Continuing resolutions are a crutch that hurts military readiness | Opinion

Mark Green

Guest columnist

The power of the purse was entrusted to Congress by our Founders under Article I in the U.S. Constitution. The members of the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives have proven themselves to be unworthy of this trust. In order to fund the government, reasonable spending bills must be put forward.

Instead, the refusal of House Democrats to understand the necessity of efficiency and proper budget operations has forced Congress to rely on a bailout in the form of a continuing resolution. Yes, both parties are guilty of dropping the ball when it comes to spending, but we absolutely cannot afford to continue to do so.

25 fiscal years of continuing resolutions

Now that President Joe Biden has signed the continuing resolution into law, we are entering our 25th fiscal year under a continuing resolution to avoid a catastrophic government shutdown.

Time and again, Congress has failed in its duty to deliver a timely budget. For essential functions such as the military, this means that Congress isn’t only neglecting its constitutional obligation of appropriations, but also keeping the federal government from fulfilling one of its most important responsibilities: to “provide for the common defense.”

U.S. Military Police walk past Afghan refugees at the Village at the Ft. McCoy U.S. Army base on September 30, 2021 in Ft. McCoy, Wisconsin. There are approximately 12,600 Afghan refugees being cared for at the base under Operation Allies Welcome. The Department of Defense, through U.S. Northern Command and U.S. Army North, and in support of the Department of Homeland Security, is providing transportation, temporary housing, medical screening and general support for at least 50,000 Afghan evacuees at suitable facilities in permanent or temporary structures while the Afghans complete the processing necessary to resettle in the United States.

By habitually relying on continuing resolutions, services of the Department of Defense are being halted each year, threatening the safety of my brothers and sisters on the front lines and putting America at risk in a time of heightened global tension and rising national security threats.

Every year that Congress fails to produce a full defense budget, the Department of Defense reports multiple losses that slow weapon development and manufacturing. For example, in fiscal year 208 alone, the department saw a delay in over 75 weapons programs. This trend continued, with fiscal year 2020 bringing damages to important projects such as hypersonic weapons and helicopter training. Just last year, the lack of a proper budget brought on significant cuts to the military’s W93 warhead program. Continuing resolutions cause irrevocable damage to our military and deeply jeopardize our national security.

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Continuing resolutions prevent our military from developing long-term defense plans and crucial strategies to protect American safety. Without the passage of full-year appropriations, programs set to begin in the new fiscal year must be put on hold.

Recruitment, hiring, research and training delayed

This means that projects are regularly starting behind schedule. Even if delayed funding is eventually recouped, the military can never make up for the time it lost while waiting. Further, continuing resolutions disrupt and delay recruitment, hiring, research and even training. How can we expect our military leaders to plan for the future and keep our military prepared if they have no idea what equipment they will be able to afford? How can we expect our brave men and women in uniform to be ready for whatever conflict arises if they are continually deprived of training? How can we expect to keep our troops safe if we repeatedly delay the maintenance and upgrading of military equipment?

The ongoing use of continuing resolutions will result in a downfall of our military’s ability to properly defend and protect. Having served in the Army for two decades, I know firsthand how important stability is within the military, yet our troops are forced to rely on the mercy of a Congress that continues to employ inherently unstable means of revenue.

Continuing resolutions create opportunities for waste and mismanagement throughout all federal agencies. Under the continuing resolution, these agencies are crippled with an inability to hire new staff, implement new programs or cut existing programs that waste money. Congress’s reliance on continuing resolutions is becoming the norm.

In this handout image released by the U.S. Department of Defense, Major General Chris Donahue, commander of the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division, XVIII Airborne Corps, boards a C-17 cargo plane at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Aug. 30, 2021. Donahue was the final American service member to leave Afghanistan.

According to a report by the Congressional Research Service, the time under which the Department of Defense has operated under a continuing resolution has increased each year with the exception of 2019. Since 2010, the Department of Defense has begun 11 of 12 fiscal years without a fully approved budget.

These are months and years where the American military could not live up to its potential, where we could not compete to the best of our ability against our adversaries, and where we let our military personnel down by not being able to implement necessary training programs. This debilitating hindrance is unacceptable and wholly unsustainable for the future of our nation.

Continuing resolutions are a shortcut and a fundamentally irresponsible way to govern. It is Congress’ constitutional obligation to “promote the common welfare” and “provide for the common defense'' through the Article I power of appropriations. The enormous responsibility of holding the power of the purse that was left to the House of Representatives must begin to be taken seriously by the Democrats.

Congressman Mark Green is a physician and combat veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq. He interviewed Saddam Hussein for six hours on the night of his capture. He serves on the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees.