{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=80DDCE38-5243-48CF-993D-1660E77CF464", "Thune Applauds Senate Passage of Annual Defense Bill, Ellsworth Funding", "2021-12-15", "2021", "2021-12", "Republican", "Senate", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", "thune", "https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "Clickhere to watch the video.\n\nU.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today applauded the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2022. Thune noted that the bill contains numerous priorities that benefit South Dakota and the future B-21 bomber mission at Ellsworth Air Force Base.\n\nNDAA priorities for South Dakota include:\n\n$2.87 billion for B-21 development\n\n$47 million for a B-21 Field Training Detachment Facility\n\n$36 million for a B-21 Mission Operations Planning Facility\n\n$65 million for a B-21 Washrack and Maintenance Hangar\n\n$24 million for a B-21 additions to the flight simulator facility\n\n$70 million for a B-21 Formal Training Unit/Aircraft Maintenance Unit\n\n$41 million for a B-21 two-bay Low-Observable Restoration Facility\n\n$9.8 million for an F-16 Mission Training Center at Joe Foss Field\n\n$15 million for a South Dakota Guard Readiness Center in Sioux Falls\n\nPreservation of B-1 maintenance and operational squadrons through at least fiscal year 2023 or until their replacement by B-21 units\n\nThune\u2019s remarks below (as prepared for delivery):\n\n\u201cMr. President, I am pleased that today we will finally move to a vote on the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022.\n\n\u201cThanks to Democrats\u2019 focus on their reckless Build Back Better tax-and-spending spree, consideration of the NDAA \u2013 one of the most important bills we consider every year \u2013 was delayed for months.\n\n\u201cAnd of course once we finally got onto the bill, Democrats rushed the process.\n\n\u201cSenators of both parties filed a total of 1,000 amendments on this bill, but not one of those amendments received a vote on the Senate floor.\n\n\u201cBut at least we\u2019re finally here, set to pass this critical legislation.\n\n\u201cAnd I am pleased that Republicans were able to strengthen this bill in committee and in the so-called pre-conference negotiations.\n\n\u201cThis includes removing troublesome provisions like \u201cred flag\u201d laws that would summarily suspend the Second Amendment rights of our men and women in uniform.\n\n\u201cThanks in large part to Republican efforts, the final bill is $25 billion above President Biden\u2019s inadequate budget request.\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ve made a lot of progress over the past several years on rebuilding our military, which \u2013 after years of underfunding and budgetary uncertainty, combined with heavy operational demands \u2013 had been left under-equipped, under-manned, and under-prepared to meet the threats of the 21st century.\n\n\u201cThe situation had gotten so bad that in 2018 the bipartisan National Defense Strategy Commission released a report warning that our readiness had eroded to the point where we might struggle to win a war against a major power like Russia or China.\n\n\u201cAn especially chilling warning considering the mounting destabilization from both of these countries today.\n\n\u201cAnd the commission noted that we would be especially vulnerable if we were ever called on to fight a war on two fronts.\n\n\u201cBut, as I said, over the past several years we\u2019ve made a lot of progress on restoring military readiness.\n\n\u201cUnfortunately, President Biden\u2019s inadequate budget request threatened to undo some of that progress.\n\n\u201cSo I\u2019m very pleased that thanks in large part to Republican efforts, Democrats and Republicans have agreed on a final number that will continue our reinvestment in our military so that our men and women in uniform will have the resources they need to address the threats of the 21st century.\n\n\u201cWith both China and Russia flexing their military power \u2013 and the growing danger of a further Russian invasion of Ukraine \u2013 it is critically important that we ensure that our nation is always prepared to defend itself and our vital national interests, whatever the threat.\n\n\u201cAnd on the subject of Ukraine, I am very pleased that the final bill we\u2019ll vote on today includes an additional $50 million in military assistance for Ukraine.\n\n\u201cUkraine has spent years dealing with a Russian invasion that threatens to push further into its sovereign territory, and we should be supporting the efforts of this free nation to defend itself from Russian aggression.\n\n\u201cMr. President, I am particularly proud to announce that this year\u2019s NDAA contains the necessary funding to continue essential preparation for the B-21 mission at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.\n\n\u201cWe found out in June of this year that Ellsworth had officially been named Main Operating Base 1 for the future B-21 bomber \u2013 \u2018Home of the Raider.\u2019\n\n\u201cThis designation not only means that Ellsworth will be the first base to host the B-21 Raider, but that it will also host the formal training unit and the first operational squadron.\n\n\u201cThe stealth B-21 bomber will eventually replace the Air Force\u2019s B-1s, which have been a proven workhorse within Global Strike Command but must be divested to free up capacity and resources for an even more agile and capable bomber fleet.\n\n\u201cOnce operational, the B-21 Raider will be a critical part of our nation\u2019s long-range strike capabilities and nuclear deterrent well into the future.\n\n\u201cAnd I am incredibly proud that South Dakota and Ellsworth were chosen to serve as the first operating base for the B-21s.\n\n\u201cWhen I first came to the Senate, the outlook for Ellsworth wasn\u2019t so rosy.\n\n\u201cI had barely arrived here in the Senate when Ellsworth was placed on the Base Realignment and Closure, or BRAC, list.\n\n\u201cIt was an all-hands effort by the congressional delegation and Ellsworth and state and community leaders to make the case to the Bush administration and the BRAC Commission to remove Ellsworth from the closure list.\n\n\u201cMany thought South Dakota might not have the clout to make this stand \u2013 that we didn\u2019t wield enough influence.\n\n\u201cWe were only given about 12 percent odds of pulling through.\n\n\u201cBut we were determined that we weren\u2019t going to lose Ellsworth.\n\n\u201cAnd we stood our ground and won the day.\n\n\u201cEllsworth was removed from the BRAC list that August.\n\n\u201cAnd we got right to work on building up the base so that we would never again find ourselves in the same position.\n\n\u201cIn 2007, we saw the Air Force Financial Services Center open at Ellsworth.\n\n\u201c2011 saw the arrival of the 89th Attack Squadron, and its command and control stations for MQ-9 Reapers.\n\n\u201cAnd in 2015 a decade-long mission paid off with the quadrupling of the training air space for the base.\n\n\u201cThe Powder River Training Complex is now the largest training air space in the continental United States and can be used for large-force exercises that draw combat aircraft from across the country.\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s also well-suited for B-21 training \u2013 which is undoubtedly one of the reasons that Ellsworth was chosen as the first home of the Raider.\n\n\u201cAnd I am committed to ensuring that Ellsworth has everything it needs for its new mission, so that it can continue to serve as one of our nation\u2019s essential military assets for decades to come.\n\n\u201cTo that end, I worked to ensure that this year\u2019s NDAA contained not only full funding for B-21 development, but full funding for the first of many equipment and support facilities that will be needed for the B-21 mission at Ellsworth, including a low-observable coating restoration facility, a wash rack and maintenance hangar, expanding the flight simulator facility, and more.\n\n\u201cIt's imperative that these and the follow-on military construction projects at Ellsworth stay on pace to ensure that the B-21, once fielded, can begin operations alongside the current B-1 mission at Ellsworth to enable a smooth transition from one mission to the next.\n\n\u201cThis NDAA also ensures adequate support for our B-1s in South Dakota, Texas, and deployed on Bomber Task Force missions so that they have the resources they need until they are replaced by the B-21.\n\n\u201cI will continue to do everything I can here in Congress to support our B-1s at Ellsworth and advance the B-21 mission.\n\n\u201cMr. President, providing for our nation\u2019s defense is one of our most serious responsibilities as members of Congress.\n\n\u201cWe have an obligation to ensure that our nation is prepared to meet any threat, whether the danger comes from terrorism, rogue states, or major powers.\n\n\u201cAnd we have an obligation to ensure that our men and women in uniform have the resources they need to confront the threats we ask them to face.\n\n\u201cI am frustrated that it took us so long to move to consideration of this year\u2019s NDAA.\n\n\u201cBut I am happy that we did at least manage to secure a solid piece of legislation.\n\n\u201cAnd I look forward to voting for this bill later today.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:37:48Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", 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