HB 1229

1	House Memorial
2	A memorial to the Congress of the United States, urging
3	Congress to pass and enact the defense appropriations
4	legislation before all other spending bills in 2004 and in
5	future years.
6
7	WHEREAS, the security of our nation and its people is the
8	first and foremost obligation of the Federal Government, and
9	WHEREAS, the men and women of our United States Armed
10	Forces now serving in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps,
11	Coast Guard, Merchant Marines, National Guard, and Reserves have
12	shown great courage and self-sacrifice and deserve to be
13	equipped with the best weapons and resources to protect our
14	nation, and
15	WHEREAS, in past years politicians have delayed passing the
16	defense appropriations bill until late in the budget year so
17	that the defense appropriations bill was misused as a dumping
18	ground for pork-barrel spending and as a political hostage to
19	pork-barrel spending in other appropriations bills, and
20	WHEREAS, in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September
21	11, 2001, on the United States, President Bush asked that the
22	Congress of the United States pass the defense appropriations
23	bill before passing other spending bills, and
24	WHEREAS, Congress acted responsibly in the spring of 2002
25	when it passed the defense appropriations bill first, thereby
26	protecting the men and women in our armed forces from becoming
27	pawns for politicians' spending maneuvers, NOW, THEREFORE,
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29	Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
30
31	That the Congress of the United States is commended for
32	making our nation's defense its first priority in 2002 and is
33	requested to continue this important tradition by passing and
34	enacting the defense appropriations legislation before all other
35	spending bills in 2004 and in future years.
36	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
37	dispatched to the President of the United States, to the
38	President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the
39	United States House of Representatives, and to each member of
40	the Florida delegation to the United States Congress.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.