Rick Scott's NAS Pensacola-inspired Secure Bases Act rolled into Senate's defense budget

Kevin Robinson
Pensacola News Journal

Following the Dec. 6 shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola, the U.S. Senate has passed legislation to improve vetting and monitoring of foreign military personnel training on U.S. soil.

On Thursday, the Senate approved the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, a $740 billion budget setting the nation's spending on the military and certain energy infrastructure initiatives.

The NDAA also included Sen. Rick Scott's Secure U.S. Bases Act, which he championed after a second lieutenant from the Royal Saudi Air Force worked with al-Qaeda operatives to plan and execute a mass shooting at the Pensacola naval base.

"I’m proud my Secure U.S. Bases Act was included in the NDAA, which will make sure foreign military students training at U.S. bases are thoroughly vetted and monitored and that our troops are protected," Scott said in a statement. "This is a huge step to ensuring the safety of our military members and their families so we never have to experience a tragedy like NAS Pensacola again.”

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The morning of Dec. 6, Saudi aviation student Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani entered a naval training building, fatally shot three people and wounded eight others before he was killed in a shoot-out with Escambia County Sheriff's Office deputies.

Alshamrani was one of the thousands of international military personnel the U.S trains annually for purposes of diplomacy, joint operation preparedness and proficiency with armaments the U.S sells to friends and allies abroad.

A federal investigation later revealed that Alshamrani had posted anti-American rhetoric on his social media accounts, that he had legally purchased a handgun in Florida, that he had traveled to the Sept. 11 monument in New York shortly before the attack and that he had communications with al-Qaeda operatives in the Arabian Peninsula dating back to at least 2015.

Following the attack, Scott and Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, introduced the Secure U.S. Bases Act, which requires a thorough vetting process before a foreign student enters the U.S.; creates a special, limited visa for foreign students; and establishes a review process so that the Department of Defense is not operating training programs in the U.S. that would be better operated abroad. 

Scott noted that other important provisions in the NDAA include a 3% pay raise for American troops, as well as his amendment to help keep oil drilling off Florida’s coasts by recognizing the importance of the Gulf Test Range, which is currently used for military testing and training.

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The Senate's NDAA also includes a measure calling for the DoD to rename military bases that carry the names of Confederate officers.The House of Representatives included a similar provision in a version of the NDAA it passed Tuesday. 

President Donald Trump has pledged to veto the legislation, but both congressional bodies approved the NDAA in sufficient numbers to override a potential veto.

Later this year, the two bodies will work to consolidate their documents and send forward a final version to the White House.

Kevin Robinson can be reached at krobinson4@pnj.com or 850-435-8527.