HM 0927

1	House Memorial
2	A memorial to the Congress of the United States, urging
3	Congress to give first priority to supporting and passing
4	the defense appropriations bill.
5
6	WHEREAS, the security of our nation and people is the first
7	and foremost obligation of the Federal Government, and
8	WHEREAS, the men and women of our United States Armed
9	Forces now serving in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps,
10	Coast Guard, Merchant Marines, National Guard, and Reserves have
11	shown great courage and self-sacrifice and deserve to be
12	equipped with the best weapons and resources to protect our
13	nation, and
14	WHEREAS, in past years, politicians have delayed passing
15	the defense appropriations bill until late in the budget year so
16	that the defense appropriations bill was misused as a dumping
17	ground for pork-barrel spending and as a political hostage to
18	pork-barrel spending in other appropriations bills, and
19	WHEREAS, in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September
20	11, 2001, on the United States, President Bush asked that the
21	Congress of the United States pass the defense appropriations
22	bill before passing other spending bills, and
23	WHEREAS, Congress acted responsibly in the 2002, 2003, and
24	2004 budgets when it passed the defense appropriations bill
25	first, thereby protecting the men and women in our Armed Forces
26	from becoming pawns for politicians' spending maneuvers, NOW,
27	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, 2003,
33	and 2004 and is requested to continue this important tradition
34	by passing and enacting the defense appropriations bill before
35	all other spending bills in 2005 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.