Unanimous Consent Requests--Executive Calendar
Floor Speech
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleagues for coming down here tonight. It is a very important issue that we are getting ready to talk about.
We are in a very dangerous world right now. Our country is being challenged on multiple fronts across the globe. We literally have American troops under attack in the Middle East.
As a member of the Armed Services Committee, as a U.S. Marine Corps colonel, I know--we all know here in the Senate--that America needs to have our best players, our most combat-capable leaders on the field, and, right now, that is not happening. It needs to change.
I just want to begin by saying something very clear. You are going to hear this a lot. I am as pro-life as they come. I strongly disagree with what Secretary Austin and President Biden have done with their politicization of the military on a whole host of fronts, including the abortion policy, which I think is illegal and violates the Hyde amendment.
And I have been working with many colleagues, but especially Senator Tuberville from Alabama, side by side, for months, trying to get this reversed, trying to get compromises. At the same time, we have been telling the majority leader: Do your job. Do your job. Bring up nominees so we can vote on them.
Now, we have had to force them to do it. Tomorrow, we are going to be voting on the CNO of the Navy, a member of the Joint Chiefs; the Chief of Staff of the Air Force; the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps--not because the majority leader brought them up, but because we forced them to. He needs to do his job.
But I also firmly believe that one of our most core basic principles--certainly, as Republicans--which I think in many ways distinguishes us from our colleagues on the other side of the aisle, is our serious focus on national security, readiness, a strong military, and taking care of our troops and their families.
We all know there are current holds on our military. I want the American people to know right now, 376 promotions to one-, two-, three- , and four-star generals and admirals are being held. It is estimated that, by the end of this year, 89 percent of all general officer positions in the U.S. military will be affected by the current holds from Senator Tuberville. Either the members have to be forced to retire, positions not filled, in acting capacity, or will be unable to retire--this is pretty much the entire officer corps. This is hugely disruptive to readiness.
A couple of examples: 288 one- and two-star generals are being held. These are the men and women who run the military right now. We are going to talk about other places. The First Marine Expeditionary Force, the Third Marine Expeditionary Force--these are the war fighting organizations of the Marine Corps--the Seventh Fleet, which is our fighting naval force in the Taiwan Strait; the Fifth Fleet, the fighting naval force in the Middle East. It goes on and on. NATO Deputy Chairman, a three-star job, empty; Deputy U.S. CENTCOM Commander, empty. The head of the Navy nuclear program, the head of missile defense--all nonconfirmed.
We have a big challenge right now. Let me be a bit more blunt on the issue of morale. The military has a huge readiness and retention problem. These holds are not helping.
As I mentioned, I am a senior colonel in the Marines. Many of the one-star and two-star who are being held right now are in my peer group. I have known these men and women for 30 years. There is growing bitterness within the ranks of our military, driven by this fact, and I want people to understand this. The men and women in the military who served our country so well for decades--probably the most combat- experienced generation since World War II--have made huge sacrifices, multiple deployments, and now their careers are being punished over a policy dispute they had nothing to do with and no power to resolve.
That is what is happening right now, and the idea that some of these officers are supposedly woke or desk jockeys is ridiculous. These are some of the most combat-experienced generals and admirals we have ever had in our country.
Finally, these holds also pose strategic risks to our force. What does that mean? We are starting to see military officers saying: Admirals and generals, I am getting out. Or they have to get out if they are going to be timed out.
We had a scandal in the U.S. Navy several years ago called the ``Fat Leonard'' scandal. It literally wiped out a generation of Navy officers who had Pacific experience. We do not want to be responsible for a Senate-inflicted hollowing out of our most experienced military officers, especially given how dangerous the world is right now.
So I have mentioned this before. I have worked closely with Senator Tuberville for months, always defending his holds, always looking for compromise. The one we are working on now: Lift the hold on the military officers who have nothing to do with this dispute and can't resolve it anyway, and put a hold on the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, who is in charge of this issue. Let's do that. That is a good compromise.
But we haven't made progress, and the world is a dangerous place. So tonight we are taking another approach. For months, Senator Tuberville has said, if individual nominees are brought up for a vote one at a time, he will be fine with that. On September 6, he said: I am not holding up nominations for being approved. They can bring them to the floor one at a time.
Well, tonight, that is exactly what we are going to do--individual votes on individual nominees, just as Senator Tuberville has requested. We have dozens. I hope the Senator from Alabama meant what he said on this issue, and he backs our troops, who are true warriors and, yes, heroes, who along with their families have dedicated their lives to this country, risked their lives for this country, and have nothing to do with this current policy dispute--nothing at all.
Last night on TV, Senator Tuberville said he was ``all for the military''--in particular, our military heroes.
You are going to hear a lot about military heroes tonight, and, hopefully, we are going to get a bunch of them confirmed, one by one, as we bring them up.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, we are going to start moving through some of these nominations. My colleague from Alabama has said publicly, hey, bring them up one at a time. And we are asking for a voice vote, so that is a vote. So we are doing what he said, not sure why he is objecting. Maybe he can explain that in a minute when I bring up another--a real hero by the way.
And, look, what Senator Tuberville said about the policy and Austin and Biden on this abortion policy, I fully agree with him. We should be suing to stop it. I think it is illegal. And he is also right; everybody uses holds. I certainly use holds.
But the key is you put a hold on someone who typically has some kind of control over the issue that you are trying to fix, some kind of responsibility. One of the things I have been talking to the Senator from Alabama on is, all right, let's put a hold on the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. He is the guy. He is a civilian, and he is in charge of this policy dispute. Let's put a hold on him--that is the right guy--and squeeze him. But why are we putting holds on war heroes? I am going to get to one here in a minute.
Again, I just--I don't understand. And, look, we can go in and out of readiness, but my colleague from Alabama is 100 percent wrong, no kidding. The readiness is being impacted when you have--I will just give a couple of examples here. This is just from one theater: EUCOM, the Deputy Chairman of NATO, pretty important job. It is a three-star billet. It is empty.
The Deputy Commanding General of U.S. Army Europe--really important job--empty.
Like I said, I MEF--that is the big Marine Corps combined force that fights anywhere in the world; 25,000 marines, commanded by a three- star--it is a two-star. Now, for those who did serve in the military, we understand this is a problem. Same with III MEF. OK. This is just from EUCOM, European Command--72 officers are unable to assume their new positions. These 72 officers include 52 who cannot move because they have been nominated for a position that requires Senate confirmation, as well as 20 other officers who are projected to be assigned to a new position now held by one of the previous 52 officers. It is creating a giant blockage in the way in which the military operates.
To say there are no readiness issues--I am the ranking member of the Readiness Subcommittee on the Armed Services Committee. There are readiness issues. And that is the whole point. We have a really dangerous world, a really dangerous world right now, and to say, ``Oh, don't worry; this isn't impacting readiness,'' with all due respect to my colleague, that is just wrong. It is not even a close call. It is wrong, and it matters to this country.
Let me give you another example: the head of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, the nuclear navy--one of the best run organizations on planet Earth, if you know anything about the military or just its organizations. It was started by Admiral Rickover. To not have the leadership in charge of the nuclear navy? That is a problem. To not have the leadership in charge of missile defense for America? That is a problem.
So, look, we can debate readiness, but my colleague on this, in my view, is respectfully quite misinformed.
I am going to bring up my first nominee. Now, this goes to the issue of some comments that have come out during this: Well, these one-star and two-star generals are kind of desk jockeys, right?
These comments have been made.
They are not warriors, right? The real warriors are the captains and the sergeants.
Look, I love the whole military, but the one- and two-star Generals-- I know a lot of them. That is my peer group in the Marine Corps. I am a little bit behind them. I am not going to be promoted. I am getting out here probably soon. But I know these guys, and the idea that somehow these are desk jockeys? Do you know who these people were, the one- and two-stars we are holding up right now, 289 of them? These were the Captains and Lieutenants who were going fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq after 9/11.
The current Commandant of the Marine Corps--by the way, every American should be praying for him; big health issues--he has a Purple Heart, distinguished combat.
These were the people who were kicking in doors in Fallujah, shooting terrorists in the face, and we have people saying they are desk jockeys and they are not warriors? That is just ridiculous. It is ridiculous, and it is insulting.
So I am going to talk about a warrior. I am getting ready to call up Col. Robert Weiler. He has been nominated to be a one-star Brigadier General, to be the 1st Marine Division Assistant Commander. That is the big division on the west coast of the U.S. Marine Corps infantry. I used to be part of the 1st Marine Division. I am proud of that. You need a Deputy Commander. They don't have one, OK?
Let's talk about Colonel Weiler--28-year career; commanded the 5th Marine Regiment--I was in that regiment, the most decorated regiment in the Marine Corps; 2d Battalion 4th Marines; 2d Battalion 24th Marines; deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan I think six times.
Think about what his family went through, OK? Think about what his family has sacrificed. And right now, people are being told: You are not going anywhere, Colonel, because we have a dispute on an issue you have nothing to do with that you can't resolve.
Let's hear a little bit more about this Colonel in the Marine Corps. He received a Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action against the enemy while serving as Commanding Officer, Weapons Company, 2d Battalion 4th Marines, 5th Marine Regiment, 6 through 10 April 2004, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom; heavily engaged by enemy forces for an over 4-hour firefight while wounded by enemy fire, OK? Purple Heart. He continued to fearlessly lead marines as they destroyed this tenacious enemy. He is no woke guy. He is no desk jockey. Oh, what else did he do? He got a Purple Heart in that vicious combat.
He received a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with a combat distinguishing device for heroic action in another deployment--2d Battalion 4th Marines, 1st Marine Division, on 6 September in Ramadi, Iraq. He took decisive action by directing fires of his raid force, quickly gaining fire superiority and suppressing and killing the enemy. Although dazed by a major blast, he continued to lead and direct his team in combat, where they killed and captured all five insurgents on their target raid list. So we are going to block him tonight?
The Senator from Alabama last night on TV said he respects all military, especially the heros.
Well, you got one coming. You got one coming, Senator.
So we are going to do what you asked, which is do a vote individually on this American hero.
Robert S. Weiler to be Brigadier General in the U.S. Marine Corps under Executive Calendar No. 95; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, just for people who are watching, as to that last nominee for Fifth Fleet Commander, you may have heard there are two carrier strike groups in the Middle East. He is the naval officer who would be in charge of all of them--right there. We could have put him in charge. It is pretty important to have a Fifth Fleet Commander ready to go.
He just objected to it. I am not sure why. Again, we are bringing these up one by one, which is what I thought my colleague from Alabama said he was good to go with.
Before I start going through my list, I just want to say, if anyone is watching--Senator Ernst and I were just talking about this--just listen to these bios. This is the best of America. This is the best of America. These men and women have been serving and sacrificing honorably for literally decades--all of them for almost 30 years at least. So when you think about it, think about the families behind these men and women. Think about their sacrifices. They are sacrificing a lot right now, and there is a lot of uncertainty. In my view, it is just a big mistake.
Again, I am with Senator Tuberville on the policy of the Biden administration and Secretary Austin. We have got to fix that. But this tactic of making the military members who have nothing to do with it, of punishing them and their careers--which is what is happening, don't kid yourself--it is hurting their families. It is the wrong way to go about it, especially at this very dangerous time.
So, Madam President, I am going to call up the next promotion: VADM James W. Kilby to be U.S. Navy Admiral and Vice Chief of Naval Operations.
Now, if you want to talk about a readiness issue, the Vice Chief of Naval Operations is the person who is going to be in charge, for America, of our very decrepit shipbuilding and industrial base. Everybody knows that that is a readiness problem, and I have been told by many military officers that Admiral Kilby is the person--the leader--who can turn America's shipbuilding in the right direction. We have a giant readiness issue on shipbuilding. This person is the individual who can turn it around.
I have been told by many, and here is why: In over 30 years in the Navy, he commanded the USS Russell, which is a DDG-59, and the USS Monterey, a CG-61. Vice Admiral Kilby's additional sea tours were on the USS Sampson, a DDG-10; the USS Philippine Sea, a CG-58, two tours on the USS San Jacinto. Vice Admiral Kilby most recently served as the Deputy Commander of all U.S. Fleet Forces Command.
So he is a very important person. We could get moving right now to help our very weak industrial capacity and build ships, which everybody knows, as it relates to China, is probably one of the most important readiness issues we have to deal with. This person tonight--this leader tonight--could be confirmed to start that shipbuilding capacity for America tomorrow as the Vice CNO.
335, James W. Kilby, to be Admiral and Vice Chief of Naval Operations; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, the next nominee--again, we are doing them one at a time, one at a time. I thought that is what my colleague and friend from Alabama wanted. He still hasn't explained why ``one at a time'' is not what he wanted, but maybe he will do that.
This is regular order, by the way. For those who wonder, Well, it is not regular order, nobody knows what that means, but this is regular order because, in the Senate for 200 years, we have brought up and confirmed one- and two- and three-star Generals just like this: regular order voice votes.
So when my colleague said: I am good to go with bringing up individuals for a voice vote, for a vote, that is what we are doing. That is what we are doing. There is no explanation over there so far.
OK. Let me talk about MG Sean A. Gainey of the U.S. Army. We are trying to get him promoted to be Lieutenant General and Commanding General of U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command. Wow. That is a really important billet, the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command. So we want a leader on those issues.
Here is a little bit about Major General Gainey: 33 years--33 years-- of patriotic service. He has served as Deputy Commanding General for the U.S. Army Cadet Command, the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, and on the Joint Staff as the Deputy Director for Force Protection, J8, overseeing the Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organization. Major General Gainey has deployed in support of Operation Joint Task Force-East and Operation Enduring Freedom. Most recently, Major General Gainey served as the Director, Joint C-UAS Office, and Director of Fires in the G3/5/7 at Headquarters of the Army.
In essence, this general is an expert not just on missile command but on fires to protect our Nation--very qualified. I hope we can confirm him right now. Our country needs him.
47, Sean A. Gainey, to be Lieutenant General and Commanding General, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command--a really important billet and a really important command; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, let me move on to another Army officer and the same kind of billet that, again, really matters. This would be again on missile defense. This is Lt. Gen. Philip A. Garrant of the U.S. Space Force--I apologize. I mentioned he was in the Army. He is actually in the U.S. Space Force--to be Lieutenant General Commander, Space Systems Command, U.S. Space Force--again a really important billet.
Once again, if you look at this career, it is 29 years--29 years--of patriotic service to our country. Think about what his family has been through--multiple deployments.
Lieutenant General Garrant has served as the Commander of the 689 ARSS Air Armament Center, Eglin Air Force Base, and Vice Commander and Deputy Air Force Program Executive Officer for the Space and Missiles Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base.
By the way, these officers who are doing all of the space work--Space Force, Army, Navy--are brilliant. We don't have their resumes in terms of their schools, but I guarantee you these are physicists--brilliant, brilliant Army, Space Force, Air Force officers whom all Americans should be proud of.
Lieutenant General Garrant most recently served as Deputy Chief of Space Operations Strategy, Plans, Programs, and Requirements for the U.S. Space Force.
We can confirm him right now by an individual voice vote, Madam President. 293, Lt. Gen. Philip A. Garrant, U.S. Space Force, to be Lieutenant General and Commander, Space Systems Command, U.S. Space Force; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, I am going to bring up another important Lieutenant General. When we talk about mental health and we talk about taking care of our troops--we have got a big suicide problem in our military in Alaska--having the top Surgeon General in the military is also really important. These aren't just combat positions. These are other really important positions.
I want to talk about BG Mary V. Krueger, U.S. Army, to be Lieutenant General and the Surgeon General of the U.S. Army. Brigadier General Krueger has had a 32-year career in the Army. She has served as the Supervisory Assistant for Deputy Health Affairs, Assistant Secretary for the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, the Commander of U.S. Army Health Clinic, and the Division Surgeon for the 4th Infantry Division.
Again, boy, do we need that. In my State, with my troops, my military, the mental health issues are so important. Having the leader in the Army as Surgeon General will only enhance that issue. And we are to say that none of this impacts readiness?
The Brigadier General's deployments include to Tikrit, Iraq, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn, from 2009 to 2012. Most recently, Brigadier General Krueger served as the Commanding General of the Regional Health Command--Atlantic.
I, therefore, ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session for the consideration of the following nomination: Executive Calendar No. 283, Mary V. Krueger, to be Lieutenant General and the Surgeon General of the U.S. Army; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's actions.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, let me move on to another service. This is RADM Daniel Cheever, U.S. Navy, to be Vice Admiral and Commander of Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific.
One thing that we always think about in the military, when you think 28, 29, 30 years and the combat experience, is that the experience that they bring is just remarkable. It is, by the way, the best military in the world. And this Rear Admiral, in his career, has this in spades.
With 34 years in the Navy so far, Rear Admiral Cheever commanded Carrier Strike Group 4, Strike Fighter Squadron 147--the VFA 147. So a carrier strike group--that is commanding a carrier strike group. That is several ships around an aircraft carrier. That is giant experience, and we are making this person, this great leader, sit on the bench when our country is in peril.
Rear Admiral Cheever has extensive EUCOM and CENTCOM experience as a Naval Amphibious Liaison Element for the Commander, U.S. Sixth Fleet and 17th Air Force, and as a battle director at Combined Air and Space Operations Center, U.S. Central Command.
Most recently, Rear Admiral Cheever served as the Director of Plans, Policies, and Strategy at the North American Aerospace Defense Command and Director of Policy and Strategy at U.S. Northern Command--so, again, a great warrior right here, a carrier strike group commander. Only America produces these great warriors.
181, Daniel L. Cheever, to be Vice Admiral and Commander of the Naval Air Forces; Commander, Naval Air Force U.S. Pacific Fleet, the fleet that will take on China--we have a war there; we need this officer--that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the President immediately be notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, this one is special to me, since we are doing all the different services: Space Force, Navy, Army, Air Force. This is Maj. Gen. Roger Turner, U.S. Marine Corps, to be Lieutenant General and Commanding General, Third Marine Expeditionary Force and Commander of Marine Forces Japan.
The III MEF, as we call it in the Marine Corps--we only have three MEFs in the entire Marine Corps: I MEF, II MEF, and III MEF. This is the MEF in Okinawa, forward deployed, waiting, ready to protect our interests in the Taiwan Strait, in Indo-PACOM. Right now, III MEF doesn't have a three-star general; neither does I MEF.
Again, that doesn't impact readiness? Of course, it does. Anyone who knows anything about the military knows that that impacts readiness. One of the most important fighting forces in the American military, III MEF, needs a Lieutenant General in charge.
Maj. Gen. Roger Turner has served in the Marine Corps since 1984. He most recently served as Commanding General of the First Marine Division. That is at Camp Pendleton--really important, big division, infantry division, great experience.
Previously, he served as a Commanding General of the Marine Air Ground Task Force Command and the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center--incredible combat experience, ready to go if there is a Taiwan Strait crisis or another challenge in the Indo-PACOM theater. We really need this general.
For that reason, we can confirm him right now--right now--by voice vote, singular, what the Senator from Alabama has been asking for. We will see.
191, Roger B. Turner, Jr., to be Lieutenant General and Commanding General, Third Marine Expeditionary Force, and Commander of Marine Forces Japan; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's actions.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, I just want to talk about an issue I just heard about from two officers just today on this issue of readiness, on this issue of maybe this whole episode is creating a ``Fat Leonard'' scandal 2.0 that is like I said earlier when the Navy had some of their top officers kind of wiped out due to corruption. They lost a whole generation of senior officers with specific fleet experience, which we are still actually dealing with.
What we are starting to see here--I am hearing it; I have a lot of contacts; I have my colleagues whom I have served with. We are starting to see that here. Imagine we are facing a really, really dangerous world, that we have Senate politics driving military officers--our best--I mean, are you listening to these bios? All 30, 35 years of incredible combat experience. And we are driving them out.
As Senator Graham said, some are going to be timed out, eventually. A couple are hitting that already. If you get selected and you don't pin on by a certain time, you are gone. Think about how bitter you would be.
But here is the other thing. Just today, I heard it, too--I am not going to name them--Navy officers who are saying: You know, I think I am done with this. I did 28 years. I did seven deployments. My family sacrificed. And I am sitting here being held up, when my country needs me, on an issue I have nothing to do with--and, by the way, Navy, submarine commanders, aircraft carrier commanders, pilots--these guys can go out and make huge money. So I am hearing it. I am hearing it.
We--not we--some of us are driving our senior Admirals and Generals out. They are saying: I am done with this. I can serve my country another way. I can make a ton of money in the private sector. My family deserves it.
That is happening. That is happening. And it is wrong. It is wrong. We all know it is wrong. By the way, if we are here like a year from now and we are still dealing with this and we look back, we are like, holy cow, look at these great combat veterans with all this experience, and they left us; they left us because we forced them out. We are going to look back at this episode and just be stunned at what a national security suicide mission this became.
By the way, I am so honored to be standing shoulder to shoulder, literally, here on the Senate floor with my good friend and colleague Senator Ernst. You know, we have the Army and Marine Corps represented right here on the floor. This is a joint op. It is a joint op. Protecting our troops. Fighting for our troops. That is what marines and soldiers do well. This is a joint op. And we are going to stay here until our list is done. Because you know what? There are a lot of people who sacrifice so much for this country.
And to my colleague from Alabama, you still haven't answered the question--this is regular order, by the way. All these noms have been voted out of committee. I am sure you voted for most of them. I voted for almost all of them. Regular order, out of committee. And again, I am quoting you: I am not blocking anyone from getting confirmed. I am not blocking a single vote. If they want those votes on these nominees one at a time, I am all for it, and we will probably vote for them.
That is the quote from my colleague from Alabama. So what is up with that? We are right here. One at a time. One at a time. Regular order.
This is regular order, by the way, because for 200 years, the Senate has voted for nominees by voice vote at one- and two- and three-star General levels. It is different for the four-star. But this is regular order.
So my colleague hasn't answered the question yet. It would be good to hear why because we are putting time and effort into it. I actually thought he was going to come down and say, Hey, you know what? You guys did what I mentioned, one at a time, each one, regular order.
So, what, are you going to make us vote on a Brigadier General with a Silver Star twice? That probably has never happened in U.S. history. I don't know. It would be good to get an answer to that question.
By the way, on Iowa, what a great story from my colleague. You know, I was doing some training in Alaska many years ago, and the Iowa National Guard was out there. These guys were huge, big. Got a picture, sent it back to Senator Ernst. Corn-fed. You don't want to mess with the Iowa National Guard, I would say that for sure.
So, Madam President, let's get back to this. Maybe my colleague will have a change of heart here. Maybe he will get back to folks--whoa, maybe we should. And, by the way, we have the perfect opportunity for someone in a really, really important billet. And this is for Maj. Gen. David Iverson, U.S. Air Force, to be Lieutenant General and Deputy Commander of U.S. Forces, Korea. U.S. Forces, Korea is really, really important. It is run by a four-star General. And this would be the Deputy Commander.
By the way, the Korean Peninsula could go any day. Tomorrow, we could be at war in Korea. I am a big Korean war history buff. Do you know what happened in 1950 in the Korean war? We had civilian and senior military leaders in America who did not care about readiness. Sound familiar? And when the North Koreans launched their surprise invasion, American soldiers by the thousands were killed because there was no readiness. We don't want that to happen again on the Korean Peninsula. We don't want it to happen. So this guy needs to be confirmed.
And look at his resume: Maj. Gen. David Iverson most recently served as the Vice Director for the Joint Force Development on the Joint Staff. His over 32 years in the military, served in a variety of flying duties to include evaluator instructor, flight commander, chief of weapons, director of operations, commander at the squadron level. He has commanded at the flight squadron, twice at the wing level. That is huge. Incredible military experience. Two wing commands. He also served as a congressional legislative liaison in the 609th Air Operations Center command in Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. Iverson is a command pilot with over 5,400 hours.
America, you should be proud of these people. And I know you all are. He has 5,400 hours, including 1,500 combat hours. And we are making this guy sit. We are making him sit--1,500 combat hours. F-15, TF30. I mean--Madam President, we should confirm this great American right now. And we have the opportunity to do it.
187, David R. Iverson, to be Lieutenant General and Deputy Commander, U.S. Forces Korea--Commander, Combined Air Component Command; United Nations Command, Commander, Combined Air Command, Combined Forces Command, Korea, and Commander, 7th U.S. Air Force, Pacific Air Forces; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, well, that was another downgrade of readiness for America right there.
Madam President, let me go into another very, very impressive military member. We don't talk about this part of our military that much; but, boy, oh boy, is it important. And this is for Maj. Gen. Andrew Gebara, of the U.S. Air Force, to be promoted to Lieutenant General and Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration, Headquarters, U.S. Air Force.
Let me run that by you again: strategic deterrence with nukes and nuclear integration.
I would say that is a pretty darned important billet.
Let's hear about Major General Gebara's 32-year career. He has served as the Commander of the 325th Weapons Squadron, Eighth Air Force, and Joint-Global Strike Operations Center. Major General Gebara is a command pilot with more than 3,800 flight hours.
There you go. The best, most experienced military members in the world, right here, sitting on the sidelines, not in the game. On the bench. And we can change that right now; 46 combat air sorties, and everything--get this--from the A-10 to the B-2. This guy is a stud.
In support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Major General Gebara most recently served as Special Assistant to the Director of Staff of the Headquarters of the U.S. Air Force. And we can confirm this nomination by a voice vote right now.
51, Andrew J. Gebara, to be Lieutenant General and Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration, headquarters: U.S. Air Force; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, again, strategic nuclear deterrence. Pretty darned important. I guess he is going to have to sit on the sidelines for longer.
I want to go now to another element of our military, and that is Special Operations. And this is an opportunity for a really storied military leader, Lt. Gen. James Slife, U.S. Air Force, to be four-star General and Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force. Again, you have the Chiefs of Staff--those are the Joint Chiefs--and then they have the Vice Chiefs. The Vice Chiefs are so important because they run the enterprise of the Air Force. This General will essentially run the Air Force in so many ways. Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force. This is one of the most important nominations of the evening.
Let's hear about Lieutenant General Slife. Again, 33-year career. Putting all his time, effort--I am sure his family's effort--dedicated patriot to America. Has served most of his career in aviation special operations. Senator Ernst knows a lot about that. He has held commands at the Air Force Special Operations Command, 1st Special Operations Wing, and 27th Special Operations Group--33 years. Imagine what this patriot has done to protect America. He probably can't talk about half of it. He has deployed extensively over three decades in support of combat operations all over the world, most recently in Afghanistan. Lieutenant General Slife most recently served as Deputy Chief of Operations for Headquarters, Air Force.
This General, right now, if we just have one Senator say ``good to go,'' will be confirmed as Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force. 338, James C. Slife to be General and Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. This next one, I believe, is an empty billet. I am pretty sure. I have to double-check my math here.
This is Shoshana Chatfield to be Vice Admiral and U.S. Military Representative to NATO. NATO. There is a lot going on in NATO right now, and we don't have this Vice Admiral in her position as a Military Representative to NATO? That is not impacting readiness?
Let's hear about Rear Admiral Chatfield's 35-year naval career. She is a pilot. She has commanded HC-5 and, upon its disestablishment, was the Commanding Officer of HSC-25, the Island Knights. She subsequently commanded a Joint Provisional Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan, was a Type Wing Commander of the HSC Wing in the U.S. Pacific Fleet, and the Commander of the Joint Region Marianas.
Think about that experience. Think about that experience. We need people understanding INDOPACOM, Marianas, to take on China.
Operationally, she has flown the SH-3, the CH-46 Delta, the MH-60 Sierra, and deployed in helicopter detachments to the Western Pacific and the Arabian Gulf, supporting carrier strike groups and amphibious- ready group operations--carrier strike groups and amphibious-ready strike groups. Those are Marine amphibious-ready groups. She has done both, INDOPACOM and in the Middle East.
Now she is going to be a three-star Representative Admiral at NATO, and we are keeping her on the bench. We could confirm her right now. Look at that experience--35 years as a naval aviator.
She most recently served as the President of the Naval War College, so she is brilliant as well. Sitting on the bench.
Madam President, we need to confirm her now; therefore, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session for consideration of the following nomination: Executive Calendar No. 90, Shoshana S. Chatfield to be Vice Admiral and U.S. Military Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, let's go directly to our great U.S. Navy. This is James P. Downey to be Vice Admiral and Commander, Naval Sea Systems Command.
Again, we all know that the Navy is the critical service. They are all critical, but when it comes to China, we have some catching up to do. This is a critical command billet.
Let's hear about Rear Admiral Downey, James P. Downey. He has served in the Navy for 36 years.
I would like to--Senator Ernst, maybe we just need to add up the experience that we are talking about tonight. Everybody is at least 30 years. It is like over 1,000 years. It makes you proud as an American. It makes me sure darn proud.
Thank you, Rear Admiral Downey, for your 36 years of service to our great Nation and great U.S. Navy.
He served as the Commander of the Navy Regional Maintenance Center-- boy, do we need expertise in maintenance for our Navy--and as the Program Executive Officer for U.S. Aircraft Carriers. Wow, that is great experience, and we need that every day.
He most recently served as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition. Additional operational assignments include Intelligence Briefing Officer to the Commander and Chief, Combined Forces Command, U.S. Forces Korea, and multiple deployments in the North Atlantic, Baltic, Arctic Circle--probably up in my neck of the woods in Alaska--and the Indo-Pacific. Incredible experience here.
We need to promote him, and we can do it right now with a voice vote, right here. We are bringing up individual nominees, individual votes, as my colleague from Alabama requested, so let's do it.
113, James P. Downey to be Vice Admiral and Commander, Naval Sea Systems Command; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, let's go back to my beloved Marine Corps. I love the Marine Corps. I mean, I love all the services, but I really love the Marine Corps.
Madam President, this is another critical element of the Marine Corps. Of course, everybody thinks about infantry with the marines, but our aviation component is so important and so darn good. Marine Corps aviation has made Americans proud for decades and decades and decades.
We have Bradford J. Gering to be Lieutenant General and Deputy Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps Aviation Section at Headquarters, Marine Corps.
Maj. Gen. Bradford Gering has served in the Marine Corps since 1988. He most recently served as the Commanding General of I MEF.
Just so everybody knows, I MEF, which I talked about earlier, is the I Marine Expeditionary Force, commonly known in the Marine Corps as the Imperial MEF, probably the best combined warfighting machine in the U.S. military. I am a little biased, but it is true.
He is a I MEF Commander. In the Marine Corps, you don't get any better than that. You don't get any more experienced than that. And he has had multiple deployments. He is a combat veteran with unbelievable experience, and he is sitting on the bench.
We need to get him in the fight, and we can do it right now. We can confirm this great American patriot by voice vote right now. 111, Bradford J. Gering to be Lieutenant General and Deputy Commandant, Aviation Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, I am still--I think we are both, Senator Ernst and I. We are still just kind of confused on the ``one by one,'' as my colleague and friend--he is my friend. So I mean that sincerely. He said: I am all for it if nominees come up one at a time. I am all for it. That is a quote. That is what we are doing--one at a time, one by one, as Senator Ernst has said.
And some of these, you know, if you serve in the military long enough, you know these people personally. And the next nominee I want to talk about I know quite well, Kenneth Wilsbach. He is a four-star General right now, and he is in charge of the Pacific Air Forces-- incredible experience. General Wilsbach will move in to be the U.S. Air Force Commander of Air Combat Command, one of the top billets in the U.S. Air Force--a guy with incredible experience, with a wonderful wife and a wonderful family.
He served as the Alaska Command Commander. That is the subcomponent command under INDOPACOM and NORTHCOM for Alaska--a three-star General in charge of all forces in Alaska. So I know him. He is an exceptional patriot and so deserving of this promotion.
And, by the way, it has nothing to do with the policy dispute that we actually agree on, all my colleagues here. We think what Secretary Austin did to light this fire was not helpful at all. The civilian military leadership over at the Pentagon--that is where I do agree with my colleague from Alabama. Certainly, there is more focus on nonwarfighting issues--the civilians, not the uniformed ones.
But let's go back to General Wilsbach, a 38-year career in the Air Force--38 years. I know this guy, a great family. He is a patriot warrior. He has commanded a fighter squad and operation group, two wings, two numbered Air Forces, and held various staff assignments, including Director of Operations, Combined Air Operations Center; Director of Operations U.S. Central Command.
Central Command--that is the Middle East. I was a staff officer out there, for a year and a half, to our CENTCOM Commander many years ago.
So General Wilsbach has great Middle East experience, which we need today, but he also has great INDOPACOM experience. Right now, he is the Commander of Pacific Air Forces--right now. He is doing a great job. If there is going to be a war with China, this is the guy who knows it. I mean, you can't ask for better experience.
Let's continue with General Wilsbach. He is a command pilot with more than 5,000 hours of flying--and we are going to put him on a bench--in multiple aircrafts, primarily F-15Cs, F16Cs, MC-12s, and F-22 Alphas. We have a lot of those in Alaska. And he has flown 71 combat missions in Operation Northern Watch, Southern Watch, and Operation Enduring Freedom.
As I mentioned, General Wilsbach currently serves as the Commander of the Pacific Air Forces, the Air Component Commander of U.S. INDOPACOM, and the Executive Director of the Pacific Air Combat Operations staff.
A great patriot, whom we need to confirm right now--we can do it. We can do it right now by voice vote--regular order, by the way, regular order. Don't say it is not because it is, and we are doing them individually, which is what was asked.
198, Kenneth S. Wilsbach, to be Commander of U.S. Air Combat Command, one of the most important commands in the U.S. Air Force--in the U.S. military, let's face it--that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, let me talk about another really important billet that I know a lot about, given that a lot of its assets are in Alaska, and, again, this is such an important billet to not leave without a leader. This will be for Heath A. Collins to be Lieutenant General and the Director of the Missile Defense Agency.
What does MDA do? What does the Missile Defense Agency do? Oh, it just protects America from all incoming missiles. Huh, that is not important. That is what the Missile Defense Agency does. Maj. Gen. Heath Collins, U.S. Air Force, needs to be promoted to be the head of the MDA.
So in Alaska, we call ourselves the cornerstone of missile defense. All the ground-based missile interceptors that protect the whole country are in Alaska, at Fort Greely. All the radar systems that essentially can track anything coming from North Korea, Iran, it is all in Alaska. We protect everywhere: Iowa, Alabama, Rhode Island, Florida. That is Alaska. We protect the whole darn Nation, our great warriors up there, and the Missile Defense Agency is in charge of overseeing all of it. So it is pretty darn important, especially with Iran wanting to lob missiles all over the world.
Let's talk about Maj. Gen. Heath Collins. Again, with a 30-year Air Force career, he served as a program executive officer for fighters and bombers, System Program Director for the Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent Program, Deputy Director for Infrared Space Systems Directorate and the Remote Sensing Systems Directorate, and Commander of Space Based Infrared System Space Squadron.
Now, I am not going to repeat what I just said, but he is obviously incredibly smart. Think about all that he has commanded and the technological elements of his experience to protect America. Almost every billet he has had has been about protecting America. He is perfectly qualified to be the Director of the Missile Defense Agency.
He recently served as the Program Executive for the ground-based weapons systems for the Missile Defense Agency, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
He probably loves the Crimson Tide, or maybe I should say Auburn. I don't want to get in trouble in that regard with my colleague here.
So, again, America needs the Director of Missile Defense--like, hello. So let us do it. Let us do it right now. Here is the opportunity. The Missile Defense Agency is really, really important. My state knows a lot about it.
237, Heath A. Collins, to be Lieutenant General and Director of the Missile Defense Agency; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, by the way, thank you for presiding tonight. It is important, what we are doing, and we always need people, and all the staff. It is getting a little late here. So we appreciate it. This is important for our country, and maybe we are going to get a change of heart from my colleague at a certain point because I am going to turn now to the Navy. I got a bunch of nominations that relate to the Navy.
Now, I have been very critical of the Biden administration. The President's budget the last 3 years has shrunk the Army, shrunk the Navy, shrunk the Marine Corps; right? That is the wrong message to send to Xi Jinping and Putin right now. But we do need these leaders here. And, by the way, a lot of leaders are frustrated with the Biden administration, but they are professionals. So they don't say anything. They are apolitical. They are not involved in this dispute that is riling up their promotions.
But let me just talk about a really important member of the Navy, and I happen to know a lot about it since I serve on the Board of Visitors of the U.S. Naval Academy.
This is the nomination of Yvette M. Davids to be Vice Admiral and Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy.
Now, as I mentioned, I have served on the Board of the Naval Academy since I got here. One of the biggest honors of my life was when Senator McCain, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, asked me to sit on that Board in his stead. And he told me: Dan, I went there. My dad went there. My grandpa went there. This is really important.
So I pretty much make every Board meeting. I take it very seriously, and I will tell you this: This is one of the best, if not the best-- sorry to my colleague from Rhode Island--military academy, but college in the United States. I mean, especially now that we are seeing this. Look, I went to Harvard, and I am so embarrassed by that place that I don't even like admitting it, what is happening right now on the campus there, anti-Semitism, weak leadership.
The Naval Academy, our service academies are fantastic. They are not perfect, but they do such a great job. But they need leadership. And I have gotten to know the other Naval Academy Superintendents--fantastic leaders. Right now, we don't have one. The billet is empty. We have an acting. Actually, he is acting because he is getting ready to go to the Seventh Fleet, but my colleague from Alabama just didn't allow him to go to the Seventh Fleet. So the Acting Superintendent of the Naval Academy should have been out to the Seventh Fleet.
Let us look at Yvette Davids' bio--so impressive. She is a Rear Admiral right now, with 34 years in the Navy. She commanded the USS Curts, deploying to the Western Pacific and the Arabian Gulf in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, and the USS Bunker Hill, serving as the Air Defense Commander for the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group. Think how impressive this is. Her most recent operational assignment was as Commander of the Nimitz Strike Group. She was a Commander of a carrier strike group in the Carrier Strike Group 11. That is the ultimate in American power.
You can't teach that in 2 years. It takes 30 years. She can go teach Naval Academy students right now--the next leaders of the Marine Corps and the U.S. Navy--and she is sitting on the bench.
Her flag assignments include Senior Military Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs at the State Department, Carrier Strike Group Command, Chief of Staff, U.S. Southern Command, and the Director of the Navy's Learning to Action Board drive team.
Rear Admiral Davids is currently the Acting Commander for Naval Surface Force for the U.S. Pacific Fleet--an incredible bio. The Naval Academy--I know it because I am on the Board. We want her to get there. We certainly want her to get there in time for the Army-Navy game so the U.S. Naval Academy can beat Army badly. Sorry, my colleagues from the Army. We got to have a little fun here tonight.
So let us do it right now, by voice vote, for this great patriot.
192, Yvette M. Davids, to be Vice Admiral and Superintendent, U.S. Naval Academy; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, let us continue with the Navy--again, such an important service. They are all important. But in a big throw- down with China, we have to have a stronger Navy, a bigger Navy, a more lethal Navy, and this next nominee is going to be that person--RADM Brendan R. McLane, U.S. Navy, to be Vice Admiral and Naval Surface Forces Commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet.
What does that mean? That is the Surface Commander for all U.S. naval forces in the INDOPACOM theater, who would be in charge if we had a contingency with China. That is pretty darn important.
So let us hear about Rear Admiral McLane's 33-year Navy career.
Again, are you noticing something? It is 33, 34, 35--General Wilsbach, 38 years. Patriots--and now they are like: Wait. Why am I stuck? Why are they going after my career? It is something I have nothing to do with.
It is wrong. We all know it is wrong. It is wrong.
In Rear Admiral McLane's 33-year naval career, he has served as the Commodore of Destroyer Squadron 50--a huge deal--commanded Task Force 55 and Coalition Task Force 152, U.S. Fifth Fleet. Additionally, he served aboard the USS Lewis B. Puller, the USS Vicksburg, the USS Moosbrugger, Destroyer Squadron 14, the USS Simpson. Jeez, look at all of these commands and deployments.
While in command of the USS Kearny, his ship won the Battle ``E'' and Battenberg Cup and deployed with the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group for the U.S. Fifth Fleet. By the way, the ``Ike'' carrier strike group is in the Middle East right now.
In major command, he served as Commodore of Destroyer Squadron 50, commanded Task Force 55 and Coalition Task Force 152, U.S. Fifth Fleet--again, the Middle East.
Most recently, Rear Admiral McLane served as the 60th Commander of Naval Surface Force Atlantic.
The amount of experience we are hearing tonight that we are not letting go fight and protect our nation--it makes you humble, by the way, when you hear about all these great patriots, but it sure makes me frustrated. They are on the bench.
But let us try and get them off the bench. We can confirm this nominee by voice vote right now.
193, Brendan R. McLane, to be Vice Admiral and Commander, Naval Surface Forces; Commander, Naval Surface Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, I am going to talk about one more Navy officer. We have a number to go. I am going to do this quick. This is Christopher S. Gray to be Vice Admiral and Commander of Navy Installations Command. He has got a great resume, a 34-year Navy career.
Rear Admiral Gray has been the Commanding Officer of the Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron before reporting as Operations Officer aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, where he conducted back-to-back deployments to the Arabian Gulf in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
At sea, Gray has served in operational assignments with Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadrons and a flag aide to the Commander in the U.S. Second Fleet, Striking Fleet Atlantic.
More recently, Rear Admiral Gray served as the Commander of the Navy's Mid-Atlantic Region on June 30, 2020.
195, Christopher S. Gray, to be Vice Admiral and Commander, Navy Installations Command; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
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