Chris Van Hollen: “with regards to the promotion of LTG Joshua Rudd to general, I do not oppose his promotion, but I have concerns about…”

“with regards to the promotion of LTG Joshua Rudd to general, I do not oppose his promotion, but I have concerns about the administration's intent for him to serve as the Commander of U.S. Cyber Command and the Director of the National Security Agency. Both of these national security institutions are based in Maryland and they need a leader who has experience in the work they do for our Nation. While Lieutenant General Rudd has served the United States in many important roles, including his current role as deputy commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, he does not have a background or expertise in cyber operations or signals intelligence. Moreover, during his confirmation process, he did not assuage my concerns about his commitment to constitutional and legal guardrails on spying on Americans. For these reasons, I am opposing his nomination.”