A proposal by the U.S. Army to transfer AH-64 Apache helicopters from the National Guard to the Army – a proposal that would have undermined the 1-285th Attack/Reconnaissance Battalion at Silverbell Army Heliport in Marana, failed.
Barber supported additional funding for the Tomahawk cruise missile after the Obama administration sought drastic cuts to the program. The Tomahawk is built in Tucson by Raytheon Missile Systems.
“Last night, we took a number of important steps that will keep our nation safe while protecting the men and women who serve in our armed forces.” Barber said of the markup of the NDAA.
An amendment, cosponsored by Barber, and representatives Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) and Austin Scott (R-GA), will prevent the A-10 from being divested in FY2015.
The amendment also requires that an independent evaluation be conducted of planes the Air Force says can carry out the close air support mission to determine the cost of each platform and its capabilities to protect ground troops compared with the A-10.
Barber meet with Sen. John McCain and Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, about Senate action to protect the A-10.
U.S. Senators Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), John McCain (R-AZ), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), released a statement regarding the House Armed Services Committee’s bipartisan vote to protect the A-10, “The House Armed Services Committee’s overwhelming bipartisan passage of an amendment to prohibit the retirement of the A-10 next fiscal year is a significant interim victory for our ground troops. We applaud committee members for honoring our commitment to provide our troops the best possible close air support so they can accomplish their missions and return home safely. We look forward to addressing this issue in the Senate Armed Services Committee and working with members of both parties and both chambers to ensure the A-10 can continue to protect our ground forces.”
Barber also supported a bipartisan amendment that prohibits the transfer of Apache attack helicopters from the Guard to the Army. That transfer would have cut 800 soldiers and 24 Apache helicopters from the Arizona National Guard. Barber is a cosponsor of the bill in the House, H.R. 3930.
“Our Guardsmen assigned to the 1-285th Attack/Reconnaissance Battalion at Silverbell Army Heliport in Marana have fought bravely in Afghanistan, performing the same missions as active-duty units,” Barber said. “I categorically reject the notion that our highly trained and dedicated Guardsmen aren’t ready to perform attack aviation missions.”
An Army proposal would have reduced its active-duty end strength for fiscal 2015 below 490,000 and the National Guard below 350,000 in the same year. Barber voted against those reductions, saying it would hurt national security.
Barber also supported additional funding for Raytheon’s made-in-Tucson Tomahawk missile. The Tomahawk first was used in the 1970s and has been modernized and updated several times. It has been used in Iraq, Libya, Yemen and other countries where the military wanted to strike targets at long ranges.
In the NDAA, Barber also supported:
• Cyber, Signal and Intelligence support: Barber has been a strong supporter of cyber defense. Earlier this year, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel set cyber security as a high priority for the department to meet rapidly changing threats from newer technologies. Additionally, Barber supported measures in the Intelligence, Emerging Threats and Capabilities portion of the bill that strengthens signal and human intelligence. These are missions that form the backbone of Fort Huachuca.
Barber opposed a proposal to begin a round of base closures this year. Barber noted that the last round of closures was supposed to save money – but has not done so.