On the recordMay 17, 2016
Mr. Chairman, I rise today to support my colleague from Indiana's amendment. The amendment is simply about restoring public accountability and transparency to the National Security Council. As a former Deputy Commander of Special Operations in Iraq, I have personally seen what happens. Oftentimes, our rules of engagement that dictate how we fight are politicized and it diminishes our ability to fight. I have seen it. It is time to change. If they move out of an advisory role to a role where they are commanding and interpreting commands, then we need FOIA. America deserves accountability. America deserves our ability to look at who is calling the shots and why. This is not a hit on the administration. This is an American issue. When a role is advisory and comes from advisory to command, then that command needs to be held accountable. That is what we do.
