The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Republican leaders, led by Ranking Member Mike Rogers (R-Ala), wrote to President Joe Biden urging him to increase defense spending by 3 to 5 percent over the inflation adjusted FY21 enacted level.
In the letter, they write:
"The bipartisan National Defense Strategy Commission recommended an annual 3 to 5 percent increase above the rate of inflation in the base defense budget to ‘meet the ends the NDS establishes'. Accordingly, we believe an increase of 3 to 5 percent above inflation in the base defense budget is a prudent amount that will enable the military to stay ahead of evolving threats from our adversaries."
[…]
"Specifically, it is imperative that we improve force proficiency on new battlefields such as cyber; continue work at DoD and the National Nuclear Security Administration to modernize our nuclear triad; grow our naval and projection forces; and quickly incorporate the latest innovations and enhancements into warfighting capabilities, including air and sealift, space, missile defense, munitions, and electronic warfare."
Additionally, the Republican lawmakers highlighted the growth of China's defense investments. For America to continue protecting our interests, we must not lose our military advantage over the Chinese Communist Party. The group wrote, "The Chinese Communist Party increased its defense spending by over 75 percent in the last decade. As a result, the Chinese military has gone from an obsolete force barely able to defend its borders to a modern fighting force capable of winning regional conflicts."
Rogers is joined by all the HASC Subcommittee Ranking Members: Reps. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.), Rob Wittman (R-Va.), Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.), Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Trent Kelly (R-Miss.) and Jim Banks (R-Ind.).
The full letter to President Biden can be found here.
