Defense & National Security
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Dear Colleague:
We urge you to oppose Rep. Polis’ amendment to HR 1735, the FY2016 National Defense Authorization Act.
If adopted, the Polis Amendment would amend § 5062 of Title 10 of the U.S. Code (“United States Navy: composition; functions”) to reduce the statutory requirement for operational aircraft carriers from 11 to 10. This change would expose these incredibly valuable strategic assets to budget cuts and could undermine America’s ability to respond to crises and deter conflict around the world.
March 12, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Virginia Congressional delegation announced that the U.S. Navy will position its newest carrier, the Gerald Ford, at Naval Station Norfolk for the next several years given its unique capabilities and capacity. This will provide an additional aircraft carrier to the region until 2018 when the USS Lincoln returns to its home port. In addition the Navy has decided to reverse an earlier decision and will maintain Little Creek as a deep water amphibious port and homeport four amphibious ships at Little Creek through 2020. The delegation worked with the Navy to fund critical infrastructure upgrades for Little Creek, including a $30 million electrical grid upgrade in 2012.
January 21, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner and U.S. Representatives Bob Goodlatte, Bobby Scott, Randy Forbes, Rob Wittman, Gerry Connolly, Morgan Griffith, Robert Hurt, Scott Rigell, Dave Brat, Don Beyer, and Barbara Comstock wrote a letter to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel expressing their continued support for the 11 aircraft carrier fleet in advance of the release of the President’s Fiscal Year 2016 budget proposal. In 2014, the House and Senate Armed Services Committee secured full Fiscal Year 2015 funding for the refueling and overhaul of the USS George Washington (CVN-73). In making the case for maintaining the 11 aircraft carrier fleet beyond 2015, Virginia delegation members cited the ability of aircraft carriers to respond rapidly throughout the world to military and humanitarian crises.
Issues:Defense & National Security
January 20, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement on the President’s State of the Union Address:
“Thanks to the leadership of this President and the resilience of the American people, our economy has emerged from one of the worst economic recessions since the Great Depression. But, as the President mentioned tonight, even with a growing economy, far too many hardworking American families are still not feeling the benefits of this growth. Wages remain stagnant for most workers, yet continue to grow exponentially for the top one percent. Congress must heed the President’s call to refocus our efforts to enact policies that truly benefit the middle-class by expanding opportunity for all.
January 12, 2015
By Sean Gorman, Richmond Times Dispatch/Politifact Virginia
Rep. Bobby Scott was appalled by the findings of a Senate report detailing the enhanced interrogation methods used by the Central Intelligence Agency in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
The Senate report detailed many instances when the U.S. waterboarded suspected terrorists, a drowning-like procedure in which interrogators covered detainees’ faces with a cloth and doused them with water, sometimes until they fell unconscious.
Scott, D-3rd, denounced the waterboarding as a torture method inconsistent with the United States’ image as a "moral authority" and said the report shows the country "failed to lead by example."
"After World War II, we tried, convicted, and in some cases, executed Japanese soldiers for war crimes that included charges of waterboarding," Scott said in a Dec. 9 news release.
December 9, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations on the House Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence’s redacted summary, released today, of its report on the use of torture by the Central Intelligence Agency:
“The declassified summary of the Senate Intelligence Committee’s report confirms that the Central Intelligence Agency’s Detention and Interrogation Program had a policy of torture in contravention of federal law and international conventions. While the CIA suggests that such tactics were necessary to protect the nation from future terrorist attacks, the report indicates that the relationship between many counterterrorism successes cited by the CIA in support of the policy and the ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ was tenuous at best and non-existent at worst.
November 24, 2014
RICHMOND, VA – Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-3) issued the following statement on the resignation of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel:
“Secretary Hagel has devoted much of his life and career to serving our nation – first as a combat veteran in Vietnam then as a United States Senator and now as Secretary of Defense. I saw firsthand his unwavering commitment to our men and women in uniform when he worked tirelessly with then Virginia Senator Jim Webb for passage of the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill. As Secretary Hagel moves on to the next chapter in his life, I wish him and his family well and I thank him for his service to our nation.”
Issues:Defense & National Security
November 6, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representatives Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-3), Randy Forbes (VA-4), Rob Wittman (VA-1) and Scott Rigell (VA-2) issued the following joint statement on the announcement by the United States Navy that it intends to consolidate the headquarters of its Military Sealift Command from the Washington Navy Yard to Naval Station Norfolk by the end of Fiscal Year 2019:
“This announcement from the Navy is welcome news for Hampton Roads. It is estimated that more than 400 civilian personnel and 52 active duty personnel will relocate to our region. This action is also an important strategic decision by the Navy.
September 23, 2014
By Jonathan Costen, 13 NewsNow
Source URL:
HAMPTON - Congressman Bobby Scott said if the United States wants to be successful fighting ISIS in the Middle East, Congress needs to be on board with the effort.
Congressman Scott also said that for too long congress has ignored the constitutional mandate to declare war when war needs to be declared. Dating back to the Vietnam War, "Congress wants to have it both ways, you want to be able to complain when things don't go right and you don't want to take responsibility up front, and we've been able to get away with that for 50-years and there's a lot of support for keeping it the way it is," Scott said. 13News Now interviewed Scott at a military veterans town hall meeting. Scott held the meeting to discuss the challenges veterans face with the Hampton V.A. Medical Center.
September 17, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement on his vote in favor of the McKeon Amendment to the Continuing Resolution, authorizing the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of State, to train and equip appropriately vetted elements of the Syrian opposition and other appropriately vetted Syrian groups or individuals to combat ISIL.
“The McKeon Amendment is not a formal authorization for this President or future presidents to use American military force in Syria. It has been argued that the President already has such authorization pursuant to the 2001 and 2002 Authorizations of Use of Military Force. I do not, however, believe these are sufficient authorizations to target terrorist groups that may not have even existed 13 years ago.