During last month’s Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) questioned military nominees about past statements regarding other Navy personnel.
00:00Ranking Member Reed. Thank you very much Mr. Chairman. Good morning to all our
00:06witnesses and congratulations on your nominations. I'd also like to welcome
00:11your families who are with you today and have been with you throughout your
00:16careers, I'm sure. I'd also like to thank the speaker for his thoughtful comments.
00:21Mr. Cowell, you are nominated to the second highest civilian position in the
00:25Department of the Navy. If confirmed, one of your most important priorities must be
00:30assisting the Secretary in growing and maintaining the fleet. For several years
00:34the Department has fallen well short of its shipbuilding and deployment plans. A
00:39number of vessels including an aircraft carrier, multiple destroyers, and the
00:43Virginia and Columbia class submarine programs are facing delays of more than
00:48a year and I'm interested to know how you would address these programs and their
00:53unique challenges and how you would work to get them back on schedule and on
00:57budget. And Mr. Cowell, while I appreciate your distinguished service in the Navy, I'm
01:03concerned about your recent record of controversial positions. In recent years
01:09you've made a number of partisan and divisive statements including disparaging
01:13certain Navy personnel, sharply criticizing US allies, and advocating for the release
01:19of convicted January 6th individuals. Mr. Cowell, I've confirmed you would
01:24represent all military and civilian personnel in the Department of the Navy including
01:29those who disagree with these statements and I hope you will take the
01:32opportunity today to explain your positions and assure this committee of your
01:36commitment to uphold the Navy's values which are centered in the
01:40Constitution. Mr. Dodd, you are nominated to be Assistant Secretary of Defense of
01:45Critical Technologies. If confirmed you will be responsible for assessing and
01:50coordinating the emergency technologies needed by our military allies and
01:54partners as well as our adversaries. In particular you will need to focus on
01:58maintaining our edge over China and Russia in areas such as artificial
02:03intelligence, hypersonics, quantum computing, and biotechnology. Much of this can only be
02:10accomplished by improving the Department's ability to overcome the so-called
02:14valley of death and turn research innovations into acquisition programs and
02:19ultimately into real operational capabilities. Your experience in the
02:23Pentagon's innovation community should serve you very well in this role. Mr.
02:29Hirsch, you are nominated to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for
02:31Manpower and Reserve Affairs. If confirmed you would serve as the principal
02:35civilian officer with supervision over all Army personnel policies. Indeed our
02:42Army's greatest asset is its people and the Assistant Secretary should be squarely
02:46focused on retaining and supporting soldiers and their families. Mr. Hirsch, you are
02:52currently performing the duties of the Under Secretary of Defense for personnel and
02:56readiness and some of your duties directed by the Secretary have been to
03:01decrease the workforce. Now, in the Department of the Army, you'll have to ensure you can operate with a decreased workforce and make sure that the reductions are sensible and add to the force and not subtract from them.
03:18Again, your experience I think will bode very well and if not, you'll be criticized repeatedly by Henry. That's his new son.
03:31Mr. Ingram, you are nominated to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for
03:35Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology. If confirmed, you will oversee research,
03:40development, acquisition, program statement, and logistics activities while the Army
03:45begins a significant transformation. You will be responsible for balancing the need
03:50for rigorous management with the imperative to move quickly and use smart
03:54acquisition strategies. To achieve this, it will be necessary to strengthen the Army's
03:59workforce and improve data systems. You have considerable experience in the Pentagon
04:03coordinating air, surface, cyber, and electronic warfare systems. I would ask for
04:08your thoughts on how the Army can better develop and field these platforms.
04:12Finally, Mr. Gillis, you are nominated to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for
04:16Installations, Energy, and Environment. If confirmed, you will be responsible for managing the
04:21Army's physical footprint. I am particularly concerned that the Army recently
04:25reprogrammed more than $1 billion from its facilities account to pay for Southwest
04:31border operations at the request of DHS and Customs and Border Patrol. Press reports
04:37indicate that this money was originally intended to improve enlisted barracks and
04:42other infrastructure repairs. In addition, extreme weather events have caused the Army
04:47billions of dollars in damage and recovery costs, which compromise soldier readiness. If confirmed,
04:53Mr. Gillis, you will need to be disciplined in staunchly defending and aligning the Army's
04:58budget to the challenges of the future, including prioritizing soldier care and readiness above
05:04all else. Again, thank you to our nominees. I look forward to your testimony, and thank you,
