{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov/news/press-releases/thune-calls-on-democrats-to-support-the-bipartisan-national-defense-authorization-act/", "Thune Calls on Democrats to Support the Bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act", "2026-07-14", "2026", "2026-07", "Republican", "Senate", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", "thune", "https://www.thune.senate.gov/news/press-releases/", "scraper", "Click here to watch the video.\n\nWASHINGTON \u2014 U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor:\n\nThune\u2019s remarks below (as delivered):\n\n\u201cMr. President, before I begin my remarks this morning, I want to offer a word of welcome to the new senator from South Carolina.\n\n\u201cLater today, we will swear in Darline Graham to fill the seat of her brother and our friend, Lindsey Graham.\n\n\u201cAnd I know Darline will carry on Lindsey\u2019s tireless service for South Carolina, and I look forward to serving with her.\n\n\u201cMr. President, like many of us, I represent a state with a rich heritage of military service.\n\n\u201cAnd South Dakota continues to punch above its weight in our armed forces.\n\n\u201cOur National Guard is frequently called up for critical deployments at home and around the world.\n\n\u201cAnd Ellsworth Air Force Base is a key asset to our national defense.\n\n\u201cIn fact, today Ellsworth is the largest construction site in the Air Force as it prepares to host the first B-21 bombers next year.\n\n\u201cDuring the recent state work period, I was glad to welcome Air Force Secretary Troy Meink \u2013 a South Dakota native \u2013 to Ellsworth.\n\n\u201cWe met with the base leadership and some of the airmen stationed there, and we saw the progress the base is making as it prepares for its important new mission.\n\n\u201cMr. President, whether responding to a natural disaster at home or fighting our enemies abroad, the men and women in America\u2019s armed forces stand ready to answer the call.\n\n\u201cThey are our most important national security asset.\n\n\u201cAnd we have an obligation here in Congress to ensure that they have everything they need for whatever the mission may be.\n\n\u201cI know senators on both sides of the aisle take that obligation seriously.\n\n\u201cAnd we must.\n\n\u201cAs I\u2019ve said so often before, if you don\u2019t get national security right, the rest is just conversation.\n\n\u201cIf we don\u2019t make national security a priority here, we run the risk that Americans serving in uniform won\u2019t have what they need when they need it.\n\n\u201cMr. President, that\u2019s why the National Defense Authorization Act is one of the most important bills that we do each year.\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s the bill that helps ensure our military is ready today and prepared for tomorrow.\n\n\u201cAnd I\u2019m proud that our colleagues on the Armed Services Committee \u2013 with the leadership of Chairman Wicker and Ranking Member Reed \u2013 have reported out a strong National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027.\n\n\u201cFor the 66th year in a row, the Armed Services Committee has produced a bipartisan NDAA.\n\n\u201cAnd later today, we\u2019re going to have a vote to proceed to this important bill.\n\n\u201cMr. President, we\u2019ve had regular reminders over the last few years that we live in a dangerous world.\n\n\u201cThat America still has enemies \u2013 enemies that want to attack us, our allies, and our interests.\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ve seen, too, how quickly warfare evolves in this day and age.\n\n\u201cMr. President, this year\u2019s NDAA will not only help ensure that America can keep pace with those challenges, but also that we can outpace our adversaries.\n\n\u201cIt puts a heavy emphasis on unmanned systems \u2013 especially drones and counter-drone measures.\n\n\u201cIt also continues shipbuilding efforts to strengthen our naval fleet.\n\n\u201cAnd as for our air power, this year\u2019s bill will help ensure we maintain a force of at least 1,800 fighters and supports the new B-21 long-range strategic bomber.\n\n\u201cMr. President, there\u2019s a lot I could talk about in this bill, from investing in our nuclear deterrent to supporting munitions production.\n\n\u201cBut I\u2019ll mention just two more important aspects of this year\u2019s bill.\n\n\u201cFirst, it builds on efforts in last year\u2019s NDAA to reform defense acquisition.\n\n\u201cThat includes allowing multi-year procurement contracts that allow the Pentagon to do business more efficiently with greater predictability and savings for taxpayers.\n\n\u201cAnd Mr. President, I need to mention what this bill does for the men and women serving our country \u2013 and their families who serve alongside them.\n\n\u201cThis year\u2019s NDAA supports a 3.6 percent pay raise for our troops.\n\n\u201cAnd it invests in a number of quality-of-life improvements for them and their families.\n\n\u201cInvestments in education.\n\n\u201cHousing.\n\n\u201cHealth care.\n\n\u201cAnd child care.\n\n\u201cMr. President, our colleagues on the Armed Services Committee have put forward a strong bill.\n\n\u201cA strong bill for our national security and for the men and women who defend our nation.\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s my hope that we\u2019ll be able to pass this bill out of the Senate soon and begin the process of working with our counterparts in the House and with the White House on a final bill.\n\n\u201cRepublicans are ready to go.\n\n\u201cThe question is, how will Democrats vote today?\n\n\u201cAre there enough Democrat senators who support moving forward with a bipartisan \u2013 bipartisan, Mr. President \u2013 defense bill?\n\n\u201cI see no reason there shouldn\u2019t be.\n\n\u201cBut then again, Democrats have allowed the politics of obstruction to determine so many of their actions for the last year and a half.\n\n\u201cI certainly hope that Democrats won\u2019t now put politics ahead of support for our men and women in uniform.\n\n\u201cBut that\u2019s up to them.\u201d", 1, "2026-07-15T07:12:08Z", "2026-07-15T07:13:45Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.thune.senate.gov/news/press-releases/thune-calls-on-democrats-to-support-the-bipartisan-national-defense-authorization-act/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7687979377806187, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}