Rep. Mike Levin’s Statement Regarding Republicans’ Extreme Amendments to the National Defense Bill
Washington, D.C., - Rep. Mike Levin released the following statement regarding his vote opposing the current version of the National Defense Authorization Act.
“Congress must do everything it can to support our service members, and I’m very disappointed to see extremist Republicans in the House attempting to use our men and women in uniform to score political points. Because of MAGA Republicans’ anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ+ amendments added to the defense authorization bill on the House floor, I cannot support the bill as it currently stands.
“I support the core principles of the bill as it was reported out of committee. It’s critical that Congress strengthens our national defense, and we must increase pay for our junior enlisted service members. Doing so will help incentivize recruitment and retention and ensure that our troops are paid commensurate with the work they do.
“Congress must work together on a bipartisan basis to support our troops, and it’s disgraceful that extreme Republicans would use them as a pawn in their political game.
“I’m glad that this isn’t the final version of the bill, and I look forward to voting in favor of a defense bill that supports our troops and does not strip away the rights of our service members.”
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