Jackie Speier

When we were visiting in the Pacific Northwest, what kept coming up were the number of families with children with autism.

Why wouldn't you have family members serving on this advisory panel?

I don't think there is a true appreciation of what these families are going through.

I am telling you at the outset that we are going to be hawks on this.

I find the GAO report to be stinging in terms of its criticism of many of the services.

Thank you for your continued advocacy and representation today. We appreciate your support.

We actually have to look in our own house as we address this issue, because we don't fund the IDEA program at the level we are supposed to.

Are they sufficiently educated in their roles to provide advice, or are they basically just railway conductors sending people from one location to another?

There should be accountability.

Schools are not following the law because they know they cannot follow the law and be allowed to get away with it.

What we need more than anything are dedicated legal personnel at each base that can provide the legal advice and counsel for families.

I am deeply skeptical that the program has improved over time.

The fact is, parents focused on finding appropriate care for their kids will be less focused on their jobs.

As service members, I was willing to give up my life for my country, but families can't be afterthoughts in this process.

So, this was a divergence that took place that, frankly, smacks of political interests, does it not?

There is a massive cover-up going on with this administration, and it makes me fearful about what else we don't know.

The president demanded this, that Ukraine was put at risk, and that they have consistently refused to turn over any documents to the committees that have had jurisdiction for oversight.

It should change the calculus not just for the house but for the Senate more importantly because if this was Barack Obama, there would be no question that these people would be coming forward as witnesses and that documents would be…

And what does the rule of law mean in this administration? When all of these individuals have been subpoenaed, all of these documents have been subpoena and they have been ignored?

Please provide the gender and ethnicity of recruiters across the services and in any higher DOD headquarters activity that is related to recruiting activities.

Does your service research how the traits you look for in recruits and retention correlate with success throughout a service member's military career?

I have been working on the issue of sexual assault in the military now for over 9 years.

Do your services have research groups equivalent to the Marine Center for Advanced Operational Culture Learning? What projects have they completed within the last three years? What are they currently working on?

Diversity is also an asset. Minorities and women have unique perspectives they bring to the fight.

We are stronger when our military represents and connects to those it protects.