Washington, D.C.— Friday, Representative Peltola issued the following statement regarding the FY2024 National Defense Authorization Act, which passed the House 219-210:

“Today (Friday) I took one of the most difficult votes I’ve ever had to take. The defense bill on the floor today was not the same bipartisan bill that came out of committee. House leadership let the most extreme members of Congress load it up with amendments designed to create political attack ads while removing access to health care for millions of Americans who are employed by the Department of Defense, and their families.

I will always support our brave servicemen and women. I also believe that they are equal citizens, just like the rest of us. That means they have the same rights to privacy and choice in their medical decisions that any other American should have. We shouldn’t be pitting pay raises that they deserve against the reproductive freedoms that they also deserve. That is a false choice, created for purely political reasons, and I look forward to negotiations with the Senate’s version of the bill where this issue will be discussed further. I will advocate strongly to return to the bipartisan, policy-focused bill that came out of committee, and will gladly vote for a bill that fully protects our troops and their families.”

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