Chuck Grassley: “2 weeks ago I spoke in support of the Senate Armed Services Committee not granting promotion to Comdr. Robert Stumpf.…”

“2 weeks ago I spoke in support of the Senate Armed Services Committee not granting promotion to Comdr. Robert Stumpf. Last Thursday night I had an opportunity to listen to Senator Coats, Senator Byrd, and Senator Nunn speak on the same subject. I agree with everything they said. I will speak, once again, on that same subject but put it in a little broader context. Before I do that, there was, last Thursday, in the Washington Post this article about Commander Stumpf and the Navy, pushing for his promotion to be granted again. I suppose that means it will come back to the Senate Armed Services Committee sometime in the future. If people wonder why this might not be granted, I read a paragraph from this article. It talks about the Tailhook conference 4 years ago in Nevada. It talks about the behavior at the Tailhook convention in September 1991. It drew scrutiny on at least two accounts about the behavior of Commander Stumpf. It says he was present in a hotel room hosted by his squadron where two strippers performed, although he left the room before one of the women engaged in a sex act with another airman. Now, he avoids all responsibility for that. I assume that is the moral of the story, why it should not be considered in whether or not he gets a promotion.”