South SFV Today

Washington D.C.—On July 14, Representative Khanna (CA-17) voted against the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024 on the House Floor. Earlier this month, he was the lone no vote on the NDAA out of the House Armed Services Committee. 

“I can’t in good conscience support a defense budget nearing $1 trillion dollars while Congress cuts relief programs for struggling Americans. More than half of our discretionary spending is on defense, but Republicans are more concerned about imposing restrictions on SNAP beneficiaries than the Pentagon. It’s shameful that a recent 60 Minutes investigation into defense contractors has resulted in better oversight of the Pentagon and found more waste and fraud than the congressional committees tasked with that very responsibility.  

And now, Republicans are using the defense budget as a chance to push for amendments that attack abortion rights, trans rights and diversity and inclusion programs. Preventing service members from getting an abortion and ostracizing trans service members doesn’t bolster national security, it hurts recruitment. What will actually keep us safe is to prioritize a modern national security strategy over defense contractor profits. That means implementing regulation to force mandatory refunds from companies engaging in waste and fraud, increasing transparency on the costs and sourcing of our weapons systems and establishing programs to incentivize good behavior from companies.

For years, I have stood alone on principle in voting no on the NDAA. As the defense budget continues to skyrocket and Republicans use it as an opportunity to pass harmful social policies, it is my hope that more and more of my colleagues will join me and spark change.”

Original source can be found here