Defense Drumbeat

On Thursday, Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-TX) joined Fox New's Happening Now to talk military readiness and the increases of U.S. troops in Syria. Watch the full piece below:

"The first job of the federal government is to protect us... it's the military that's on the lead."

"It is morally wrong to ask the men and women in the military to go perform a mission for which they are not fully prepared and fully supported with the best equipment that this country can offer."

"Their lives are at stake. This is not some theoretical numbers exercise. It literally is a question of life or death."

"We need to fulfill our first responsibilities first...we got to keep number one, number one."