Congress just did something rare: It was consistent. For the 65th year in a row, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act (known as the “NDAA”) this week on a broad, bipartisan basis.

The first NDAA that passed in 1961 was half a page. This year’s NDAA is a whopping 3,086 pages, a big bill that sets policy for the entire Department of Defense, authorizing and allocating $900.6 billion, including a 3.8 percent pay raise for service members. Congress also included authorizations for the Department of State, the Coast Guard, intelligence agencies, and parts of the Department of Energy in this year’s bill.

It’s also an opportunity for organizations like With Honor Action to weigh in on a consistent, bipartisan, bicameral process on policies that affect all Americans and our place in the world. So while you’re reading the entire bill during this holiday season, here are five takeaways from our work on this year’s NDAA.

A Nation Tested by War and a Call for American Leadership

Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine has now entered its fourth year. What began as an unprovoked act of aggression has become a prolonged humanitarian catastrophe: more than 19,000 Ukrainian children abducted, millions displaced, and civilian infrastructure targeted in daily attacks.

This conflict is not just Ukraine’s fight. It is a test of whether the world’s democracies, led by the United States and our European allies, will stand firm against terror and tyranny, or allow impunity to take root.

That’s why With Honor Action is proud to endorse H.R. 5797 / S. 2978 — the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act.

Introduced by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and Sen. Lindsey Graham, with cosponsors from both parties in both chambers, the legislation would require the Secretary of State to designate Russia as a State Sponsor of Terrorism unless it returns the thousands of abducted Ukrainian children.

“Russia’s brutal invasion has torn tens of thousands of Ukrainian children from their families; abducted, orphaned, or forced to flee their homes. These are not acts of war; they are acts of terror,” said With Honor Co-Founder & CEO Rye Barcott. “With Honor Action endorses this bipartisan legislation that finally names the Russian Federation for what it is — a state sponsor of terrorism — and gives the United States new tools to hold Putin’s regime accountable for these unconscionable crimes against humanity.”

Holding Russia Accountable: Sanctions with Purpose

The United States has expanded sanctions on Russia’s energy sector, blacklisting two of its largest oil companies and dozens of associates. These new sanctions are designed to cut off the Kremlin’s war revenues and send a clear message: America will not bankroll aggression.

But sanctions alone are not enough. History shows they work best when paired with strategic resolve — including legislative action, diplomatic alignment, and domestic readiness.

While sanctions weaken Russia’s economy, Ukraine’s battlefield success has come from something sanctions cannot stop — innovation. The next front in this conflict isn’t only economic but technological – fast-moving, adaptive, and defined by creativity under fire.

Innovation Forged on the Front Lines: Lessons from Ukraine

At the 2025 Association of the U.S. Army conference, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll delivered a simple but transformative message:

“Move fast. Break procurement.”

Ukraine’s experience has proven that victory depends on agility. As Secretary Driscoll stated:

“If you look at Ukraine, they’re updating their software on their drones every two weeks. We as a nation would have struggled to do it within two years. We’re having to retrain the entire Pentagon that the bigger threat is inaction rather than fast action — with a little bit of scrappiness required.”

That “scrappiness” has become the hallmark of Ukrainian defense.

According to the Snake Island Institute’s report, The Black Sea’s Asymmetric Blueprint, Ukraine has:

• Employed unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) and integrated them with aerial drones and precision fires, despite starting with no functioning naval fleet.
• Achieved decisive engagements, including the destruction of multiple Russian vessels such as the Ivanovets missile corvette (Jan 2024) and the Caesar Kunikov landing ship (Feb 2024) via coordinated USV strikes.
• Established an industry-military feedback loop: platforms such as “Sea Baby” and “MAGURA V5” were refined through continuous frontline feedback, showing combat-driven R&D cycles measured in months rather than years.
• Demonstrated favorable cost-exchange ratios: relatively low-cost unmanned assets inflicted outsized damage on complex, high-value Russian vessels, such as the sinking of the Moskva, a Russian guided missile cruiser and the flagship of the Black Sea fleet.

The implication for the future of U.S. defense posture:

• Modern littoral operations don’t necessarily require large capital ships; distributed, unmanned systems can achieve sea denial. 
• Naval doctrine must shift: Unmanned, distributed, and attritable systems should transition from supporting to foundational capabilities.
• The U.S. force design must incorporate faster innovation cycles, industry-military feedback loops, and break rigid procurement timelines.

Ukraine’s ability to adapt on the fly reveals a truth the U.S. military is rediscovering: readiness depends on flexibility, not just funding. That same spirit of self-reliance is now driving a new effort here at home to ensure America’s warfighters can keep their equipment and themselves mission-ready.

Fix, Fight, Win: The Case for the Warrior Right to Repair

Inspired in part by Ukraine’s battlefield adaptability, For Country Caucus members Representatives Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) and Jen Kiggans (R-VA) have introduced the “Warrior Right to Repair Act” – bipartisan legislation ensuring American service members can repair and maintain their own equipment in the field.

This reform would:

• Cut repair times by allowing troops to fix critical systems on-site.
• Strengthen supply chains by reducing reliance on single-source foreign components, particularly from China.
• Build resilience by ensuring America’s forces and its allies can operate independently under pressure.
• As Ukraine’s front-line experience shows, modern warfare rewards speed, creativity, and self-sufficiency.

Empowering troops to repair what they fight with is only one side of the readiness equation. The other is ensuring these tools, and the parts behind them, come from secure, reliable sources, not from adversaries or fragile supply chains.

Vulnerable Links: Why Supply Chains Are a National Security Issue

Russia’s invasion exposed a deeper, global vulnerability: the fragility of Western defense supply chains. The Snake Island Institute’s recent report on supply chain analysis highlights some key vulnerabilities in our global supply chain:

• Ukraine’s unmanned aerial systems (UAS) production remains highly dependent on Chinese-produced components, including motors, flight controllers, lithium-ion batteries, navigation systems, and thermal sensors.
• Nearly 97% of Ukrainian manufacturers identified China as a primary source of imports; in the first half of 2024, roughly 89% of UAS-related imports by value were still sourced from China.
• While Ukraine has begun to develop domestic manufacturing capabilities, key components such as rare-earth magnets, advanced machining tools, and specialized optics still depend on foreign supply and remain vulnerable.
• China’s control over drone/component supply chains means it holds a potential lever over not just Ukraine’s war effort, but the broader Western defense industrial base.

For the U.S., the implication is clear:

• We must diversify and secure defense supply chains, invest in domestic production of critical components (motors, sensors, controllers, batteries).
• We need to lessen our reliance on adversarial supply chains—particularly those tied to China—by leveraging incentives, strengthening public-private partnerships, and deepening industrial cooperation with our allies.
• We must treat industrial-base readiness as a national-security imperative, not simply a procurement line item.

Securing America’s industrial base will take deliberate investment, strategic cooperation, and legislative resolve. The good news is that the roadmap already exists — if we have the will to act on it.

Meeting the Moment: A Roadmap for Action

Ukraine’s struggle offers both a warning and a blueprint for others. Supporting its fight for freedom is about learning—and acting—now.

The steps ahead are clear:

• Pass the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act (H.R. 5797 / S. 2978) to officially designate Russia as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.
• Pass the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 (H.R. 2548 / S. 1241) to apply additional and secondary economic sanctions on Russia.
• Expand and enforce sanctions on Russian state-owned enterprises and energy sectors.
• Reshore and secure U.S. defense supply chains to eliminate dependencies on adversarial nations by passing the Critical Minerals Partnership Act (H.R. 4391 / S. 2550).
• Maintain bipartisan unity on sanctions, humanitarian aid, and deterrence.

These measures are more than policy proposals; they are a test of leadership and principle. What’s at stake is far greater than any single piece of legislation — it’s the measure of who we are as a nation.

Why It Matters for America

When a regime kidnaps children, targets hospitals, and silences dissent, the response cannot be partial. It must be principled, bipartisan, and strong. 

But just as important, this is a wake-up call at home. Our own readiness — technological, industrial, and moral — will determine whether the U.S. can meet future crises with confidence. Ukraine’s courage shows what happens when innovation meets necessity. America must meet this moment with the same determination.

Standing with Ukraine is about more than foreign policy; it’s about affirming the values that define American strength. The time for speeches has passed; the time for action is here.

Turning Resolve into Results

The world is watching. Congress is acting. The White House is weighing its next move.

The question is not whether the U.S. will respond, but whether we will lead.

Designate Russia as a State Sponsor of Terrorism. Enforce and expand sanctions. Empower our warfighters. Secure our industrial base.

That’s what American leadership looks like.

Protecting America’s Future

Artificial intelligence is reshaping the world in medicine, industry, finance, and national security. But as AI systems become more capable, the risks are rising just as fast.

At With Honor Action, we believe principled leadership demands we act now by building upon our previous work with the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI) and the Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP). That’s why we are endorsing three bipartisan bills: the Chip Security Act, the No Adversarial AI Act, and the No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act, bills that secure U.S. innovation, protect data, and strengthen our democracy.

Why the Moment Is Urgent

Americans expect action.

A September 2025 Gallup survey commissioned by our partners at SCSP found that 80% of Americans believe the government must prioritize safety and data security in AI development, even if that slows innovation.

Importantly, there is bipartisan support: 79% of Republicans and 88% of Democrats agree. Public opinion is clear: Americans want AI regulation that protects both innovation and national security.

Experts have warned us for years.

The NSCAI concluded in its Final Report that “America is not prepared to defend or compete in the AI era.” The report underscored the need to secure the semiconductor supply chain, invest in AI talent, and set ambitious governance goals to ensure U.S. leadership.

The private sector sees it too.

At the WIRED AI Power Summit, policymakers, industry leaders, and researchers debated the future of AI and regulation. Across sectors, there was consensus: the pace of AI development demands urgent safeguards as adversaries will not wait for us to catch up.

The bottom line: Public opinion, government reports, and private-sector leaders are aligned: America must act now to secure AI.

The Legislation We Endorse

• Chip Security Act (H.R. 3447 / S. 1705)

AI infrastructure depends on advanced semiconductors. Yet, the Chinese Communist Party has repeatedly been a bad-faith actor, diverting U.S.-made chips to their military and surveillance networks.

“The Chinese Communist Party has proven time and again that they are bad faith actors when it comes to stealing American innovation. To maintain our AI dominance, we must prevent American technological exports from being diverted into black market bazaars or the back streets of Beijing. With Honor Action is proud to endorse this bipartisan legislation that ensures manufacturers and chipmakers have the tools to identify diversion of our chips and ensure the security and privacy of our sensitive technologies.”

This legislation strengthens export enforcement, equips manufacturers to detect diversion, and ensures U.S. chips power progress—not authoritarian control.

• No Adversarial AI Act (H.R. 4142 / S. 2177)

While the U.S. leads in AI applications for healthcare and manufacturing, many foreign adversaries are racing to weaponize AI against us. The No Adversarial AI Act, led by With Honor Action ally and Navy veteran Senator Gary Peters, bans federal agencies from using AI systems developed by adversaries or under their influence. It also mandates tracking the provenance of AI systems, adding much-needed transparency to supply chains.

“While the United States looks to be a leader in the development of artificial intelligence applications for progress in fields like healthcare, manufacturing, and finance, many foreign adversaries are looking to weaponize this technology against the U.S. The No Adversarial AI Act allows the U.S. to list and track the origins of AI systems and prohibits the use of systems developed by foreign adversaries within the federal government. With Honor Action is proud to endorse this legislation to bring more transparency to AI supply chains and ensure adversaries of the United States are not using this critical technology to threaten our national security or pilfer our innovation.”

• No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act (H.R. 1121)

DeepSeek, a CCP-owned AI system, poses serious risks if allowed on U.S. government devices. Because it is subject to CCP control, DeepSeek could harvest sensitive data, spread disinformation, and undermine trust.

The No DeepSeek Act, co-led by several For Country Caucus members, including Co-Chair Rep. Don Davis, Vice Chairs Reps. Chris Deluzio and Nick LaLota, and Rep. Seth Moulton, prohibits its use on U.S. government devices, following the precedent of bipartisan bans on adversary-controlled apps like TikTok.

“We’re proud to endorse the No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act! This bipartisan legislation takes a strong stand against the national security threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party’s ownership of DeepSeek. Using this technology on U.S. government devices could expose sensitive data to adversarial influence–a threat we cannot tolerate.”

Bipartisan Leadership in Action

Veterans in Congress understand that readiness saves lives. They know that national security does not stop at physical borders — it extends to data pipelines, AI systems, and the semiconductor supply chain. That’s why members of the For Country Caucus, a bipartisan group of veterans in Congress, are at the forefront of these efforts. Their military backgrounds give them a shared understanding of what it means to be prepared, and their bipartisan cooperation ensures these bills are not about politics — they’re about security.

In a time of increased polarization, America needs Democrats and Republicans working together to tackle the 21st century’s defining security challenges.

Bottom Line

AI holds both promise and peril. Left unchecked, adversarial AI systems threaten our economy, our security, and our democracy. With principled, bipartisan leadership, America can harness AI responsibly.

The three bills we endorse — the Chip Security Act, the No Adversarial AI Act, and the No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act — offer tangible solutions to protect data, secure supply chains, and prevent adversaries from exploiting our systems.

The American people want safeguards. Experts have warned us of the risks. Veterans in Congress are showing bipartisan leadership. The moment for action is now.

With Honor Action is committed to supporting solutions that put security first, innovation on solid ground, and our democracy on a stronger footing.

Cyberspace is a domain of warfare—just like land, sea, air, and space. After World War II, the rise of air power led to the creation of the U.S. Air Force, and in 2019, growing reliance on space brought the U.S. Space Force into being.

Today, America faces relentless cyber threats that endanger our national security and way of life. These threats grow more complex and sophisticated every day. Only a dedicated Cyber Force can marshal the focus and resources needed to defend the nation and outpace our adversaries. The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space Force have vital core missions, but none can give cyberspace the singular attention it demands.

Veterans in Congress understand this reality. They know from experience how cyber attacks can put lives at risk. That’s why they’re leading bipartisan calls for bold reform: establishing a U.S. Cyber Force—an independent branch to train cyber warfighters and protect America’s digital frontlines.

The Problem: A Patchwork Defense in an Age of Constant Attack

Cyber units span the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Space Force, while U.S. Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM) centralizes training and operations. Despite fielding skilled teams, this fragmented structure duplicates effort, fuels talent competition, and creates readiness gaps.

The threat is real—and the stakes couldn’t be higher. While many of our nation’s cyber operations remain classified, recent public incidents make clear the urgent need for a dedicated Cyber Force:

• In 2021, the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack disrupted fuel supplies across the East Coast, proving that a single cyber breach can paralyze critical infrastructure.

Read ➡️ The U.S. Department of Energy’s response to the attack.

• The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) received over 850,000 cybercrime complaints in 2024, with estimated losses of $16.6 billion, a 33% increase from 2023.

Read ➡️ The FBI’s IC3 2024 Report

• The CCP has made cyberspace a central pillar of its military doctrine, investing heavily in offensive cyber capabilities to target U.S. defense, infrastructure, and private industry.

Read ➡️ The DoD’s 2023 China Military Power Report

• In April 2025, U.S. officials confirmed that the CCP had admitted to carrying out Volt Typhoon in 2023, an advanced persistent threat (APT) carried out by China’s Cyberspace Force to pre-position themselves within our critical infrastructure to disrupt or destroy critical infrastructure during a time of conflict with the U.S. The attacks focused on espionage and long-term access, exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities and “dwelling” in U.S. systems for up to 300 days in 2023.

Read ➡️ China Admitted to Volt Typhoon Cyberattacks on US Critical Infrastructure: Report

• In August 2025, the FBI announced that Salt Typhoon, a classic espionage operation carried out by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), had infiltrated at least 200 companies in over 80 countries. Among the affected companies were America’s largest telecommunications companies, including Verizon and AT&T, where infiltrators collected massive amounts of user data, including texts, voice calls, and other metadata.

Read ➡️ Unrestrained’ Chinese Cyberattackers May Have Stolen Data From Almost Every American

Cyber threats don’t respect borders. They target military networks, city governments, small businesses, and families, and America’s cyberdefense structure remains fragmented and under-resourced.

The Solution: A Dedicated U.S. Cyber Force

Military veterans in Congress and national security experts are calling for a U.S. Cyber Force—a unified branch with a singular mission: to defend America in cyberspace.

Such a force would:

• Streamline operations. No more duplication or conflicting missions between military branches.
• Attract and retain talent. Cyber operators need clear career paths, competitive opportunities, and recognition equal to other warfighting domains. They also need flexibility, and a Cyber Force should include career flexibility with a robust Cyber reserve force and Cyber National Guard.
• Ensure readiness. Cyber dominates as the most dynamic domain of warfare. Around the globe, actors create new threats, tools, and defenses every day, and our operators need the best training to stay ready for the challenge.

Bipartisan Leadership in Action

Cybersecurity is not a partisan issue—it’s a national imperative. Lawmakers across the political spectrum are working together to advance bold reforms that match the scale of our threats. We applaud members of the For Country Caucus, who are leading efforts to elevate cyber operations in Congress.

Members like Representatives Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and Don Bacon (R-Neb.), senior members of the House Armed Services Committee and both Air Force veterans, are among the leading lawmakers working to keep the idea of creating a Cyber Force at the front of mind on Capitol Hill this year.

Rep. Houlahan has repeatedly emphasized that it is time for America to consider new approaches to cyber operations:

“We need people to be thinking about this and moving relatively with speed on this, to be able to make sure that we’re not exposed, that we’re not vulnerable, and that we have a pipeline of people who could do these jobs already being developed,” the lawmaker said. “That’s why I’m involved in this.”

As Chairman of the Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation Subcommittee, Rep. Bacon is clear-eyed about the cyber threats facing our nation today, stating during a hearing earlier this year that:

“We are at war in the cyber domain…It’s time to stop talking about preparing for conflict because we are already in one.”

Through an effort led by Representative Morgan Luttrell (R-Texas), a former Navy SEAL, Congress has commissioned an independent study through the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) to examine whether establishing a Cyber Force is the best path forward.

Lawmakers insist the study explicitly assess whether the nation would be better served by creating a new Cyber Force or by expanding USCYBERCOM to be more “service-like.”

They also required the study to include bi-monthly progress updates. They set a hard deadline of November 30, 2025, to ensure urgency and allow the findings to directly inform the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Veterans in Congress are at the center of these efforts, ensuring the debate remains grounded in national security, readiness, and service—not politics.

Outside Capitol Hill, momentum is also building. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), together with CSC 2.0 (the successor to the Cyberspace Solarium Commission), has launched the Commission on Cyber Force Generation to tackle practical implementation—designing the structure, roles, and authorities for a future Cyber Force.

Rye Barcott, With Honor’s co-founder and CEO, will serve as a Commissioner.

Why This Matters to Every American

Cybersecurity isn’t abstract:

• It’s your hospital staying online during a ransomware attack.
• It’s your business surviving a cyber attack.
• It’s your bank protecting your savings.
• It’s your power grid functioning during a crisis.
• It’s our troops staying connected and secure in the field.

The battlefield has shifted. America cannot fight today’s cyber battles with yesterday’s infrastructure. Both the Air Force and Space Force were born out of necessity. In 2025, the same necessity demands a U.S. Cyber Force.

A Cyber Force ensures that the same professionalism and focus that keeps our service members safe, both at home and abroad, will now defend our cyber assets.

Bottom Line

This is not a partisan issue. Members of the bipartisan For Country Caucus are leading efforts to elevate the importance of cyber operations in Congress. They know that just as past generations rose to meet the challenge of a new domain, this generation must build a Cyber Force. Congress must act with a sense of urgency as our adversaries are not waiting to exploit our weaknesses.

What You Can Do

Action steps:

• Tell Congress: Support legislation to establish a U.S. Cyber Force.
• Share this blog: Spread awareness that cybersecurity = national security.
• Join With Honor’s network: Stay informed and amplify the call for bipartisan veteran leadership.