Rep Luria Letter to President Biden on Maritime-centric National Defense Strategy

The following is a March 26, 2021 letter from Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) to President Joe Biden calling for a maritime-focused national defense strategy. Luria is a former surface warfare officer and is currently the vice-chair of the House Armed Services Committee.

March 26, 2021
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Biden,

I write at a critical juncture in our nation’s history, as we find ourselves again engaged in a great power...

https://news.usni.org/2021/04/01/rep-luria-letter-to-president-biden-on-maritime-centric-national-defense-strategy

CBO: Navy Still Needs Bigger Workforce To Dig Out of Submarine Maintenance Backlog

Los Angeles-class submarine USS Toledo (SSN-769) enters Norfolk Naval Shipyard on Jan. 21, 2021. US Navy Photo

The Navy still has major challenges in digging out of its longstanding submarine maintenance backlog even after growing the workforce at the public shipyards, according to a Congressional Budget Office report.

In a report about submarine maintenance released on Thursday, the CBO found that the Navy still faces a backlog after farming out some maintenance on its attack submarines to...

https://news.usni.org/2021/03/26/cbo-navy-still-needs-bigger-workforce-to-dig-out-of-submarine-maintenance-backlog

Luria: Navy Should Not Decommission Ships Early in Favor of New Construction

Guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal (CG-73) transits the Strait of Hormuz, Feb. 8, 2021. US Marine Corps Photo

Decommissioning ships that have viable service life at a faster rate than industry can build new ones is not how the Navy should grow the fleet, the vice chairwoman of the House Armed Services Committee said Monday.

Speaking at a Hudson Institute online forum, Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) said “the math doesn’t work” for the Navy to potentially decommission any ships early.

“I don’t see...

https://news.usni.org/2021/03/16/luria-navy-should-not-decommission-ships-early-in-favor-of-new-construction