[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 181 (Thursday, November 2, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5324-S5325]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                 Nomination of Adm. Lisa M. Franchetti

  Mr. CARPER. Mr. President, I rise today to express my strong support 
for the nomination of ADM Lisa Franchetti to serve as the Chief of 
Naval Operations.
  As some of my colleagues know, I was 17 years old when I raised my 
right hand to take the oath to defend our country and Constitution, 
Navy ROTC midshipman at Ohio State at the height of the Vietnam war. We 
had no women in our Navy ROTC unit at Ohio State or at any other Big 
Ten college, no women in the ROTC units. In the service academies, no 
women served in those roles, training roles. How things have changed. 
How things have changed. We are here today to actually put a really 
strong marker on that change and to applaud it.
  I spent, all in, 23 years in Active and Reserve duty, and I am the 
son of a Navy chief petty officer, the nephew of a Navy chief petty 
officer, and the nephew of a deceased 19-year-old Navy veteran who was 
killed in a kamikaze attack in World War II on a carrier in the 
Pacific. My grandmother is a Gold Star mother. In my family, we bleed 
Navy blue.
  I can tell you firsthand, folks, that we have before us a terrific, 
terrific nominee to serve as Chief of Naval Operations. She spent 
practically her whole life in the Navy, serving our country around the 
world in places including Italy, South Korea, as well as a number of 
posts here closer to home.
  Admiral Franchetti's career has spanned nearly every theater of 
engagement, every level of service--commanding ships, squadrons, strike 
groups, and fleet levels. She has been a commander of U.S. Naval Forces 
Korea, deputy commander of U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa, 
commander of Carrier Strike Group 9, Vice Chief of Naval Operations, 
and Acting Chief of Naval Operations, just to name a few. What a 
career. What a career. For her tremendous work, she has received almost 
two dozen prestigious awards and recognitions. She has even received 
some of the awards multiple times. What an impressive servant.
  Admiral Franchetti has been making our country proud for not just a 
couple of years but for decades, from the day she signed up for the 
Navy ROTC Program at Northwestern University to this day.
  The Senate stands poised to confirm her as Chief of Naval Operations, 
where, again, she will become the first woman to serve in that role and 
the first woman to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. I know she will 
continue her outstanding work as she breaks barriers for the Navy and 
for women everywhere.
  So, today, I am here to urge my colleagues to join me and others to 
confirm ADM Lisa Franchetti to serve as the U.S. Navy's Chief of Naval 
Operations.
  I would just say to the admiral, to her husband Jim, and to their 
daughter Isabelle: We have two words in the Navy that we use when we 
want to applaud service, and they are ``Bravo Zulu.'' I can think of no 
woman more deserving of those two words.
  As a human being--for my colleagues who had an opportunity to meet 
with her, you could just tell, you could see and feel why she has 
received the kinds of promotions and the kind of recognition and the 
kind of responsibility. She is one terrific human being as well. So I 
am honored to stand here on her behalf.
  I would also say that we have about 300 other men and women--senior 
officers in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps--who are ready 
to be promoted, deserve to be promoted, and are not being promoted 
because we are not confirming them. Today, we have a chance to do 
something about it, and we can start with Admiral Franchetti.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be allowed to 
speak for 5 minutes and that, following my remarks, Senator Blumenthal 
be allowed to speak for 5 minutes.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for three 
military leaders whom we will soon be voting on: ADM Lisa Franchetti, 
Gen. David Allvin, and Lt. Gen. Christopher Mahoney. These are some of 
the finest leaders our Nation has to offer, and America is stronger 
because of their service and their sacrifice.
  I am particularly proud to support the nomination of ADM Lisa 
Franchetti to be the next Chief of Naval Operations. Admiral Franchetti 
brings a wealth of experience and expertise to this position. She has 
served in leadership roles at every level throughout the Navy, both 
ashore and at sea, and with postings around the globe. She has served 
as commander of U.S. Naval Forces Korea; commander of Carrier Strike 
Group 9; commander of Carrier Strike Group 15; commander of U.S. Sixth 
Fleet; commander of U.S. Naval Forces Europe and U.S. Naval Forces 
Africa; and director for strategy, plans, and policy on the Joint 
Staff, among many other operational roles. She has worked her way up 
the ranks in the U.S. Navy. She has commanded at sea. She has accepted 
and has excelled at every challenge that is presented to her. She is 
superbly prepared to be the Chief of Naval Operations.
  As the current Vice Chief and now as the Acting Chief of Naval 
Operations, she brings an important perspective on the key challenges 
for the Navy. Her understanding of the Joint Force and the Navy's ever-
expanding role within it will be critical.

  I want to acknowledge the historic nature of Admiral Franchetti's 
nomination. If confirmed, she will be the first woman to serve as CNO 
and the first woman on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. I am glad we have 
reached this moment.
  At every step of her career, Admiral Franchetti has been a 
trailblazer and a team builder who focuses on the mission, leads by 
example, and gets the job done. She is an inspiration to many and 
someone who will always put the security of our Nation and all who 
defend it first--first before herself, first before anything else. 
Those are the qualities that make an outstanding officer and an 
outstanding leader.
  Indeed, the Navy faces a dangerous and evolving global security 
environment. Threats from Russia, Iran, North Korea, and violent 
extremist groups remain persistent, and the Navy has an important role 
to play in addressing them. But the clear, pacing challenge for our 
naval forces is China. In the Indo-Pacific and in seas and ports around 
the world, the U.S. Navy will continue to be the first line of 
deterrence and defense against China's expanding global ambitions.
  I am confident that Admiral Franchetti has the skills and experience 
to meet this challenge and provide the Nation's sailors, their 
families, and Navy civilian employees with the leadership they deserve.

[[Page S5325]]

  I urge my colleagues to vote for Admiral Franchetti's nomination.