***Click here for video. Click here for audio.***

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator and Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) member Kevin Cramer (R-ND) issued the following statement today on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA):

“Today the United States Senate passed the NDAA with strong bipartisan support. It bolsters our nuclear triad, improves the livelihood of our all-volunteer military force, establishes the United States Space Force, and reflects the priorities of North Dakota. I am thankful to my colleagues for their efforts and collaboration on this bill. Congress now moves one step closer to fulfilling its obligation to provide for the common defense of our nation. Now the House must act.”

Reflects North Dakota Priorities

Under Senator Cramer’s leadership, the Senate-passed NDAA bolsters support for missions affecting North Dakota’s military community that are imperative to the defense of our nation. This bill:

  • Fully funds the RQ-4 Global Hawks, which are flown out of Grand Forks Air Force Base. Senator Cramer successfully led an effort to increase the Global Hawk program by $25 million. 
  • Requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to complete a report on how “Northern Tier” bases, including Minot and Grand Forks, can best further US interests in the Arctic region.
  • Fully funds UH-1N Huey replacement program to replace the outdated Hueys at Minot Air Force Base. Senator Cramer included language to hold the Air Force accountable on its future timing and funding of the replacement program. 
  • Encourages the DOD, because of an amendment led by Senator Cramer, to reverse its 2014 decision to disallow National Guard and Reserve members to use the Montgomery GI Bill and Federal Tuition Assistance for the same college course. He is a cosponsor of the “Montgomery GI Parity Act” which provides a permanent solution to this issue.
  • Fully funds the MQ – 9 Reapers, which are flown by Fargo’s Happy Hooligans and at Grand Sky in Grand Forks.

“Our military community is a foundational element of our state. To us, the NDAA is not arbitrary funding numbers for abstract aircraft and equipment,” Senator Cramer said of the NDAA’s importance to North Dakota. “This legislation supports those in North Dakota who defend our nation at home and around the globe. We are honored by the outsized role our patriots play in the defense of our nation and the cause of liberty.”

Bolsters Nuclear Triad

This NDAA continues to prioritize the modernization strategy, including fully funding the B-52 program and an increase in nuclear deterrence modernization. Senator Cramer also included language that prohibits the drawdown or reduction of ICBMs.

“To keep us safe from foreign adversaries, this year’s NDAA bolsters our nuclear triad with an enhanced commitment to modernization, a move I firmly support,” Senator Cramer said of our nuclear arsenal. “While recently visiting the Minot Air Force Base, I witnessed the reality the base’s airmen face every day: our brave men and women in uniform feel the weight of the world on their shoulders. We must ensure they have the resources they need.”

Senator Cramer has led the defense of the nuclear triad this Congress against House Democrats who propose unprecedented cuts to our deterrence programs.

“Deterrence works. It has always worked. Deterrence has been supported by Republican and Democratic administrations,” Senator Cramer continued. “Eliminating a leg of the deterrence does not eliminate the threat; the world does not become a safer place when we remove what keeps us safe. If we defied history and the military community by unilaterally weakening our superior arsenal, as some in the House propose, we would be placing the fate of the world in the hands of our adversaries.”

Protects Energy and Infrastructure Interests

The Senate’s NDAA also includes energy and infrastructure legislation Senator Cramer helped introduce this Congress, such as the USE IT Act and the Transit Infrastructure Vehicle Security Act.

“Energy security is national security,” Senator Cramer said on the inclusion of this legislation. “These parts of the NDAA encourage American innovation and incentivize an all-above-approach to energy, while also preventing foreign adversaries from undermining American interests.”

The USE IT Act is a bipartisan bill Senator Cramer introduced with his colleagues in the Environment and Public Works (EPW) committee to support carbon utilization and direct air capture research. It also supports federal, local, and private collaboration in the construction and development of carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS) facilities. The Transit Infrastructure Vehicle Security Act is a bipartisan bill Senator Cramer helped introduce in the Banking committee to prevent federal funds from being used to purchase transportation vehicles from Chinese state-owned companies.

Improves Service Members’ Livelihood

This NDAA  seeks to improve the livelihood of our all-volunteer military force, with benefits such as a 3.1% pay raise (the largest in a decade) and assistance for military spouses looking for work or hoping to retain their job after being relocated. Senator Cramer also sponsored language encouraging the Air National Guard to change its policy and start providing tuition assistance. Earlier this year, Senator Cramer spoke with Lt. Gen. Rice advocating for this much-needed change.

“Those who offer their lives in service to our country represent the best of what America has to offer,” Senator Cramer said of our all-volunteer forces. “What they have given us we can never repay, but we can do our best to improve their livelihood as they serve and transition into civilian life.”

Creates a United States Space Force

Under Senator Cramer’s leadership, this NDAA paves the way for the creation of a United States Space Force. This bill consolidates all existing space professionals under one newly established military force dedicated to space. It helps solve the acquisition problems plaguing our military space programs and confronts the challenges our adversaries pose by creating a distinct military service dedicated to this emerging battlefront.

In committee, Senator Cramer included two important amendments to the Space Force proposal. The first requires the Commander of the Space Force report directly to the Secretary of the Air Force, after the first year after establishment. The second holds that the Commander of the Space Force become a permanent member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also after the first year of establishment. Both were supported by the Department of Defense, and Senator Cramer will work to keep them in place through the remainder of this process.

Publicly, Senator Cramer spoke in favor of the creation of a Space Force throughout this Congress and wrote an op-ed urging fellow members to approve President Trump’s request for a Space Force.

“As our military leadership made abundantly clear, we are the best in the world at space; but our adversaries know it,” Senator Cramer warned. “Space is vital to America’s way of life and to our military capabilities. I led the effort to include a modernized, capable Space Force because the United States must act now if we are to maintain our dominance in this emerging warfighting domain.”

Senator Cramer spoke on all of these issues and more during a floor speech this week on the U.S. Senate floor:

Click Here to Watch the Full Speech

###