatic resolution to growing tensions in the region. But as the president has made clear, the full strength of the u. S. Military is and has to be at the ready to protect american interests and those of our allies. The air force has conducted shell force exercises which have featured b1 bombers from south dakota to Deter North Korea aggression. While we continue with our diplomatic efforts we need to make sure we project the kind of overwhelming strength that would make north korea think twice before trying to engage the United States. Needless to say, we also need to maintain robust capabilities on the defensive side. Thats why ive introduced an amendment to the National Defense authorization act to require that we test our groundbased midcourse defense antiballistic Missile System twice a year. Yes, tests may fail, but an increased test pace will lead to improvements and ultimately ensure the reliability of our missile interception defenses. Mr. President , in addition to north korea, were still dealing with continued threats and instability in the middle east. U. S. Led efforts against isis have had significant success on the ground especially in iraq, but isis recruisecretement remas active and evermore dangerous. There are still complex security challenges on the ground in syria and afghanistan and were continuing to deal with an iran that has grown more defiant in the wake of president obamas nuclear deal. On top of all this, russia and china continue to take advantage of regional instability to project power and challenge the u. S. And its allies. Russia continues to occupy ukraine and challenge nato and propped up the assad regime in syria. China is only halfheartedly working to keep north korea in check all the while expanding its presence in the pacific by mil militarizing reefs. All these presence stress the importance of readiness. This years drens authorization act Defense Authorization act takes significant steps towards achieving those goals. This bill sets policy and authorizes resources that will strengthen military readiness. That includes funds for new ships and advanced Technology Development and nextgeneration capabilities to ensure that our military is the strongest fighting force in the world. That also includes critical funding to boost the end strength of the army and the marine corps. This bill also authorizes the 2. 1 acrosstheboard pay raise for the dedicated men and women of our military and the bill contains a number of measures to improve quality of life for soldiers and their families and department of defense civilian employees. This legislation also ends troubled and redundant programs and reduces unnecessary expenditures to ensure taxpayer dollars are not being wasted and to free up funding for military priorities. Mr. President , ive introduced two other amendments to this bill to help further boost readiness. The first seeks to optimize special use airspaces for our military pilots. My amendment would require a report on management of special use airspaces and their use for training with the goal of improving coordination and utilization of these airspaces to meet current and future training needs. To better position the u. S. To meet ever changing Cyber Threats i introduced an amendment to establish a Pilot Program for a cyber program. It is essential that the department of defense establish additional pipelines to train more men and women in uniform to counter the mounting Cyber Attacks that were facing. Mr. President , im grateful to senator mccain and other senators on the armed Services Committee for their work on this bill. Its an important step forward in making sure our nation is secure and capable of meeting and deterring threats. Mr. President , i yield the floor. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from missouri. Mr. Blunt i want to join my colleague senator thune in talking now about the Defense Authorization act, the bill thats before the committee right now and before the house right now, rather, the senate. The preamble of the constitution says that one of the purposes of the founding of the government was to provide for the common defense. I think i believe that the numberone priority of the federal government is to do that job. Lots of arguments about what level of government can better do lots of other things, but i dont hear many arguments about what the job of defending the country is all about or who has to do that job. When we send our troops into harms way, its our job to ensure that they have the tools they need, that they have the resources they need to carry out their mission. Thats what chairman mccain has done in this authorization bill before the senate today. Senate passage of the bill would mark the 56th year in a row that the congress has passed the National Defense authorization act. It should give you some indication of how serious that job is. There are very few things that the congress manages to do every year. The authorization of how we do what we do, the bill that provides or at least authorizes the necessary funding, this authorization bill. It provides the authorities that the military needs to defend the nation are in this bill. The world is a rapidly changing place. Our responsibility to defend freedom in that world and the freedom of americans is something that every year needs to be carefully looked at and recalculated and recalibrated, and thats what chairman mccain and his committee have done with this bill. I support the bill. I want to talk about some of the key provisions in the bill. First of all, senator thune just mentioned pay raise for our troops, 2. 1 , a pay raise that they rightfully deserve, a pay raise that because of the demands on the military today and im going to talk about that a little later the time spent, what we expect of our military to do with less resources and fewer people, we expect them to do a bigger job, a 2. 1 pay raise is a pay raise thats richly deserved by those who defend us. The bill enhances the capability of our Defense Forces of the military to defeat isis, to defeat al qaeda, to defeat enemies that even though this is 16 years after 9 11, these are enemies that we still have a hard time fully understanding. The emerging threat of these enemies, the nontraditional threat, the nontraditional combatant all are things that we need to continue to look at carefully to adjust to, to understand their prowess on social media and other places, to understand what can happen there. This focuses on terrorism. It focuses, this bill, on cyber warfare, on the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery. By the way, on cyber, the missouri National Guard has one of the leading Cyber Defense units anywhere in the country. As ive said about this program before, people going and this is a place where the reserves and National Guard can particularly do a great job because theyre going in and out of a different environment every day, going to work, defending the utility grid, defending the financial grid, doing that and knowing what those attacks are like as they step up and do their work as a reservist or a guardsman. This bill ensures that our men and women in uniform have the equipment they need to succeed, including looking at the growing capacity of our enemies. We never want people who are defending us to be in a fair fight. We always want them to be in an unfair fight, and we want the advantage that can possibly be given to be on the side of those who defend our country and defend freedom. Im glad that this bill projects some of the vital things that happen in our state, and of course in your state, mr. President , lots of things happen in alaska, as they do in missouri. This bill further advances the need to replace the National Geo Spatial facility in st. Louis where 30 plus of the people work that monitor our defense posture from the air, looking to see whats happening, when its happening, how its happening, fully redundant with the facility in springfield, virginia. If one of those doesnt work for whatever reason, the other one becomes the 100 provider of our geospatial activity that goes on all the time. Theres a new hospital at Fort Leonard Wood in this bill. Its been the numberone priority for the medical numberone medical priority for the Defense Department now for about a decade. This funds the first phase of that replacement of that facility. As a National GuardTraining Facility at rose crams in saint joseph where our nato allies go to learn we had 19 countries in recent times have come and learned the lift capacity, how you use those c130s in the most effective and efficient way. Thats recognized in this bill, as is the Aviation Repair facility in springfield, missouri, where a 32 Million Investment, a 34 Million Investment would return 62 million the first year, saving about 111 million at that facility every year now. But phase 3 in that facility would return 62 million the first year. I dont know that ive ever talked about the Government Investment before where you get all the money back in the First Six Months in a week or so. The bill also provides robust funding for a10 maintenance, that a10 reserve unit at whiteman where the secretary of the air force just was. Its the unit that if youre talking to troops on the ground they always like the a10 in the air supporting them on the ground. There is money here for Super Hornets to go on our aircraft carriers. It doesnt matter how many aircraft carriers you have. If you dont have the planes to put on the aircraft carriers, and this bill recognizes that. Something that i have worked for for some time, and i know you understand so well, mr. President , the military family stability act is in this bill. It was in the senate bill last year. It was not able to be in the final bill, but it will be in the final bill that the house and Senate Passed this year, i am confident. The secretary of defense supports it. All the joint chiefs support it. And our house colleagues have supported it as well. This