Readiness Chairman Garamendi’s statement on President Trump’s veto of FY 21 NDAA

Congressman John Garamendi, Chairman of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness, issued the statement below in response to President Trump vetoing the bipartisan and bicameral Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 National Defense Authorization

Act (NDAA). Garamendi served on the Bicameral Conference Committee for the FY 2021 NDAA that negotiated the final version of the legislation:

“The President’s veto of the NDAA is a reckless decision that harms our troops, military readiness, and national security. Issuing this veto while the United States is in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the wake of brazen cybersecurity attacks from foreign governments, is a chaotic and irresponsible decision by the President,” Garamendi said.

“Vetoing this legislation denies our service members a much-deserved pay raise, improvements to their housing, and critical resources that will strengthen their ability to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. It also stymies the progress the Readiness Subcommittee secured in the legislation to require the military to aggressively tackle the global climate crisis, prioritize increasing its energy resiliency, and address contamination associated with perand polyfluorinated (PFAS) compounds around military installations.

“This is a strong, bipartisan NDAA that earned the support of veto-proof majorities in the House and Senate. I intend to support an override of the President’s veto of the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act,” Garamendi concluded.