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"I cannot care more about our country's defense than this Congress, for it is Congress alone which has the Constitutional authority to 'raise and support Armies' and to 'provide and maintain a Navy,'" Mattis said.
He spoke as the Republican-led US House prepared for a vote on another short-term budget measure that would avert another government shutdown, but which the military says prevents it from properly funding a sorely-needed reset and modernization of US forces.