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[Pages S3462-S3463]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
National Defense Authorization Act
Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, last week, we commemorated the 75th
anniversary of D-Day, and in just a few weeks, we will celebrate
America's independence on the Fourth of July.
It is important for us to pause and remember the contributions made
by the men and women who wear the uniform of the U.S. military who
fight every day to protect our freedoms.
The Senate Armed Services Committee just completed its markup of the
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 and voted
overwhelmingly to send this legislation to the Senate floor. This is an
annual event for us in the Senate. We pass the Defense authorization
bill to ensure that crucial Department of Defense programs are
continued, that America's servicemembers are paid, and that our
national defense is modernized to keep pace with the rapidly evolving
threat landscape.
One of my top priorities in the Senate has been to ensure that
America's military men and women have what
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they need to keep our Nation safe from threats both at home and abroad,
and this bill, the national defense authorization bill, fulfills part
of our commitment to do just that.
There are more than 200,000 military men and women stationed in Texas
at places like Fort Hood, Fort Bliss, Lackland Air Force Base, Naval
Air Station Corpus Christi, and Ellington Field. We in Congress have a
duty to provide these men and women with the training, the tools, and
the resources they need to achieve the most difficult missions they
face today and embark on those that will inevitably arise tomorrow.
I have no doubt that these talented servicemembers could have chosen
any career--certainly one that involved fewer sacrifices and more time
spent at home with their families--but, instead, they have chosen to
serve their country. That decision should never stand in the way of
their ability to exercise one of the most fundamental rights we have as
American citizens, and that is the right to vote.
In 2016, only 46 percent of Active-Duty military voted by absentee
ballot--46 percent. What concerns me is the fact that one-third of
those who did not vote said that the absentee voting process was too
complicated. We have to change that, so I have introduced a bipartisan
bill called the Military Voter Protection Act that simplifies the
absentee voter registration process for servicemembers stationed
abroad. It would ensure that within 30 days of arriving in theater
during a deployment, servicemembers are provided with a briefing on
absentee voting registration and an opportunity to fill out the
registration form or application.
Currently, 28 States allow the Federal write-in absentee ballot to
serve as both the registration form and the actual ballot itself. My
bill encourages the remaining States to follow suit, reducing the
amount of paperwork military members have to fill out in order to
exercise their right to vote.
This is an important step to simplify that process for our men and
women in uniform and ensure that arduous and cumbersome paperwork does
not deter them or dissuade them from casting their ballot. I have been
working with the chairman and the ranking member on the Armed Services
Committee to ensure that this provision will be included in the Defense
authorization bill for fiscal year 2020 to make it easier for our
servicemembers to make sure their voices are heard at the ballot box.
As we prepare to consider the Defense authorization bill here in the
Senate, I want to thank the men and women who serve our country and
assure them that we will continue to do everything we can to support
them and ensure they are empowered and mission-ready and, yes, that
they can also cast their ballot.
