Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my support for H.R. 335, which would provide a waiver to allow for full Senate consideration of General Lloyd Austin's nomination as Secretary of Defense. While I have great concerns over use of this process to appoint former military leaders to senior civilian positions at the Department of Defense, and I believe that civilian control of the military is critical to our democracy, I support this waiver for General Austin for several reasons. The first is the need for clear and effective leadership at the Pentagon. The previous administration drastically politicized the Department of Defense and hollowed out existing leadership to put in place less experienced political allies to do former President Trump's bidding. This has left our nation even more vulnerable during a number of national and international crises, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the recent cyber attack on our government systems by Russia, and rising tensions with Iran and throughout the Middle East. General Austin brings a distinguished career in military leadership, an unwavering commitment to our nation's security, and the respect of our men and women in uniform and will provide a needed steady hand at the Department of Defense. Second, Lloyd Austin possess the skills and temperament to address the challenges our country faces.…”