Only three months on the job in Washington, Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., says he is ready to help out his fellow members of the U.S. armed forces, especially his naval comrades, ahead of a potential spending fight as a government shutdown looms in late April.

A lieutenant in the Navy Reserve, Banks is a freshman member looking to make a difference for the U.S. military from his spot on the House Armed Services Committee. He wants to reverse the perceived “readiness crisis” throughout branches of the armed services, the subject of repeated testimony from commanders recently.

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