Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee Chairman Rob Wittman (VA-1) released the following statement in response to Defense Department Secretary Chuck Hagel’s briefing on the Fiscal Year 2015 budget proposal:

“I have serious concerns about where the Administration is placing its priorities when it comes to our nation’s national security. I look forward to seeing the full, detailed release of the President’s Budget for Fiscal Year 2015 next week. We can continue to cut away at discretionary spending and force the Defense Department to bear the brunt of those cuts, or we can get serious and start addressing the real drivers of our debt. We must not and cannot balance the budget on the backs of our military men and women. For the United States military to adapt to the more volatile, unpredictable world referenced by Secretary Hagel, our nation’s defense budget should be driven by strategy, not numbers. We are approaching 13 straight years of our all-volunteer force serving in a wartime posture. As we draw down from Afghanistan, and continue to reset from Iraq, it is essential that we get the reset and retrograde of our forces correct. History shows the importance of reset after years of war; we cannot forget the lessons learned after previous conflicts and we must strike a balance to maintain a ready and capable fighting force across the branches of service. Unfortunately, we continue to hear about cuts that negatively impact the overall manning, training, and equipping of our force.”  

Congressman Rob Wittman represents the First District of Virginia. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Armed Services Committee where he is the Chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee.

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