Shutdown Disrupts Intelligence and Weapons Development

Washington, D.C.—Today, Secretary Robert Wilkie, Co-Chair of American Security and former Secretary of Veterans Affairs, released the following statement on the shutdown’s disruption of U.S. intelligence and defense innovation:

“The government shutdown is blinding our ability to anticipate threats and develop the tools to counter them.

Ongoing intelligence operations that inform weapons development, monitor adversaries, and assess global conditions have been disrupted. These lapses jeopardize not only today’s missions but also the research and testing that ensure tomorrow’s technological superiority.

Our intelligence and defense communities cannot operate on pause while China and other adversaries push ahead. Radicals in Congress must reopen the government immediately. Every day of delay sets back America’s preparedness and puts our servicemembers at risk.”