,,iv #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,,res4 #ajjc ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,june #ae1 #bjbj ,ms4 ,lee of ,california 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,pocan1 ,ms4 ,jayapal1 ,mr4 ,grijalva1 ,mrs4 ,watson ,coleman1 ,mr4 ,de,fazio1 ,mr4 ,garca of ,illinois1 ,ms4 ,ocasio-,cortez1 ,mr4 ,huffman1 ,mr4 ,levin of ,michigan1 ,ms4 ,tlaib1 ,ms4 ,schakowsky1 ,ms4 ,pressley1 ,mr4 ,blumenauer1 ,ms4 ,omar1 and ,mr4 ,mc,govern7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,armed ,services1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,,resolution ,expressing the sense of the ,house of ,representatives regarding wasteful ,pentagon spending and supporting cuts to the bloated defense budget4 ,whereas ,pentagon spending since #i_/aa adjusted for inflation has increased by almost #ej percent2 ,whereas the ,united ,states has spent an estimated #f1jjj1jjj1jjj1jjj on military operations since ,september #aa1 #bjja1 and has been at war constantly since then2 ,whereas the ,pentagon's budget in fiscal year #bjbj totaled #gch1jjj1jjj1jjj1 including for base and ,overseas ,contingency ,operations2 ,whereas while ,pentagon spending continues to rise1 spending on diplomacy has stalled or been reduced1 resulting in an overreliance on military action and insufficient use of diplomatic and other nonmilitary tools2 ,whereas only one-third of discretionary spending is available for important domestic priorities that help reduce poverty and inequality1 including public health1 education1 housing1 energy1 diplomacy1 and others2 ,whereas the ,pentagon failed its first ever agencywide audit in ,november #bjah2 ,whereas the ,department of ,defense spent nearly #a1jjj1jjj1jjj in activities related to the #bjah audit and achieving an agencywide audit could take years if it is to ever achieve one1 let alone pass2 ,whereas the audit revealed significant technology systems1 security1 and organizational deficiencies in the ,department of ,defense's financial management systems2 ,whereas the ,pentagon's first ever agencywide audit occurred nearly #cj years after the passage of the ,chief ,financial ,officers ,act of #aiij1 which established the requirement for annual audits of financial statements for ,federal agencies2 ,whereas the ,pentagon's second agencywide audit in ,november #bjai uncovered #a1cjj new deficiencies2 ,whereas in #cb cases ,pentagon contractors provided false information about their ownership and were accused or found guilty of price gouging1 providing poor-quality goods and services1 abusing programs intended for small businesses1 and improperly disseminating sensitive information2 ,whereas the ,pentagon continues to reveal high levels of waste and fraud1 including1 for example-- 7#a7 the ,pentagon awarded a #g1jjj1jjj cloud-computing contract to a #a-person company2 7#b7 the ,defense ,logistics ,agency lost track of #hjj1jjj1jjj in construction projects2 7#c7 last year1 the ,pentagon spent #d1fjj1jjj on crab and lobster in an-end-of-the-year spree2 and 7#d7 the ,pentagon had no way to track replacement parts for the #a1djj1jjj1jjj1jjj ,f-#ce ,joint ,strike ,fighter program2 ,whereas the military budget accounts for more than half of all discretionary spending2 ,whereas according to the ,government ,accountability ,office1 the ,department of ,defense has more unheeded audit recommendations than any other agency2 ,whereas it remains ,congress' intent to reduce defense waste1 increase transparency1 and reduce or eliminate poor management practices at the ,department of ,defense2 ,whereas ,congress remains deeply concerned about the ,department of ,defense's inability to achieve an unqualified audit opinion as it is the only ,federal agency yet to pass one2 ,whereas every hour taxpayers are paying #cb1jhj1jjj for total cost of wars since #bjja1 and these endless wars have not made ,americans safer or brought democracy or stability to the ,middle ,east1 indeed they have further destabilized the region and show no sign of actually ending or achieving any of the long-ago stated goals2 ,whereas interviews with senior military leaders and other senior officials showed many believed the war in ,afghanistan to be unwinnable and knowingly misled the public for years2 ,whereas in addition to defense base spending in fiscal year #bjbj1 ,congress provided close to #gb1jjj1jjj1jjj for defense ,overseas ,contingency ,operations1 which has enabled continuing military actions and wars in several countries1 without specific congressional authorization and many almost hidden from the ,american people2 ,whereas the ,overseas ,contingency ,operations account functions as a make-war-easy budget gimmick1 and has grown significantly to fund wars and military actions overseas1 which ,congress has yet to authorize2 ,whereas the continual use of ,overseas ,contingency ,operations funds1 especially for the cost of enduring requirements rather than unexpected emergencies is the opposite of a contingency account and has resulted in less oversight1 less transparency1 and higher levels of waste2 ,whereas #a1hjj1jjj1jjj1jjj in appropriations has gone into the ,overseas ,contingency ,operations account since #bjja2 ,whereas the ,department of ,defense transferred #f1ajj1jjj1jjj in previously appropriated fiscal year #bjai department funds to build an unnecessary and immoral wall at the southern border and is planning to transfer an additional #g1bjj1jjj1jjj in fiscal year #bjbj appropriated funds for the wall2 ,whereas spending on sustaining and modernizing the excessively large ,united ,states nuclear arsenal is projected by the ,congressional ,budget ,office at nearly #ejj1jjj1jjj1jjj between fiscal years #bjai and #bjbh2 ,whereas world military spending totaled more than #a1fjj1jjj1jjj1jjj in #bjae1 with the ,united ,states accounting for #cg percent of the total2 ,whereas the ,united ,states spends more on defense spending than the next seven countries in the world1 including ,china1 ,saudi ,arabia1 ,russia1 the ,united ,kingdom1 ,india1 ,france1 and ,japan1 combined2 ,whereas the ,united ,states could save an estimated #cej1jjj1jjj1jjj per year by cutting defense spending on our endless wars and by cutting unnecessary and wasteful defense spending and would still be spending more on the military than ,china1 ,russia1 ,iran1 and ,north ,korea combined2 ,whereas despite concerns about depriving the troops of funding1 half the military budget goes directly to military manufacturing corporations whose top five ,c,e,os in #bjaf averaged #ai1jjj1jjj in salaries1 while #bc1jjj active-duty ,united ,states servicemembers and their families qualified for food stamps because their salaries are too low2 ,whereas there have been significant deficiencies in the health and safety of housing for military families1 including mold blooms1 collapsed ceilings1 exposed lead paint1 and unsafe drinking water2 ,whereas in recent public opinion polls1 a majority of ,americans indicate they do not want ,pentagon funding increases and a ,university of ,maryland poll in ,july #bjah found that ,republicans and ,democrats alike would support large-scale ,federal spending cuts to defense2 ,whereas the ,pentagon must realign its security mission1 interests1 and values to ensure our ,nation is spending taxpayers' dollars wisely and that our military spending does not distort our budget by maintaining a war economy1 or encourage too frequent reliance on military rather than diplomatic options2 ,whereas any spending cuts to the ,pentagon could be reinvested in other important domestic priorities to help reduce poverty and increase economic opportunity in communities across the country2 and ,whereas the ,pentagon could significantly decrease its spending by-- 7#a7 eliminating the ,overseas ,contingency ,operations account and saving #fh1hjj1jjj1jjj2 7#b7 closing #fj percent of foreign bases and saving #ij1jjj1jjj1jjj2 7#c7 ending wars and war funding and saving #ff1jjj1jjj1jjj2 7#d7 cutting unnecessary weapons that are obsolete1 excessive1 and dangerous and saving #eg1ijj1jjj1jjj2 7#e7 cutting military overhead by #ae percent and saving #ch1jjj1jjj1jjj2 7#f7 cutting private service contracting by #ae percent and saving #bf1jjj1jjj1jjj2 7#g7 eliminating the proposal for the ,space ,force and saving #b1fjj1jjj1jjj2 7#h7 ending use-it-or-lose-it contract spending and saving #ah1jjj1jjj1jjj2 7#i7 freezing operations and maintenance budget levels and saving #f1jjj1jjj1jjj2 and 7#aj7 reducing ,united ,states presence in ,afghanistan by half and saving #bc1aej1jjj1jjj3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that it is the sense of the ,house of ,representatives that-- 7#a7 ,congress maintains that more money to the ,pentagon does not buy us more security2 7#b7 it remains ,congress' intent to reduce defense waste1 increase transparency1 and reduce or eliminate poor management practices at the ,department of ,defense2 7#c7 ,congress can and should make significant cuts to the budget of the ,pentagon while simultaneously improving support for the members of the ,armed ,forces1 by reducing unnecessary spending and reinvesting in our troops2 7#d7 ,congress must exercise aggressive oversight to track and account for the money that is being spent and to ensure the ,department of ,defense follows through with performing annual audits1 implementing recommendations1 and achieving a clean audit as quickly as possible2 7#e7 ,congress encourages the ,department of ,defense to complete its full audit before the end of the calendar year and report back to ,congress immediately2 7#f7 ,congress encourages the ,department of ,state and other agencies to use combined power of diplomacy1 foreign assistance1 and a strong and fair economy to ensure our ,nation is safe2 7#g7 ,congress supports the elimination of the ,overseas ,contingency ,operations account which makes waging war too easy2 and 7#h7 ,congress supports moves to reduce the priority given to war in our foreign policy and our current war-based national economy by using significant cuts1 up to #cej1jjj1jjj1jjj as detailed above1 from current budget plans1 while using the funds to increase our diplomatic capacity and for domestic programs that will keep our ,nation and our people safer4