Political Quotes

“the American people watched with horror and disgust as the incidents of sexual misconduct at Aberdeen Proving Ground unfolded last fall. As details emerged at Aberdeen and other Army training facilities, the extent and seriousness of this problem became increasingly and terribly evident. As a result of these events, the Secretary of the Army, Togo West, commissioned his senior review panel and tasked the Army Inspector General to conduct two separate widescale investigations of sexual harassment within the Army. Today, the Secretary released the results of these two studies. Both reports delivered a scathing indictment of the climate and lack of leadership that permits sexual harassment to permeate all levels of the Army. Mr. President, in each case involving leaders and trainees, the sexual misconduct which occurred at Aberdeen and elsewhere within the Army was a result of abuse of authority. The key to solving this problem is to eliminate the systemic conditions which created the atmosphere which allowed these outrageous and egregious instances of abuse to occur. The Army's equal opportunity system, which is supposed to provide a safety valve when all else fails, is itself a complete and utter failure--devoid of support by the chain of command and lacking credibility by those it seeks to protect.”