Cover Story
EXIT INTERVIEW
From the Republican Revolution of 1994 to the Global Pandemic of 2020, Mac Thornberry reflects on the past 26 years. Mac Thornberry was first elected to represent the 13th Congressional District of Texas as part of the Republican Revolution of 1994. In the years since, he has established a reputation as one of the leading authorities on national security issues on Capitol Hill. He has also become known for his ability to look over the horizon. In the mid-1990s, for example, he was one of the few members of Congress talking about the Revolution in Military Affairs and the need to increase our investment in such areas as special forces and unmanned aerial drones. In the late-1990s, he saw that the nation’s nuclear weapons complex needed reforming and introduced a bill to do just that. When the Wen Ho Lee spy scandal revealed holes in our nuclear security, his legislation became the basis for a package of reforms that, among other things, established the National Nuclear Security Administration. A few years later, Thornberry was – unfortunately -- proven right once again. 12
RIPON FORUM October 2020
