VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Local members of the House of Representatives joined Navy brass at the annual luncheon organized by the Navy League of Hampton Roads, covering topics that included the size of the Navy, shipbuilding, DOGE and the trade war. Republicans Jen Kiggans of Virginia Beach and Rob Wittman of Williamsburg, along with Democrats Bobby Scott of Newport News and Jennifer McLellan of Surry, took questions from about 350 guests at the Marriott Oceanfront. Wittman said he's pushing for more ships, an initiative that President Donald Trump has already championed. Trump’s plan to ‘resurrect’ American shipbuilding could mean opportunity for Tidewater "Quantity has a quality all of its own," Wittman said. "When the Chinese have so many more ships than we have — I don't care how good our ships are — there's only so many targets that we can engage." "Do I have enough ships? I'll always say no to that," said Admiral Daryl Caudle, commander of U.S. Fleet Forces, prior to the luncheon. "You always need a Navy that's right-sized to do the things that are needed. So I think we could be bigger, and the Secretary of the Navy is going to really look hard at shipbuilding and maintenance modernization." On another topic, Scott said Elon Musk's DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) is too scatter-shot to be effective. Rep. Scott hosts Medicaid roundtable in Norfolk "The layoffs are being done without much regard to efficiency," Scott said. "They're just across the board layoffs. Some are laid off and then called back because they figured out that that was a mistake." Kiggans, a Navy veteran, said we can't overlook the need to retain the workforce that supports the Navy, even though they don't wear the uniform. Kiggans: Cuts that weaken defense capabilities ‘unacceptable’ "Let's talk about it the shipyard and the ship repair shipbuilding workforce," Kiggans said, "because I can't keep those guys if I'm not focused on their paying compensation, their housing, their child care issues." Meanwhile, McLellan said the trade war and the tariffs that have begun in the trump administration are hurting the farmers in her Fourth District. Despite our current time of hyper-partisanship, the four House members emphasized a signpost of cooperation. They said the entire Virginia delegation — 11 members of the House and two senators — comes together each month for a regular meeting. ...read more read less