Press Releases

Today, Congressman Richard E. Neal released the following statement after joining his Democratic colleagues in voting against passage of H.R. 8070 – National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025. 

“As a long serving member of Congress, I am disappointed that the National Defense Authorization Act has become a political weapon for Republicans to push radical and bigoted ideas. The NDAA is supposed to be about providing for our troops, their families, and our communities. Supporting measures like a 4.5% pay increase for servicemembers and authorizing projects that benefit the workforce at companies like General Dynamics and Warren Pumps - that’s what the NDAA is supposed to be about.

“However, House Republicans have once again politicized what has historically been bipartisan legislation by including extremist amendments. Ultimately, the political stunts made by our Republican colleagues produced a bill that my Democratic colleagues and I could no longer support. All the service members and their families, like those at Westover and Barnes, who depend on this legislation to protect our country and its interests deserve better. We are ready to get back to the difficult work of legislating and doing what the American people elected us to do - the people’s business. The people want us to support our men and women in uniform, not promote an extremist agenda.”

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