{"id":29696,"date":"2021-03-10T18:46:15","date_gmt":"2021-03-10T18:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2021\/03\/10\/lawmakers-plan-fast-fixes-for-defense-supply-chain\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T22:25:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T22:25:46","slug":"lawmakers-plan-fast-fixes-for-defense-supply-chain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2021\/03\/10\/lawmakers-plan-fast-fixes-for-defense-supply-chain\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawmakers plan fast fixes for defense supply chain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2015 With an eye on semi-conductors, rare-earth minerals<\/a> and China, a new congressional task force on defense supply chain<\/a> vulnerabilities plans to tee up fast legislative fixes for inclusion in the annual defense policy bill in just three months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The task force\u2019s co-chairs, Reps. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., and Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., told reporters Wednesday they would work closely with the Pentagon as it assesses fragilities in its supply chain, in response to a recent order from President Joe Biden<\/a> and reporting requirement to Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is built to be [ready] in the three months leading up to the real meat and potatoes of [drafting the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act], so that we aren\u2019t waiting another year,\u201d Slotkin said. \u201cWe\u2019re seizing on the interest from a lot of corners around the country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both said they were jarred when the early months of the coronavirus pandemic revealed America\u2019s dependance on China for masks and ventilators. For Slotkin, an incident last year in which Chinese authorities delayed a shipment of medical supplies to the U.S. amid trade tensions with the Trump White House is also informing the effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow do we prepare for unanticipated future shocks,\u201d she said. \u201cYou can easily imagine having the diplomatic, military and economic communities ramping up and getting into a cycle of escalation with the Chinese that suddenly made it impossible for us to get some of the goods and services that people depend on every single day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t