[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 190 (Wednesday, November 15, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5559-S5579]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             UNANIMOUS CONSENT REQUESTS--EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I am honored to be down here again with 
Senators Graham, Ernst, and Young. We were down on the floor 2 weeks 
ago, and at that time, we promised military members and their families 
that we had their back; that we would keep coming down to the Senate 
floor to try to move forward their nominations and confirmations that 
have been stalled.
  By the way, after that session, 5 hours, we tried to move forward 
nominees who have nothing to do with the policy dispute that is at 
issue here--I think we are all in agreement on the policy dispute--we 
received hundreds of text messages, e-mails from military families, 
saying: Thank you for having our back. Somebody has our back. Somebody 
is speaking out for us.
  So we have told them we are going to do that as we are moving into 
Thanksgiving. My colleagues and I, we are going to keep our word. We 
keep our word to our military.
  Now, during that time in the last 2 weeks, we have all worked hard 
together. Senator Tuberville is here. Senator Lee is on the floor. We 
are all working hard to try and resolve this. We have ideas. Senator 
Graham is going to talk a little bit more about litigation, about 
switching the holds from the innocent members of the military to the 
civilians who are making the policy, that is the appropriate--to 
fighting this abortion policy of the Biden administration, DOD, and the 
NDAA.
  So we are still working on that. I want to extend that to my 
colleagues, but the backlog grows. Right now, when Armed Services 
reports out the next batch of military officers, it will be 450, one-, 
two-, three-, and four-star generals--450. This is having a huge 
readiness challenge and a huge morale challenge while our troops are 
literally--literally--in combat, literally under fire. Some of these 
being held in the Middle East, in terms of their promotions, are in 
combat right now. The world is a very dangerous place.
  Very quickly, my Democrat colleagues, the Biden administration, they 
seem to take a certain delight in what is happening here. I don't take 
a delight in this at all. I don't relish this at all. I like working 
with my Republican colleagues. I wish we could resolve this.
  I am on the floor here more out of sadness and frustration than 
anger, and I really do wish, with my colleague Senator Tuberville, that 
we can find a way forward on this fast so we can turn to an even bigger 
readiness problem, and that is the Biden administration's lack of 
seriousness when it comes to the Department of Defense: cutting the 
budgets every year; the current budget shrinks the Army, Navy, Air 
Force, Marine Corps; the civilian woke focus of this administration. 
They are not serious on our national defense and military.
  We need to get through that. Senator Tuberville and I actually were 
the ones who made the majority leader bring forward the members of the 
Joint Chiefs of Staff. So on the other side of the aisle, there wasn't 
a lot of seriousness on moving people either.
  So I hope we can resolve this issue and focus on even the bigger 
readiness issue that plagues this administration right now. But there 
is no doubt these blanket holds are creating readiness challenges not 
just for flag officers; we are starting to hear of colonels and 
lieutenant colonels who are being stuck. So this is impacting the 
entire military.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the letters from the 
Military Officers Association of America, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, 
and the American Legion--this represents millions of Americans all 
requesting that these blanket holds be lifted--be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                         MOAA,

                                 Alexandria, VA, November 7, 2023.
       Dear Members of the U.S. Senate: As President and CEO of 
     the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), one of 
     the nation's largest military service organizations, I want 
     to extend my appreciation for your chamber's recent work to 
     end the promotion block facing more than 300 senior military 
     officers--an ongoing threat to the future of the all-
     volunteer force and our national security.
       As more positions become vacant, more families face 
     hardships, and the strain on the readiness of our military 
     continues, MOAA believes the time to end the promotion block 
     has long passed. We strongly oppose Senator Tuberville's use 
     of blanket nomination holds to protest Pentagon policies, and 
     we urge the Senate to take advantage of your recent work and 
     act now to end this destructive tactic before further damage 
     is done to our military.
       Talented officers on the path for future senior leadership 
     roles are reevaluating their careers, some opting to leave 
     uniform rather than subject their family to hardships and, 
     frankly, insults from Senator Tuberville that demean and 
     disrespect the sacrifices they make in defending our nation. 
     Hearing the senator dismiss impacts to families and readiness 
     that have been raised to him and his staff for many months is 
     very disappointing. Future servicemembers are watching this 
     display of political theater and are reconsidering their 
     decision to serve. It's a potential loss of talent America 
     cannot afford, but one our competitors love to see.
       By interfering with an orderly and efficient confirmation 
     process, Senator Tuberville is denying our military the 
     leadership it needs to accomplish its demanding mission. And 
     as recent events highlight, the stakes could not be higher 
     and the need for leadership could not be greater. MOAA 
     respects and supports the Senate's responsibility to debate 
     policy and conduct oversight of the Department of Defense. 
     But his blockade tactic places his own objectives over the 
     collective will of elected colleagues and it corrupts the 
     most fundamental principles of our democratic process. Worst 
     of all, it puts military families in the untenable position 
     of having to question whether the hand they raised and the 
     oaths they take are respected by elected leaders.
       With multiple conflicts abroad and significant recruiting 
     challenges at home, our military needs its full complement of 
     qualified, capable men and women at the helm. It's clear some 
     damage has already been done, but we urge the Senate to find 
     a way to act now, end this tactic, and ensure it is never 
     used again before permanent damage is done to our military 
     members and families.
       MOAA stands ready to support your work on behalf of all who 
     serve, across all ranks and all uniformed services. We thank 
     you for your continued efforts on behalf of the all-volunteer 
     force and look forward to you taking immediate actions to 
     help restore the important and necessary trust between the 
     military community and our elected leaders.
           Very Respectfully,
                              Lt. Gen. Brian T. Kelly, USAF (Ret),
                                           MOAA President and CEO.
                                 ______
                                 


                                                          VFW,

                               Washington, DC, September 18, 2023.
     Hon. Tommy Tuberville,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Tuberville: On behalf of the 1.5 million 
     members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States 
     (VFW) and its Auxiliary, I write to call on you to lift your 
     hold on the routine promotion of U.S. military general and 
     flag officers. One of the VFW's top national security 
     priorities is preserving the all-volunteer force. At a time 
     of military recruiting challenges, the instability caused by 
     this hold will have far-reaching consequences for the brave 
     Americans who volunteer to serve in today's military and 
     those who may consider future military service. The VFW 
     called on the Senate to resolve this matter earlier this 
     summer and now we call on you directly to end this hold 
     before we set the very dangerous precedent of harming 
     American service members as leverage in Washington political 
     battles.
       The VFW recently conducted a survey in which our members, 
     including veterans in Alabama, overwhelmingly voiced their 
     opinions on this matter. VFW members were clear that 
     political debates in Washington should be handled among 
     civilian political leaders. Moreover, VFW members strongly 
     conveyed that politicians should not be able to harm the 
     troops over political disputes and that political decisions 
     that harm the troops would affect the way they would vote in 
     upcoming elections.
       The VFW has already heard from current service members and 
     military families on the far-reaching effects your hold has 
     had on both the mission and the lives of those who choose 
     military service as a career. Preservation of the all-
     volunteer force demands a non-partisan and apolitical 
     uniformed military capable of closing with and destroying our 
     nation's enemies at the direction of its duly elected and 
     appointed civilian leaders. When policy disputes emerge among 
     these civilian leaders, the VFW cannot allow politicians to 
     set the precedent of harming uniformed service members to 
     make a point.
       The world is still a dangerous place and brave Americans 
     remain stationed around

[[Page S5560]]

     the world, intent on keeping these dangers far from our 
     shores. This is why the VFW is calling on you to stop this 
     dangerous game. Games may belong on the football field, but 
     not in the halls of the U.S. Senate. Lift the hold so the 
     Senate may do its job by promoting our uniformed military 
     leaders.
           Sincerely,
                                                 Ryan M. Gallucci,
                        Executive Director, VFW Washington Office.
                                 ______
                                 


                                          The American Legion,

                                 Washington, DC, November 8, 2023.
     Hon. Chuck Schumer,
     Washington, DC.
     Hon. Mitch McConnell,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senate Leadership: On behalf of our 1.6 million dues-
     paying members, The American Legion respectfully requests 
     your timely attention to the hundreds of U.S. military 
     vacancies awaiting confirmation. Your leadership and the 
     resolve of your conferences to come together and end this 
     blockade is vital to American national security and to 
     preserving the lives of our men and women in uniform. Failure 
     to find a bipartisan solution to the continued political 
     chess risks the lives of our servicemembers and the safety of 
     our nation.
       Since 1919, The American Legion has emphasized the 
     importance of a strong national defense. A well-funded, well-
     equipped, and well-trained military plays a vital role in 
     safeguarding the principles our nation holds dear. As U.S. 
     troops are targeted in the Middle East and global tensions 
     are on the rise, it is imperative leadership vacancies within 
     our military are filled now! Our allies and adversaries are 
     watching closely; inaction risks innumerable consequences.
       The personal toll of confirmation purgatory extends far 
     beyond uniformed candidates with uncertain promotions. U.S. 
     servicemembers may pay the ultimate price if the perception 
     of chaos continues to create opportunity for our adversaries. 
     As we've seen in the past month alone, the Pentagon has 
     reported more than 38 attacks against U.S. troops in the 
     Middle East. While politicians continue to play games and use 
     our servicemembers as pawns, their lives remain in harm's way 
     and could be left paying the ultimate price.
       The American Legion urges both conferences to come together 
     to end the inaction holding our armed forces hostage. Your 
     leadership is vital to protect our servicemembers, national 
     security, and our country.
           For God & Country,
                                               Daniel J. Seehafer,
                                               National Commander.

  Mr. SULLIVAN. Finally, tonight we are going to bring up some more 
members. I hope my colleagues don't object. When they are going to 
talk, I am sure they are going to talk about the Biden policy, which we 
all disagree with. Four Senators on the floor who were on the floor 2 
weeks ago, we have a lot in common, but two big things are strongly 
pro-life and strongly pro-military because we are veterans. We have 
served. We know what sacrifice means, and we want to make sure we are 
protecting our military members and their families. That is a core 
principle, certainly, of Republicans, and we need to do that.
  What I am hopeful for--hearing from my colleagues on the floor--also 
questions that we didn't hear from last week. My colleague from Alabama 
said many times that if you bring up nominees one by one, he would be 
fine with it. On September 6, he said: I am not holding up nominees 
from being approved. They can bring them to the floor one at a time, 
and I won't block them.
  Well, that is what we are doing.
  By the way, this is regular order. We did some research. There has 
only been two times in the last half century where there was a recorded 
vote on a brigadier general--twice. We are doing more than regular 
order here by moving these individually.
  And, finally, this is the most important question I think we all 
think is imperative; it needs to be answered for our military members: 
Why punish patriotic military members over a policy dispute they have 
nothing to do with and can't fix? Why punish people who have seriously 
sacrificed for America--more than probably anyone else on the floor 
here, certainly--over a policy dispute they had nothing to do with? Why 
punish their families and the war heroes supporting these families you 
will hear about tonight who have served our country so faithfully, when 
they have nothing to do with the dispute on the floor? Why punish some 
of the most combat-experienced members of the military whom we need on 
the field now--one of the most dangerous times in the last 70 years--
when they have nothing to do with this dispute?
  So I was home Veterans Day in Alaska. My State has more veterans per 
capita than any other State in the country--very patriotic citizens. 
The events I went to, young Alaskans, old Alaskans really honor our 
veterans. Whenever I am at a ceremony and I am speaking, I always call 
out our Vietnam vets for special recognition because what happened to 
them should never happen again to any military members.
  What happened to them? There were huge policy disputes over the 
Vietnam war at the Pentagon level, but people took it out on the 
troops. People took it out on the troops. They punished the troops over 
a policy dispute these troops had nothing to do with. They were serving 
honorably.
  Americans always said, We will never do that again. Well, guess what? 
It is happening again. Troops are being punished. Families are being 
punished over something they have nothing to do with.
  So my hope tonight is we get my colleague to lift the blanket hold 
and not object to these individual noms. But it is also important to 
understand what a blanket hold is. It is about individuals. Who are 
these heroes? Who is being punished? How have they served their 
country? How have they sacrificed?
  We are going to hear a little bit about that, I hope. I think 
Americans who are watching will be proud when they hear about these 
great patriots--for those listening--but also might make you sad or 
frustrated or even angry that we are not keeping faith with these 
faithful patriots.
  I am now going to turn the floor to my colleague Senator Ernst.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
  Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, I am privileged to be on the floor this 
evening in what in the military we would call a joint operation. So 
this evening, I am joining my marine colleagues, Senator Sullivan of 
Alaska and Senator Young of Indiana, and my Air Force colleague from 
the great State of South Carolina. I, of course, served 23 years 
between the U.S. Army Reserve and the Iowa Army National Guard, 
deploying once for Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2003 to 2004, where I 
was the company commander of 150 soldiers that ran convoys from Kuwait 
up into Iraq, supporting our warriors to the north.
  We are also joined in the chair this evening by another veteran, the 
Senator from Michigan in the chair, Mr. President, Naval reservist. So 
we truly are a joint operation under the color of purple. So thank you 
so much.
  I am going to throw down just a little bit of how we got into this 
situation and a little bit more about who I am because I am pro-
military, obviously, but I am also pro-life as well. I served in the 
Iowa State Senate. And during the time that I served in the State 
senate, I was a pro-life leader. I was the go-to gal for our pro-life 
issues in the Iowa State Senate, participating and leading in 
legislation to advance life, as well as participating in marches for 
life, in the great State of Iowa.

  Coming into the U.S. Senate, then I became a member of the pro-life 
caucus. I have led on a number of efforts when it comes to life. 
Predominantly, though, one that our pro-life community has really 
appreciated is the effort to defund Planned Parenthood and redirect 
those dollars to eligible providers of women's healthcare, such as 
community health centers.
  In February of 2023, we saw President Biden unveil his abortion 
travel agency plan. OK? What does this mean? It means that President 
Biden decided that he would send young women--whether they were family 
members, whether they were servicemembers--he would allow them to 
travel. He would send them to other States to receive abortions, that 
being supported by taxpayer dollars.
  We feel this is wrong. It goes against the Hyde amendment. That is 
where President Biden put us.
  Secretary Lloyd Austin implemented that plan in February, again, of 
2023. And in March of 2023, then I led--I led--on the effort to 
overturn this policy. I introduced and led the legislation to reverse 
the DOD's travel abortion policy.
  It was twice voted on in the Armed Services Committee during the 
National Defense Authorization Act process--twice voted on; twice 
defeated in the committee. Now, that is in the U.S. Senate.
  So, again, I am pro-military, and I am pro-life. I also do not relish 
the fact

[[Page S5561]]

that I am standing on the floor this evening as we try and bring these 
nominations forward, but I understand the national security risks that 
are out there and the detriment to readiness as we continue to hold 
over 450 of the finest men and women that have served their Nation 
honorably under the flag of our Nation in our uniform.
  So I will go through one by one. I have a binder full of nominees, 
and I do hope that our colleague from Alabama will allow us to bring 
them up one by one for a voice vote. Again, I have many biographies 
here--fabulous, incredible men and women.
  And with that, I will yield to my colleague from South Carolina.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Thank you very much, and thank you for your service and 
to everybody that served.
  Next week is Thanksgiving. We are all going to go home here in a 
little bit and enjoy our families. God willing, we make it home safe. I 
mean that for everybody--Coach, everybody. There are a lot of people 
who won't be with their families next week because they are in some 
place doing things that are very difficult, risking their lives. This 
is where I am here tonight.
  How do you right wrongs? You don't create another wrong. I want to 
right the wrong of having abortion paid for by public taxpayer dollars 
from the defense coffers that I think not only violates the Hyde 
amendments, it is just bad policy.
  Count me in, Coach. I am with you on that, Mike. I am with you on 
that. You say it is illegal. I tend to agree with you. Go to court.
  One way you right a wrong in America if you think the law is broken, 
you actually bring a lawsuit. I think we found a way--talking to Jay 
Sekulow--to bring a lawsuit challenging the Defense policy of President 
Biden using taxpayer dollars to pay for transportation costs from DOD 
funds to perform abortions. I think that is in violation of the Hyde 
amendment. The good news is I believe the Speaker of the House has 
standing to bring the lawsuit.
  Generally speaking, in America, when you get in a legal dispute, you 
go to court. The DOD general counsel has a memo that it doesn't violate 
the Hyde amendment. I think they are wrong, but we are not a court of 
law here. There is a court of law available to resolve this dispute, 
and I would encourage us to seek that remedy.
  Another remedy is to try to find a compromise between the House 
version and the Senate version of the NDAA. The House strips the 
policy; the Senate--because they are controlled by Democrats--we have 
the policy, and we will try to work out some way to reconcile that 
through the legislative process. That is one way to fix this problem.
  What we have chosen to do--and every Senator has a lot of power. That 
is what makes the Senate different than the House. I have served in 
both bodies. With power comes responsibility. The wrong we are creating 
here is to put our military at risk at a time of great need.
  If you do not believe these holds are having an effect on the 
military, I don't question your sincerity; I question your judgment. If 
you ask anybody out in the field right now--there is one flag officer 
for the whole continent of Africa. This is like a car wreck on I-95. It 
keeps backing up. Last time we were talking, there were 300. We are up 
to 450. This is affecting the ability of the Nation to defend itself.
  I will not tolerate being told something I know is wrong. The policy 
is wrong, but holding these officers who had nothing to do with this is 
wrong. They deserve better. They have done nothing to get us here in 
this spot. We have got a political difference between the Department of 
Defense and the Senate and the House, and the courtroom is available to 
resolve this. And I just ask my good friend from Alabama--I don't doubt 
your sincerity--but if this continues, this is one of the worst self-
inflicted wounds I have seen in 20 years.
  We pulled out of Afghanistan; that was a self-inflicted wound. We had 
a chance to deter Russia, and we chose not to by having pre-invasion 
sanctions; that was a self-inflicted wound done by the Biden 
administration. We have a broken border; that is self-inflicted. We 
will challenge all of those self-inflicted wounds. And as Republicans, 
it will be easy. What is hard is to challenge people of your own party 
at times.
  When it comes to the military, I lay the party label down because I 
have seen what it takes to defend this Nation up close and personal.
  It means you miss birthdays. You miss graduations. You miss babies 
born, and you lose your life. That is what it means to serve. And all 
the people, the 450 people, if you have got an individual problem with 
one of these folks, I will support your right to object, and we will 
hear your side of the story. But I don't believe that all 450 people 
are woke. So here is what I would say about the 450 people.
  They have dedicated their adult lives to serving this country. They 
have given every ounce that they could give to get to where they are at 
to be promoted.
  Do you know how hard it is to become a sergeant major in the enlisted 
corps? It is 1 percent of the enlisted force.
  Do you know how hard it is to become a general officer, because you 
are competing with some of the best people on the planet? For every one 
that gets promoted, there are 10 that could be promoted or would do 
great in positions of responsibility.
  We are taking the military and throwing it in the ditch in terms of 
command structure. There are people filling jobs today that are waiting 
to go to their next assignment, and they can't get there because they 
can't get promoted. They are paying two house payments, not one. Their 
children don't know what school they are going to go to. They deserve 
better than this.
  This is my promise. I will work with Senator Tuberville and Senator 
Lee and anybody else and everybody else to find a solution that is 
acceptable to them to get us back on track and talk about the issues I 
just discussed. But I promise you this, this will be the last holiday 
this happens. If it takes me to vote to break loose these folks, I 
will.
  I am not going to talk about me being pro-life. Just look at what I 
have done. To my pro-life friends, you are not advancing this cause. 
You are hurting this cause if the average American believe that the 
reason these people are getting blocked from promotion is because of 
some policy choice they didn't make. It is not fair to have people in 
uniform, who have to follow their civilian leadership, when the 
fundamental precept of American democracy is civilian control of the 
military--they have no choice. Don't punish them because in our system 
the civilians make the decisions.
  Let's punish the civilians who make these choices. There are plenty 
of people we can hold and should hold. There are plenty of things we 
can do to fight to right this wrong. We can go to court. We can insist 
on change to the NDAA process. But this is not righting the wrong. This 
is creating another wrong. This is putting our Nation at risk.
  And I would just say this. I have been here for 20 years now. I have 
never seen the world on fire like this. The only reason that an 
American soldier hasn't been killed in Iraq and Syria because of drone 
attacks by a Shi'ite militia controlled by Iran is they had a dud. They 
were just lucky as hell.
  And what is going on in Israel, that could spread like wildfire. We 
could be in a shooting war with Iran tomorrow. So we need our best team 
on the field, and the best players we have are being blocked from 
serving. This needs to come to an end for the national security of this 
Nation.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. YOUNG. Mr. President, we are back here again on the floor of the 
U.S. Senate. It is early in the morning. Why are we down here?
  We are down here to keep faith with those officers in the military, 
members of their families, and those who will follow them--that when 
members of our military spend their entire professional lives building 
up experiences--leadership experiences, experiences in battle--
obtaining multiple degrees, making countless sacrifices back home, that 
their careers won't be interrupted by politics that they have got 
nothing at all to do with.
  Let me go through five areas: first, areas of agreement with my good 
friend--and he is my good friend, Senator Tuberville. I sit right next 
to

[[Page S5562]]

him, and I have a lot of respect for Senator Tuberville. He and I share 
agreement on pro-life principles. We are both, in every respect--our 
policies, our convictions, our public statements, our past history--
strongly pro-life. I don't think anyone questions that.
  We also believe that the President's actions as it relates to these 
policies--the ones that he and I find objectionable--to transport our 
servicemembers out of State to obtain abortions using taxpayer money is 
patently illegal. We think it should be challenged.
  Second point: We do have disagreements on this, but they are tactical 
disagreements, not grounded in principle--tactical disagreements that 
we are trying to find alternatives to. The reason I don't think this 
current approach is even constructive is because, as many of my 
colleagues have already stated, it punishes those brave servicemembers 
who didn't develop the policy and can't change it, and that, therefore, 
breeds a lot of frustration and even cynicism about our elected 
officials.
  Fourth, this is a dangerous time, something I underscored last time I 
was down here to talk about this. It is a time of war. The United 
States blessedly is not involved in that war actively. We don't have 
boots on the ground, but we have been actively resourcing our friends 
and partners. It is a dangerous and precarious time for our friends. 
God forbid, some sort of escalation occurs. We don't want to get pulled 
into that. We have a porous southern border. We need our best team on 
the field.
  And the last point I really want to emphasize tonight is that this is 
personal to me. This is personal to this U.S. Senator. I proudly 
represent the people of Indiana in this institution, but I have a 
history serving in other areas, serving with other individuals.
  I proudly graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1995, and, this 
evening, I will be calling to the floor from the Executive Calendar the 
names of seven individuals who have been nominated for the rank of rear 
admiral (lower half).
  They were classmates of mine. Our class is really proud of these 
individuals. I think there is broad acknowledgment that they have 
earned this opportunity to lead at the highest level in the best 
military that ever was, and I want to do my part to give them that 
opportunity. I am asking Senator Tuberville to do his part.

  ``Non sibi sed patriae.'' It is the motto of the class of 1995. ``Not 
self, but country.'' ``Non sibi sed patriae.''
  So I am asking an exception to be made for my classmates here, these 
seven individuals and seven patriots of whom I am quite proud.
  So, Mr. President, with that in mind, I call to the floor Executive 
Calendar No. 104, CAPT Kurtis A. Mole, to the grade of Rear Admiral 
(lower half).
  Captain Mole enlisted in the Navy in 1988, becoming a cryptologic 
technician and attending the prestigious Defense Language Institute, or 
DLI, in Monterey. Captain Mole went on to attend the Naval Academy, 
earning a commission in 1995 as a surface warfare officer.
  After his redesignation as a cryptologic warfare officer in 2000, he 
went on to serve in many positions, including the senior cryptologist 
for the USS Kittyhawk Strike Group, the information officer for the 
commander of the U.S. Seventh Fleet, the information warfare commander 
for USS Ronald Reagan Strike Group, and the commanding officer of NSA/
CSS Hawaii.
  Captain Mole has been deployed multiple times to the Arabian Gulf and 
the Western Pacific--an amazing career.
  And we can confirm this nomination by voice vote right now.
  And, therefore, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to 
executive session for the consideration of the following nomination: 
CAPT Kurtis A. Mole to be Rear Admiral (lower half) in the U.S. Navy, 
under Calendar No. 104; that the Senate vote on the nomination without 
intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President 
be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I have nothing 
but warm feelings, respect, and gratitude for the noble service that my 
colleagues from Alaska and Iowa and South Carolina and Indiana have 
demonstrated in their loyalty to their country, serving in their 
respective branches in the U.S. military, and nothing but respect for 
the service that they have dedicated to the United States as U.S. 
Senators.
  I have nothing but respect for the brave men and women who have for 
two and a half centuries donned the uniform in defense of their fellow 
beings so that they might live in comfort and peace, while they offer 
up their last full measure of devotion, day after day.
  I have nothing but respect for what they are trying to do in the 
sense that I know that they want the military to be all that it needs 
to be in order to protect the American people.
  I certainly do share the concern that they express. But to the extent 
we ever put our armed services personnel in jeopardy because of 
political disputes, that is not ideal. We don't want to ever sacrifice 
military readiness because of a political battle, and it is because of 
that, and not in spite of it, that I am here tonight.
  I want to be clear. The particular strategy deployed here is not 
mine. It is that of a dear friend and colleague who is here with me 
tonight. It is not my strategy. It is his. And it is because it is his 
that I am here to defend him in that, notwithstanding the fact that it 
is not the particular tactic that I would have chosen. He has chosen a 
tactic that is legitimate and that he has every right to deploy under 
the rules of the Senate--rules that go back nearly two and a half 
centuries in order to protect the individual rights of each Senator.
  These have deep meaning under our constitutional system. In the U.S. 
Senate, we operate differently than they do in the House.
  First of all, we have this role. In the words of the minority leader, 
we are in the personnel business, in addition to being in the business 
of passing legislation. Being in the personnel business means that we 
have got to review people as they come up for Senate confirmation.
  We are also different in that every State is represented equally. In 
fact, the only change that you cannot constitutionally make to the 
Constitution by means of a constitutional amendment is that principle. 
You cannot amend the Constitution to alter the principle of equal 
representation among the States. And it is that very principle that is 
reflected in these Senate rules and always has been. Why? Because it is 
important to make sure that every State does have full representation--
that one isn't represented more than another.
  The people of Alabama have elected my friend and colleague, the 
senior Senator from Alabama, to represent them. That is why they have 
these rights. That is why they are important to defend.
  So notwithstanding the fact that any of us might have chosen a 
different tactic or different strategy to go about this, this is his 
right, and it is a right that I will defend to my last breath for the 
simple reason that it is his right to do it, and he is right to do it.
  Let me explain what I mean by that.
  The reason we are even here having this discussion is because we have 
some individuals who serve in the Pentagon, in the Department of 
Defense, who have lost sight of which is the branch of government in 
which they serve. We want them to be able, ready, willing at a moment's 
notice to do everything they need to do in order to defend this great 
Nation--the greatest civilization the world has ever known. To that 
end, their job is to serve in an executive capacity, not in a 
legislative capacity. These are not mere abstractions; these are 
fundamental, bedrock principles of our system of government.
  Two independent provisions of the Constitution make this clear.
  Article I, section I, clause 1--the very first operative provision of 
the entire Constitution--says that all legislative powers herein 
granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall 
consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives.
  Article I, section VII of the Constitution makes this point doubly 
clear: that you cannot, may not, will not, must not ever pass a law, 
change a law that is a Federal law in our system unless you have a few 
things happen. You

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have to have passage in the House and passage in the Senate. Most of 
the time, it doesn't matter in which order; it just has to be the same 
legislative text. That text must then be transmitted to the President--
or presented, as we call it--for signature, veto, or acquiescence. If 
the President signs it or acquiesces, it becomes law. If the President 
vetoes it, it is returned to our respective Chambers, and it will not 
become law unless two-thirds of the Members of both Houses of Congress 
choose to overturn that veto.
  Here is why this matters: We have had in place since 1984 a set of 
laws--laws that had been amended in 1996 and then again in 2003--that 
today are codified in 10 U.S.C., section 1093. Those laws make clear 
that you cannot use Department of Defense funds or Department of 
Defense facilities or property for abortions. You cannot do that. You 
cannot do that in the absence of rape, incest, or when the life of the 
mother is in jeopardy unless the abortion happens.
  This, in turn, reflects a very simple and very longlasting truth 
among the American people, which is the American people come at the 
abortion issue from a wide variety of perspectives. There are some who 
believe that life begins at conception and that anything from that 
moment forward cannot be justified. There are others who believe that, 
until the baby is actually born and takes its first breath, the baby 
has no legally cognizable, protectable rights. There are some who would 
take that even further. I find it difficult to accept that some feel 
that way, but some really do.
  Even though Americans find themselves at very different positions 
along this ideological spectrum specifically related to the issue of 
abortion, there is one point that unites Americans overwhelmingly and I 
mean to the tune of three out of four. Something in the range of about 
75 percent of Americans agree on one thing--one thing--when it comes to 
abortion: You should not, must not ever use Federal taxpayer funds for 
abortion.
  Why? Well, pro-life Americans, I think, find this explanation 
obvious. They don't like abortion anyway, so they don't want government 
funding. But it appears that about half the people who are not pro-
life, who believe in some policies that recognize that somebody ought 
to have the ability to get an abortion--about half of them, it turns 
out, believe that we still shouldn't use Federal funds to do that 
because a lot of Americans are uncomfortable with that, and it is with 
good reason.
  These policies have been around for a really long time and with good 
reason. Even though overall preferences, strategies, beliefs, public 
opinions about abortion have changed from time to time, this one has 
remained overwhelmingly against the use of public funds.
  So it was surprising and alarming to my friend Senator Tuberville 
when, about a year ago, he started hearing rumors--rumors to the effect 
that the Pentagon would begin using Federal funds to facilitate 
abortions. He went and did as any faithful member of the Senate Armed 
Services Committee would: He met with Secretary of Defense Lloyd 
Austin, and he said: Look, I don't know whether these rumors are true, 
but if they are true, I find them alarming, and if they turn out to be 
true, I will have no choice as a member of the Senate Armed Services 
Committee but to make sure that there are consequences to you if you 
take this lawless act.

  He had good reason to point this out. Look, the only reason for that 
policy, the only fathomable reason, is to circumvent the plain purpose, 
intent, effect of 10 U.S.C., section 1093. That is the only reason it 
is there, and they have written it ever so craftily so as to be able to 
have a colorable argument. I think it is an argument that flies in the 
face of the stated purpose, intent, effect of this Federal statute, 10 
U.S.C., section 1093. It is so that they could argue: Well, we are not 
using it to perform the abortion; we are just using it to fly people to 
get the abortion, and then we are using it to pay for 3 weeks of paid 
leave time for anyone who has gone to get the abortion. We are going to 
pay their travel, their room and board, and everything else. We will 
pay for everything else around the abortion, but because we are not 
paying for the abortion itself, we are in the clear.
  Now, Senator Tuberville recognized something very important: that the 
sole purpose of this policy would be to circumvent Federal law and to 
make it difficult to impossible to challenge it in a court of law. I 
will get back to that in a moment. So he did something right then and 
there--something that, whether you agree with the tactic used or not, 
you have to find admirable. He has taken the bull by the horns. He 
utilized the resources at his disposal, which is what any Division I 
champion football coach would do.
  He did it, and he said: OK. If you do this, that is fine. I suppose--
well, it is not fine, but, you know, it is your prerogative to do that. 
But if you do that, I am going to exercise my prerogatives as a 
Senator, and my prerogatives as a Senator are such that I can require 
you to take the long way, the long road, the long and more difficult 
path instead of the shorter path that we nearly always use when we are 
confirming flag officer military personnel--that is, generals and 
admirals as well as political appointees--within the Department of 
Defense.
  Now, let's understand something about a ``hold.'' A ``hold'' is not 
an inexorable block. It is not damning these people to Senate 
confirmation hell. It doesn't have that power. That is above his pay 
grade--all of ours. What he is doing is saying: There is the fast path, 
and there is the slow path. We always use the fast path, but that 
requires the acquiescence, the agreement, the unanimous consent of all 
100 of us. If you don't do that, I, Senator Tuberville, will make you 
take the slow path.
  Secretary Austin is a decorated war hero. Secretary Austin has been 
around for a long time. He knows the Senate. He knows the Pentagon 
well. He knew the risks. He chose to play chicken. He chose to look a 
U.S. Senator in the eye and say: Thank you. I will take that under 
advisement.
  And, in a cowardly moment, he decided to arrogate to himself power 
that does not belong to him because the Constitution of the United 
States doesn't give it to him because you can't legislate from the E-
ring of the Pentagon. No matter how strongly he feels, no matter how 
compelling his urge to facilitate the performance of abortion using 
Federal funds contrary to public opinion, contrary to Federal law, he 
does not have that power. Shame on him. It is to his everlasting shame 
that he would arrogate to himself that power and then have the audacity 
to blame Senator Tuberville for the slowdown that he himself knowingly, 
willfully, shamefully created.
  So we now get back to this point that is impacting military 
readiness, that is creating an inconvenience for the flag officers who 
have been nominated. We are hearing now that it is even affecting 
people at a level below the flag officers. Now, that is curious because 
Senator Tuberville has never imposed holds--none of these holds have 
applied with regard to anybody below a flag officer level--general, 
admiral, one star, two star, three star, four star, or political 
appointee DOD-wide. Never. They haven't. So I really don't know where 
that argument is coming from. Perhaps they are saying it has a 
spillover effect downstream. Maybe that is the case. If that is the 
case, then I hope they will be clear in making that argument because 
otherwise that argument is just false; it is just not true. In any 
event, he is not stopping them. He is not stopping one of them. He is 
saying: You just have to take the slow path.

  So let's be clear here. There are exactly two ways--two ways--that, 
regardless of Senator Tuberville's holds, regardless of whether he ever 
budges an inch, we can take care of this. Approach 1 could happen 
tonight. I guess it is technically morning. What is it? It is 12:56 or 
so a.m., so we will say this morning.
  Right now, President Biden, if you are watching TV, pay attention. I 
am going to give you a really easy recipe to follow. You can do this 
even at 1 a.m. President Biden, if you are not awake, you really should 
be watching this because this is compelling television.
  If you are staffing President Biden tonight, you might go wake him 
up. I think he will really enjoy this. I think he will enjoy it a lot. 
It is much easier to do than riding a bike, and you are not going to 
fall over while doing it.
  All you have to do is suspend your Godless, lawless abortion travel 
policy.

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Just suspend it right now. If this is affecting military readiness, so 
be it. End it. End it tonight. You have a duty to do that.
  Lloyd Austin, you can do it, too. Suspend your abortion travel 
policy.
  Now, look, I know you guys feel really passionately about abortion. I 
know that for whatever reason, you have lost your freaking minds ever 
since that fateful day in June of 2022 when the Supreme Court of the 
United States ended a nearly half-century-long judicial hegemony over 
the issue of abortion. It ended that because, well, it turns out the 
Constitution doesn't say anything about abortion, and by saying nothing 
about abortion, it leaves the issue of abortion to elected lawmakers, 
not to nine lawyers dressed in robes. Most of the time, that means they 
leave the issue of abortion to State lawmakers, not Federal ones, 
because most of the time, it is not our role anyway.
  I know, President Biden and Secretary Austin, you have been really 
upset about that. Why? Because, well, for a long time, the Supreme 
Court of the United States on this issue that is so important to you--
why, I will never understand, but I understand that you are mad because 
the Supreme Court, for that long period of time, was acting as your 
superlegislature that was willing to do your bidding and that of your 
party's. Your infanticidal ambitions were facilitated by this 
superlegislature across the street.
  The only problem is, they didn't have any authority to do that--none. 
It cannot be found. So when they abandoned it, the day they abandoned 
it, President Biden announced all sorts of ambitious, whole-of-
government approaches to effectively nullify a ruling of the Supreme 
Court of the United States--a ruling of the Supreme Court of the United 
States that is legally, constitutionally unimpeachable.
  From that moment forward, you declared your own little jihad on the 
Dobbs ruling and on the Supreme Court. You have been trying to 
delegitimize Justice Alito, Justice Thomas, Justice Barrett, Chief 
Justice Roberts, Justice Kavanaugh, and Justice Gorsuch ever since 
then. You have threatened, through members of your party and through 
your appointment of this silly Commission you created, to pack the 
Supreme Court of the United States notwithstanding the fact that you, 
President Biden, stood on this very Senate floor decades ago and said 
correctly that it was a boneheaded idea when Franklin D. Roosevelt last 
threatened to pack the Supreme Court of the United States in 1937. It 
is a boneheaded idea today. You have been doing that.
  Meanwhile, you try to do everything you can to make the lives of 
those Justices hell.
  You have completely ignored 18 U.S.C., section 1507--a law that has 
been violated again and again and again outside the homes of the six 
Supreme Court Justices who had the courage and who had the appropriate 
jurisprudential temperament to recognize that abortion is not made 
theirs anywhere in the Constitution.
  You have ignored the fact that people come to their homes to protest, 
that they come to the homes of these Justices to protest against them, 
disturbing them on vacation and when they are at home with their 
families; ignored the fact that people are showing up to the homes of 
these Justices not just to disturb their peace but to send a signal 
loudly and clearly, unmistakably, over and over and over again, that 
says: We know where you sleep. We know where your children lay their 
heads at night.
  Yet, President Biden, you do nothing to enforce that.
  Your Attorney General has instructed Federal law enforcement 
personnel, effectively, to stand down, ignore these violations. Shame 
on you, President Biden.
  Look, I get that. Oh, that is in your little empire. You are the head 
of Article II. You are the head of the executive branch. If you don't 
want to enforce the law, we can't make you, just like we can't make you 
enforce the border as 8 million illegal immigrants have come across the 
border, carrying with them enough fentanyl to kill every man, woman, 
and child in America. And many of them have died, to the tune of 
hundreds of thousands. We can't make you enforce the law because you 
are the head of the executive branch. The head of the executive branch 
enforces the law--or it is supposed to. We can't make you do that.
  But do you know what we can do? We can defend our own prerogative to 
make the law. Sure, once the law is made, you get to enforce it or 
decide not to. You shouldn't--and shame on you for not--but you get to 
decide that. You cannot make the law. You cannot rewrite the law. And 
shame on you, President Biden, for blaming this man. This man who is 
just trying to stand up for the law and for the unborn, you are blaming 
him for our supposed lack of military readiness.
  I can't believe anybody buys this crap--I really can't--let alone 
anyone from the same party as Senator Tuberville.
  We have all been elected on pro-life stances. Now, I understand, not 
everybody is going to share the same strategy. Not every one of us 
would choose this same approach. I didn't. But you are blaming the 
wrong guy.
  There is an empty chair here--two of them, in fact; two empty chairs 
occupied by two executive branch individuals: Secretary Lloyd Austin 
and President Joe Biden, who could end this tonight, but they refuse to 
do so. That is avenue No. 1 for which we could end this.
  Avenue No. 2, we could do as Senator Tuberville told Secretary Austin 
we would do from the very outset; that is, we could confirm them the 
slow way. We went 40 consecutive days and nights--kind of Biblical, 
really, if you think about it--without a single vote in August. We are 
about to go 10 or 11 more consecutive days and nights without a single 
vote.
  We have gone days even when we were in session, where we will cast 
maybe one or two votes, at the most, and sometimes none. There are ways 
in which you can tee these people up.
  You know the rules, Senator Schumer. You know how to call these 
people up. You know how to tee these up for a vote. Yet we are down 
here tonight--all of us Republicans.
  When we talk about military readiness, why on Earth are we not aiming 
our remarks at President Biden or at Secretary Austin? Why on Earth are 
we not directing them at Senator Schumer? They all have the ability to 
end this. With Schumer, it would take longer. It would require more of 
an investment of time on our part, sure. Why are we not directing our 
arrows at them? Why are they going to Tuberville instead? I don't get 
it.
  As to the suggestion made by one of my colleagues--my friend, 
distinguished colleague, the senior Senator from South Carolina--that 
this ought to be resolved in court; that courts of law are where we 
argue legal disputes; that most nearly all legal disputes should be 
resolved there, that is just wrong. That is just dead wrong.
  The fact is, as any lawyer, any member of the bar, any officer of the 
court knows, most legal disputes never make it to court. There are a 
lot of reasons for this. Some of them involve expensive litigation. 
Some of them involve jurisprudential standards that don't always permit 
a legal challenge to be brought. Among other things, you have to 
establish what is called Article III standing. You have got to show an 
injury, in fact, squarely traceable to the conduct of the defendant 
that is capable of being redressed by a court of competent 
jurisdiction.
  Many cases, many disputes arise in a context in which it would be 
difficult, if not impossible, to find someone with Article III standing 
who is even allowed to challenge these things in Federal court.
  I, respectfully, submit that it is like a needle in a haystack, in a 
haystack on a distant planet, a really, really difficult case in which 
to even imagine, even fathom someone with Article III standing who 
could do it.
  Senator Graham referred to some legal experts, legal scholars whom I 
respect and admire, who have been looking into this. I have looked at 
their written work product, and it is excellent, but even they 
acknowledged it is not at all clear you could even find anyone with 
standing.
  This is exactly the kind of case that needs to be argued, that needs 
to be settled not in the courts of law because it can't; it must be 
resolved here, here in the branch of government that is charged with 
making the law and that is also charged with overseeing the

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branches of government that execute, implement, and enforce the law--
the executive branch. That is our job. This is where it has to be done.
  So, look, if you want to give the farm away, if you want to say we 
are just going to leave it alone, that is fine. But let's not kid 
ourselves. No court is coming to the rescue. It is not going to work. 
You are not going to find anyone with standing, I can almost guarantee 
you. And even if you can find somebody with standing, they have crafted 
this thing so deliberately, so maliciously, so carefully as to make it 
nearly impossible for anyone who even could establish standing--which 
they can't--to succeed on the merits because at the end of the day, 
they will look at them, and they will say: Gosh, shucks, we didn't do 
that. We didn't perform any abortions. All we did is we just, you know, 
drove the people to the State or flew the people to the State where 
they are going to get the abortion, and then we paid for their motel, 
their room, board, lodging, gave them 3 weeks of per diem in order to 
do it. No, we didn't do any of that.
  So by a rigid, textual analysis, which probably would be the one that 
would prevail in a court of law, you would lose.
  Even if you could find somebody with Article III standing--which you 
can't; you are not going to find that--what remedy is there?
  If we are we are going to allow the laws that our branch of 
government has made, if we are going to allow that law or the law in 
general to be an ask, then, fine, let it go. But let's not kid 
ourselves. This isn't getting fixed in a court of law. We have got the 
remedy here.
  Whether you agree with Senator Tuberville's initial decision to do it 
this way or not, don't spit on me and tell me it is raining. Don't walk 
in here and tell me there is another solution. Don't walk in here and 
tell me that courts of law are where all legal disputes have to be 
resolved when you know darn well a lot of them can't, and this one sure 
as heck won't be.
  It saddens me deeply that this many brave men and women have been 
delayed. It troubles me deeply to consider the many families whose 
lives have been disrupted by this. But I respectfully submit, with all 
the passion I am capable of communicating at 1:10 in the morning, at a 
bare minimum, you are wrong to just blame him. I don't think you should 
be blaming him at all.
  Secretary Austin and President Biden, you set in motion a sequence of 
events that you knew darn well would culminate in this very thing. You 
knew darn well that you would use this as an opportunity for 
demagoguery. That is not cool.
  I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Welch). The objection is heard.
  The Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. YOUNG. Mr. President, I do hope the President of the United 
States and Secretary Austin heed the entreaties of my esteemed 
colleague representing the State of Utah.
  With that, I call to the floor Executive Calendar No. 105, CAPT 
Thomas J. Dickinson to the grade of Rear Admiral.
  Captain Dickinson was also a classmate of mine at the U.S. Naval 
Academy. He was commissioned in 1995 and became a surface warfare 
officer.
  He has held numerous positions, most with a high level of expertise. 
These include his time as a weapons officer and combat systems officer 
aboard the USS The Sullivans and commanding officer aboard the USS 
Barry. Most notably, during his command tour of the USS Barry, he 
completed a 9-month ballistic missile defense deployment in the eastern 
Mediterranean Sea and earned the Battle Effectiveness Award, being 
recognized for its crew's high levels of sustained proficiency and 
readiness.
  Captain Dickinson is currently serving as the commander of the Naval 
Surface Warfare Center and the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in an 
acting capacity until his promotion is processed.
  We can confirm this nomination by voice vote tonight, right now. 
Therefore, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive 
session for the consideration of the following nomination: CAPT Thomas 
J. Dickinson to be Rear Admiral (lower half) in the U.S. Navy under 
Calendar No. 105; that the Senate vote on the nomination without 
intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President 
be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, we live in a 
great country. It is a country that has thrived precisely because we 
have sought, since the moment of our founding, to live under the rule 
of law; that when we make a law, we do our best to follow it.
  It doesn't always work that smoothly. I know the process of making 
law and enforcing law and interpreting the law can be messy. People 
have strong opinions about what the law ought to be, how it ought to be 
enforced, what the law means. But, you know, we have been at our best 
when we accept the fundamental premise that although the task may be 
difficult and although people might reach different conclusions 
regarding what the law should be, how the law ought to be enforced, and 
how it ought to be interpreted, that there is a right answer.
  We might not all agree on what the right answer is, but if we agree 
that there is a right answer and it is our obligation to find it and 
then defend it once we have found it, we are going to be better off.
  One of the things that differentiated our form of government from 
that of our mother country is the twin set of structural protections in 
the Constitution that separate and divide power. Our Founding Fathers 
understood, through sad experience, that it is the nature and 
disposition of almost all men and women everywhere, as soon as they get 
a little authority, a little power, that they will begin to exercise 
what we call unrighteous dominion; that is, they have a tendency to 
abuse their power. They have a tendency to become tyrants, petty or 
grand. To that end, they understood something about human nature. They 
understood what Madison described in Federalist No. 51; that if men 
were angels, we would have no need of government. If we had access to 
angels to govern us, we wouldn't need rules, we wouldn't need 
constraints around government power. But, alas, we are not angels. We 
don't have access to angels. Angels are not to be found among us, 
certainly not in the E-Ring of the Pentagon, certainly not in the White 
House today. They are no angels, neither are we. But we have rules.
  To that end, our Founding Fathers sought to subdivide power, to slice 
it and dice it. In short, they separated out power along two axes, 
establishing these two fundamental structural protections that really 
have helped foster the development of the greatest civilization the 
world has ever known.
  The first of these structural protections operates on a vertical 
axis. We call that Federalism. It says that most power in our system of 
government doesn't belong in Washington, DC. It doesn't belong at the 
national level. It belongs at the State and local level where most of 
the power is reserved.
  It says that only a few powers designated as Federal, as national, by 
the Constitution will be lodged within the Federal Government. Among 
those powers, just a few basic national authorities: the power to 
regulate trade or commerce between the States, with foreign nations, 
and with the Indian Tribes; the power to come up with a uniform system 
of weights and measures, a uniform system of immigration and 
nationality laws; the power to develop courts inferior to the Supreme 
Court of the United States, a system of bankruptcy laws and bankruptcy 
courts; the power to declare war, to establish an army and a navy and 
to regulate the militia, what we today call the National Guard.
  And there is my favorite power, too often referred to as the power to 
grant letters of marque and reprisal. Marque, in this context, is 
spelled m-a-r-q-u-e. The letter of marque and reprisal, to put it 
succinctly, is basically a hall pass issued by Congress in the name of 
the United States that allows the person possessing it to engage in 
state-sponsored acts of piracy on the high seas. In short, you get to 
be a pirate.
  Each of these powers are relatively minor. All of them together are 
still relatively minor compared to the bulk of the power reserved to 
the State and

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local governments around the country. To the extent that we have 
respected those limits, those distinctions between State and Federal 
power, we have benefited materially as a country.
  Tragically, over the last 86 years, we have deviated from that, and 
that has caused problems. It has spilled over and helped erode not just 
the vertical protection we call Federalism but also the horizontal 
protection we call separation of powers. And I will turn to that now.
  Under the principle of separation of powers within the Federal 
Government, the Founding Fathers set up three distinct branches. One 
branch, the legislative branch headed by Congress, consisting of a 
House and Senate, would make the laws. Subdivided between these two 
branches, these two Chambers of the legislative branch--because they 
knew that it would be more difficult to abuse the power if you split it 
up more, so they did--another branch, the executive branch, headed by 
an elected President, whose job it is to enforce the laws--or it is, at 
least, supposed to be; and a third branch headed by the Supreme Court 
and including such inferior courts as Congress might choose to ordain 
and establish from time to time, whose job it is to interpret the laws.
  Now, between these three powers--let's face it--they are not really 
equal branches. They are coordinate branches, but they are not equal in 
their power. By far, the most dangerous branch is the branch that we 
inhabit and is the branch in which we serve, in which we find ourselves 
this fine evening, because the power to make law is the most dangerous 
power in government. And it is for that very reason, Mr. President, the 
Founding Fathers wouldn't entrust that to anyone other than the branch 
of government most accountable to the people at the most regular 
intervals--because it is dangerous.
  The other two branches, if you think about it, really exercise powers 
that are derivative of ours in one way or the other. The laws that the 
executive enforces must first be passed by us. The laws the judicial 
branch interprets must first be passed by us. That is why it is so 
important that we safeguard this, that we make sure that no one else 
from outside the legislative branch of government seizes that power. 
Why? Because they are not accountable to the people at the most regular 
intervals.
  You can fire every Member of the House of Representatives every 2 
years. Their voters have the chance to do that with all of them every 2 
years. From the Speaker of the House to the most junior Member, they 
can all be fired by their constituents every 2 years.
  A third of us in this Chamber can be fired every 2 years. My 
constituents opted not to do that last year. I had the chance, and they 
decided to keep me for another 6 years, and I am grateful for that.
  But we are all accountable. That same accountability does not apply 
in the executive branch. It sure as heck doesn't apply in the judicial 
branch. It is one of many reasons why you can't legislate from the E-
Ring of the Pentagon. You cannot make a new law, you cannot change 
existing law from the executive branch.
  Now, I know. I know. I know. We have gotten lazy. We have gotten lazy 
because since April 12, 1937, a day which should live in infamy in 
American history but a day that is seldom even mentioned, much less 
studied in grade school, intermediate school, high school, college, 
even most law schools, is the day the Supreme Court messed it all up, 
really leading to the erosion of both the vertical protection we call 
Federalism and the horizontal protection we call separation of powers.

  April 12, 1937--that was the day when the Supreme Court of the United 
States, by a vote of 5 to 4 in a case called National Labor Relations 
Board v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation, reinterpreted one 
provision of the Constitution--article I, section 8, clause 3--the 
Commerce Clause, to mean something different, something different than 
it had ever meant. Ever. It had always meant, prior to that time, that 
Congress had the power to regulate a couple of things: No. 1, 
interstate commercial transactions.
  Person A lives in Virginia, wants to sell tobacco to person B living 
in Maryland. That interstate commercial transaction can't adequately be 
covered by the laws of either Virginia or Maryland, so Federal law has 
the ability to cover it--interstate commercial transactions. Secondly, 
channels or instrumentalities of interstate commerce: interstate 
airways, airwaves, waterways, and so forth, because, there again, the 
laws of no State are sufficient to cover that interstate event--
something carrying something else or someone else across interstate 
lines.
  Prior to that time, that is all the Commerce Clause meant. On April 
12, 1937, the Supreme Court amended the Constitution, amended it 
without going through the article V amendment process, a process that 
is deliberately difficult. Why? Well, because that is the whole darn 
point of having a Constitution, is to make it difficult to change. Some 
of our laws must not be easy to change.
  So the Supreme Court amended the Constitution, gave themselves power 
that was not theirs to redefine it, to include any power that, when 
measured in the aggregate, though, carried out intrastate--not part of 
an interstate commercial transaction, not part of a channel or 
instrumentality of interstate commerce, in the aggregate, had a 
substantial effect on interstate commerce.
  What does that mean? Well, that is all legalese for Congress can 
regulate just about anything it wants. If it can dream it, it can 
regulate it, as long as it uses the right words.
  Since April 12, 1937, the Supreme Court has invalidated exactly two 
laws--only two laws--as outside Congress's Commerce Clause power--one 
involving provisions of the Gun-Free School Zones Act in a 1995 
decision called the United States v. Lopez and another case involving a 
few provisions of the Violence Against Women Act in the year 2000 in a 
case called United States v. Morris. There is a third case that 
arguably makes the list but, ultimately, gets cut from that list--NFIB 
v. Sebelius--which the Supreme Court decided in 2012, concluding that 
the ObamaCare individual mandate was, in fact, in violation of, in 
excess of Congress's Commerce Clause authority but then went on to 
rewrite the same statute--not once, but twice--in order to save it from 
an otherwise inevitable finding of unconstitutionality. So that one 
doesn't count.
  So because since pretty much everything has been part of our 
legislative prerogative, Congress has choked on its own power. Members 
of Congress couldn't handle that much power. Members of Congress didn't 
want to go to all the work of all that power. So Members of Congress 
started delegating out the lawmaking powers to other branches of 
government. In short, we have gotten lazy, we have gotten sloppy; and 
it has inured to the everlasting detriment of the American people, who 
find themselves subject to a Byzantine labyrinth of Federal regulations 
that cost the American economy between $2 and $3 trillion a year to 
comply with.
  Those compliance costs are borne not by big, wealthy, blue-chip 
corporations or some guy that you imagine wearing a double-breasted 
suit and a monocle like Mr. Peanut. No; they are borne by hard-working 
Americans who pay higher prices on goods and services and everything 
they buy, and they pay for it also with diminished wages, unemployment, 
and underemployment.
  These things are not free, you see. You mess with Federalism, you 
destroy Federal separation of powers.
  Incidentally, you know how this decision was arrived at? Well, 
Associate Justice Owen Roberts panicked. He got scared because 
President Franklin D. Roosevelt threatened to pack the Supreme Court of 
the United States with as many as 15 Justices. Justice Owen Roberts, 
looking outside the case, looking beyond the law, decided to just 
rewrite the Constitution rather than run the risk of Court packing. 
Shameful, really, but it led to where we are now.
  I keep in my office two stacks of documents behind my desk. One stack 
is short. It is a few inches tall. It consists of the laws passed by 
Congress during the previous year. It is usually a few hundred to a few 
thousand pages long. It stands about that high. The other stack of 
documents, during any given year, will come to a mass of about a 13-
foot-tall stack. I keep them in three adjacent bookcases. These are in 
bound

[[Page S5567]]

volumes, double-sided, very small print, very thin pages. Last year's 
Federal Register.

  The current year's Federal Register--our current Federal Register, by 
the end of this year, will have reached about 100,000 pages. These 
pages contain law--new law, law that, if not complied with, can land 
you in prison, can get you fined, can get you banned from this or that 
Federal program. It can deprive you of life, liberty, property just the 
same as any law passed by Congress, only it is not a law passed by 
Congress.
  It is reminiscent of Federalist No. 62 in which James Madison, rather 
eerily and with great prescience, warned it will be of little avail to 
the American people that their laws may be written by men of their own 
choosing if those laws be so voluminous, complex, and ever-changing 
that they can't be read and understood by the American people, if they 
can't know from one day to the next what the law is today and what it 
will be tomorrow.
  Those words still echo in our ears today when we see not only are 
those laws so voluminous and ever-changing and complex that we can't 
read and understand the law, know what it means and says from one day 
to the next; they are not even written by men and women of our own 
choosing.
  That is why it matters, that this document written back in 1787 still 
matters. We have all sworn an oath to uphold it. And what it means is 
you can't legislate from the E-Ring of the Pentagon. You can't make a 
law, you can't change an existing Federal law from the executive branch 
of government, unless you are the President of the United States and 
your sole role in lawmaking is signing, vetoing, or acquiescing to a 
law duly passed by the House and the Senate. You can't make a law; you 
can't change a law--not from the E-Ring of the Pentagon, not from the 
Oval Office, not from any quarter of any part of this town or this 
great land or this entire world outside of this Chamber and the Chamber 
just down the hall from us. That is why it matters.
  So, yeah, this is about life. Yeah, this is also about the military. 
But we swore an oath to that Constitution. We swore an oath that we 
will make the law; we will not delegate that law to somebody else; we 
are not going to let somebody else make the law--especially a law that 
is destructive of life, liberty, and property, as that is, ultimately, 
the sole purpose of government: to protect life, liberty, and property.
  Quite ironically, the bigger, the more out-of-control, the more 
unrestrained, the more unaccountable any government becomes, it is 
inevitably the consequence of that government that it becomes 
destructive of life, liberty, and property. That is how we got to where 
we are here, where a branch of government not entitled to make the law 
has made law and has made law to facilitate the taking of unborn human 
life.
  My colleagues who are here tonight, whom I love and respect, are 
blaming the wrong culprit. It is not Tommy Tuberville. It is Joe Biden, 
Lloyd Austin, and Chuck Schumer. Let's keep that blame where it 
belongs. Let's not fool ourselves into thinking that this can be 
remedied in court. It can't. It won't. We all know that.
  We are going to stand up for the unborn who cannot speak for 
themselves. We are going to have to do it. If we are going to prevent 
somebody else from making law when it is not their prerogative, it has 
to be us.
  Mr. President, I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
  The Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. YOUNG. Mr. President, there are now tens--tens--of Americans 
watching us on C-SPAN2, captivated, I know, by the presentation this 
evening. I think they are perhaps divided. Some may look upon these 
proceedings and think: What a functional U.S. Senate. Every voice must 
be heard. Every perspective must be delivered. Every phrase must be 
uttered.
  Others will say, perhaps, it is dysfunction, perhaps there is an 
effort to obfuscate.
  I don't know what they will conclude, but I do know that I intend to 
continue reading through these brave patriots' class of 1995 U.S. Naval 
Academy graduates who have been nominated to the grade of Rear Admiral 
(lower half). And we are very proud of it. And I hope they can be 
confirmed later this evening.
  So I will be proceeding and reading each of their biographies, fused 
together, indeed, in a strength, without any intervening parliamentary 
request which might be seized upon for C-SPAN viewership.
  Navy CAPT Neil Koprowski to the grade of Rear Admiral. Captain 
Koprowski has served in the U.S. Navy since receiving his commission in 
1995. Did I say it? 1995. He has held numerous operational assignments, 
including commanding officer post of the USS San Antonio and the USS 
Kearsarge. Captain Koprowski currently serves as the commander for U.S. 
Naval Forces Korea and U.S. Navy Region Korea, a posting that handles 
the highly competitive regional challenges we face today.
  Captain Koprowski has also received many awards in his career, 
including the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the 
Joint Service Commendation Medal.
  CAPT Lincoln M. Reifsteck to the grade of Rear Admiral. Captain 
Reifsteck has served his country since graduating from the Naval 
Academy in 1995.
  Did I mention he and I were classmates?
  He has held numerous assignments, including as the commanding officer 
of the USS Hampton, the division chief of the Nuclear Operations 
Division for the Joint Staff, and commodore of Submarine Development 
Squadron 5.
  Captain Reifsteck currently serves as the branch head of the Undersea 
Warfare Division in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations.
  CAPT Frank A. Rhodes IV has also been nominated to the grade of Rear 
Admiral. CAPT Frank Rhodes has been serving in the Navy since 1995. He 
graduated from the Naval Academy. We were classmates. He served in 
numerous positions, including commanding officer of Strike Fighter 
Squadron 81 and the air wing commander of Carrier Air Wing 3.
  Captain Rhodes has been serving in the Office of the Chief of Naval 
Operations for over 4 years, where he has been the Carrier Strike 
Aircraft and Weapons branch head and the executive assistant to the 
Chief of Naval Operations.
  Then we have CAPT Forrest O. Young, also nominated to the grade of 
Rear Admiral. Captain Young served in the Navy for almost 30 years. He 
graduated from the Naval Academy. We were, of course, classmates. And 
he thereafter became an accomplished fighter pilot. He held operational 
commands around the world, including time as commander of Strike 
Fighter Squadron 105, commander of Carrier Air Wing 5, and time as an 
instructor as a Navy Top Gun.
  Captain Young most recently served as director of Aviation Officer 
Career Management and Distribution Division, Navy Personnel Command.
  CAPT Craig T. Mattingly, also nominated to grade of Rear Admiral. 
Over Captain Mattingly's 28-year career, he has led squadrons on 
deployments supporting EUCOM, AFRICOM, and CENTCOM, areas of 
responsibility as commander of multiple task groups.
  His major command tour was commander of Patrol and Reconnaissance 
Wing 11. During his tenure as commodore, CPRW-11 supported global 
initiatives to include the inaugural INDOPACOM deployments of the MQ-4C 
Triton Unmanned Aerial System and P-8A Poseidon Advanced Airborne 
Sensor, as well as the P-3C Littoral Surveillance Radar System.
  Mattingly's most recent assignment was serving as senior military 
adviser of the Secretary of the Navy. He has accumulated more than 
3,900 flight hours in the P-3 Orion and P-8 Poseidon aircraft and 
served on teams that have received various awards and recognition.
  He, too, was a classmate of mine, class of 1995.
  And I am most hopeful each of these individuals can, ultimately, be 
confirmed, as my good friend and respected colleague, with whom I share 
deep pro-life convictions, Senator Tuberville contemplates a more 
constructive policy.
  We have visited in that regard. He is working hard toward that end. I 
know he wants to accomplish that.

[[Page S5568]]

  Having offered that thought, I am going to yield to Senator Ernst of 
Iowa.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
  Ms. ERNST. Thank you to my colleague from Indiana. I truly appreciate 
it.
  I will now go through the biographies of the men and women who 
rightfully deserve to be promoted, to be moved into their next position 
of authority.
  And I am going to start by continuing with MG Heidi J. Hoyle, 
Calendar No. 48, for the grade of Lieutenant General and deputy chief 
of staff for the U.S. Army. And I would like to highlight MG Heidi J. 
Hoyle, who is currently the director of operations for the Office of 
the Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics.

  Upon her graduation from Virginia in 2004, she was assigned as an 
instructor in the Department of Systems Engineering at West Point. She 
served as the 242nd Ordnance Battalion executive officer, with a 
deployment to Afghanistan and support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
  In 2010, she was selected for command of the Special Troops Battalion 
of the Third Sustainment Brigade in Fort Stewart, GA. And while 
stationed there, she deployed in support of the Iraq war.
  She has distinguished her career, having been awarded the Legion of 
Merit, folks, not just once, not twice, but three times. She has been 
awarded the Bronze Star Medal not once but twice.
  This is an extraordinary woman. And I will point out that I enjoyed 
my service very much. I appreciated my time in service. But I also have 
a daughter who is serving now. And my daughter--to MG Heidi J. Hoyle, 
General Hoyle, I hope that my daughter is following in your footsteps. 
My daughter is assigned to the 3rd Sustainment Brigade in Fort Stewart, 
GA.
  So to MG Heidi J. Hoyle, I bring you up this evening. I will not be 
asking for a live UC this evening because we know that it will be 
objected to and filibustered, and I think you deserve better than that, 
General Hoyle. You have given your entire adult life in service to our 
Nation, under extremely difficult circumstances, and you have been 
awarded, again, the Legion of Merit three times and the Bronze Star 
Medal twice.
  I am proud to be a staunch advocate of the U.S. Army community and, 
once again, standing up for valiant individuals who have answered the 
selfless call to serve.
  As more of our servicemembers are under attack by Iran-backed 
proxies, we must fight for our U.S. Army community and get them in the 
fight. And that is why I raise voice for MG Heidi J. Hoyle and her 
promotion to Lieutenant General because she cannot do it herself.
  Next, I am going to move on to Col. Terence G. Taylor. I rise today 
to talk about a few officers within Calendar No. 82, which contains 
Col. Terence G. Taylor for the grade to Brigadier General. That is a 
one-star General.
  Col. Terence G. Taylor is currently the commander of the 380th Air 
Expeditionary Wing. Col. Terence G. Taylor is responsible for the 
wing's Armed Overwatch mission, encompassing intelligence, 
surveillance, and reconnaissance and command and control reporting 
center assets.
  Colonel Taylor is also responsible for theater security cooperation 
and agile combat employment, dynamic force employment missions in 
direct support of the U.S. Air Force's central and the United States 
central command priorities.
  Colonel Taylor earned his commission through the Reserve Officers' 
Training Corps Program at the University of Virginia in 1997.
  Colonel Taylor's prior assignments include serving in the Department 
of State's Bureau of Counterterrorism, where he was responsible for 
directing political and operational responses to international 
terrorism and implementing America's global counterterrorism policies 
in coordination with numerous government departments and agencies.
  Colonel Taylor has numerous degrees, including a master of arts in 
strategic studies at the Air War College and a master of arts in 
national security and strategic studies at the American Military 
University.
  And this is why I am stepping forward tonight and not asking for a 
voice vote but sharing the biography of the admirable service of Col. 
Terence G. Taylor and his promotion to Brigadier General because as a 
member of the military, he is apolitical and cannot lobby Members of 
Congress. So while he has no voice, while Heidi Hoyle has no voice, I 
am giving them voice tonight.
  I am moving on to another admirable individual who is being denied 
her promotion this evening. Again, I am directing my ire at President 
Joe Biden and at Secretary Lloyd Austin for the policy that they have 
put in place for the abortion travel agency plans. It is horrific. It 
is horrific. Our ire goes to them. But what we see is maybe the plan to 
reverse that is holding some of these individuals who rightly deserve 
to be promoted hostage.
  So the individual I am addressing right now is COL Sara E. Dudley. 
She is an officer within Calendar No. 94, which contains a list of Army 
officers who have been selected for the grade of Brigadier General. 
Again, a one-star.
  Specifically, COL Sara E. Dudley is a vital part of Special 
Operations Command. Colonel Dudley is a proud West Point graduate who 
took and embodied the skill sets and leadership tools that she learned 
there to be a lifelong learner, a lifelong participant in our U.S. 
military. She earned a Harvard MBA and a Yale University fellowship 
through the War College.
  She has honorably served her country as a warfighter during Iraqi 
Freedom, where I had served. She also served during Operation Enduring 
Freedom and, most recently, during her third deployment overseas, in 
support of the Combined/Joint Forces Land Component Command during 
Operation Inherent Resolve.
  She is a decorated warfighter, distinguished herself with honor, 
having been awarded for meritorious achievement several times 
throughout her career. I firmly believe that Colonel Dudley's 
qualifications, record, and character have earned her this promotion. 
Again, I am giving voice to her because she has no voice.
  The next person I will address is for Rear Admiral (lh) Jeromy B. 
Williams. He is an officer within Calendar No. 102, which contains a 
list of Navy officers who have been selected for the grade of Rear 
Admiral. I will highlight Rear Admiral (lh) Jeromy B. Williams. He is 
the deputy director for special operations and counterterrorism in the 
J-3 of the Joint Staff.
  Rear Admiral Williams is a native of Las Vegas, NV. And after 
graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1993 with a degree in 
aerospace engineering, he immediately reported to seal training and 
graduated in January of 1994.
  His operational assignments include two tours as assistant platoon 
commander, joint commissioned observer commander, assistant operations 
officer, platoon commander, troop commander, SEAL team operations 
officer, and executive officer. Later, he became a squadron commanding 
officer, then served as deputy major commander, and then as commodore. 
Most recently, he served as deputy commander, Special Operations Joint 
Task Force Iraq for Operation Inherent Resolve.
  A distinguished graduate of the U.S. Naval War College, Rear Admiral 
Williams holds a master's in national security and strategic studies. 
He was further selected by the Chief of Naval Operations as a Navy 
military fellow, and he served on the Council on Foreign Relations.
  So as a 23-year combat veteran and retired lieutenant colonel of our 
great U.S. Army and as an ardent supporter of our Special Operations 
community, I am proud to stand up for this valiant officer who has 
answered the selfless call to service and earned this promotion. I 
firmly believe that Rear Admiral Williams's qualifications, record, and 
character make him exceptionally eligible for this promotion. He has no 
voice on the floor of the U.S. Senate tonight. That is why I am giving 
him a voice.
  The next individual is Brig. Gen. Justin R. Hoffman. I am rising 
today to talk about a few officers within Calendar No. 110, which 
contains a list of Air Force officers who have been selected for the 
grade of Major General. That is a two-star General.
  First, I would like to begin with Brig. Gen. Justin R. Hoffman, who 
is a special assistant to the commander of Air

[[Page S5569]]

Force Special Operations Command. This command is the Air Force 
component of the U.S. Special Operations Command.
  General Hoffman was born in Austin, TX, and earned his commission 
from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1995. He spent most of his career in 
Special Operations aviation assignments, deploying extensively.
  He is a command-rated pilot, having flown more than 5,500 hours, of 
which more than 1,800 are combat hours. He has flown the NC-130H and J 
models for the Commando II, which flies clandestine, low-visibility, 
infiltration and exfiltration of Special Operations forces, primarily 
flown at night to reduce visual acquisition and intercept by airborne 
threats in politically sensitive or hostile territories.
  He also has flown the U-28A Draco, which is part of the U.S. Air 
Force Special Operations Command, and manned airborne intelligence, 
surveillance, and reconnaissance fleet. While commanding this aircraft, 
Brigadier General Hoffman supported humanitarian operations, search and 
rescue missions, and Special Operations missions.
  I would also like to note that Brigadier General Hoffman dedicated a 
portion of his career to this esteemed body here in Congress, having 
served as the Director of Legislative Affairs for U.S. Special 
Operations Command.
  It is officers like this that I am proud to be a staunch advocate of 
within the Special Operations community because, right now, folks, the 
world is on fire, and we need more Special Operations Command officers 
in the fight, not out of the fight. This is why I give voice tonight to 
Brig. Gen. Justin R. Hoffman and his promotion to Major General.
  You can see, as I am moving through these biographies of these 
incredible men and women who are being denied their promotion on this 
very night by individual vote on the floor of the Senate--you can see 
that they have storied legacies in their contributions to these great 
United States of America. It is without having these men and women and 
those who came before them in our great United States of America that 
we would not have life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness. Those 
things cannot be achieved without the men and women who protect our 
country and its values.
  Next, Mr. President, I would like to continue with Calendar No. 110. 
Again, a list of Air Force officers who have been selected for the 
grade of Major General. I would like to highlight Brig. Gen. Rebecca J. 
Sonkiss, who is currently the deputy commander of the Air Force Special 
Operations Command, the deputy commander of the forces who execute 
worldwide deployments and assignments to unified combatant commanders, 
the deputy commander to approximately 20,800 Active-Duty Reserve, Air 
National Guard, and civilian professionals within the Special 
Operations community.
  This is no slacker, folks. Brigadier General Sonkiss has had an 
incredible career, starting with her acceptance and subsequent 
graduation from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1994. She commanded the 
15th Airlift Squadron through two deployments, was the vice commander 
of the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, 
and commanded the 62nd Airlift Wing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord and the 
89th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Andrews.
  She is a command pilot with more than 4,400 hours, including 1,377 
combat hours in nine different Air Force-manned and remotely piloted 
aircraft, including the EC-130 Compass Call, which disrupts enemy 
command-and-control communication systems, and the RQ-1 Predator, which 
is an intelligence collection asset, capable of offensive air support 
against enemy targets.
  She has distinguished her career, having been awarded the Defense 
Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and a Bronze Star. And, 
again, I am proud to be a staunch advocate of the Special Operations 
community and, once again, stand up for these valiant individuals who 
have answered the selfless call to serve.
  As more of our servicemembers are under attack by Iran-backed 
proxies, we must fight for our Special Operations community and, once 
again, get them into the fight. That is why I am giving voice this 
evening to Brig. Gen. Rebecca J. Sonkiss and her promotion to Major 
General.
  Again, I am going to say, these biographies are incredible. They 
are incredible. But that is why many people here on the floor--those 
that might be in opposition to the individual votes tonight on the 
floor--they don't want these read. They don't want these biographies 
read because we are putting the human element out there and showing the 
United States of America the valiant--the valiant--service of these men 
and women.

  Again, every one of these individuals has given their entire adult 
life in service to our great United States of America--our great United 
States of America. We would not have the country we have if we didn't 
have men and women who were willing to sacrifice everything--
everything--for this country.
  Mr. President, the next one is Brig. Gen. Claude K. Tudor, Jr. Again, 
it is under Calendar No. 110, a list of Air Force officers who have 
been selected for the grade of Major General. Brigadier General Tudor 
is currently the director of operations in the J-3 for U.S. AFRICOM. As 
the director of operations, Brigadier General Tudor provides oversight 
and direction for all operations divisions at AFRICOM, including 
working with partners to counter transnational threats and malign 
actors, strengthening security forces, and responding to crises in 
order to advance U.S. national interests and promote regional security, 
stability, and prosperity.
  Brigadier General Tudor was commissioned through the ROTC Program at 
Troy State University in Alabama and has spent the majority of his 
career in Special Operations ground combat assignments, deploying 
extensively.
  Prior to AFRICOM, Brigadier General Tudor served as the commander for 
the Combined Special Operations Joint Task Force-Levant and chief of 
staff of Headquarters Pacific Air Forces.
  He has several degrees, including a master's in business management 
from Troy State University, a master's in strategic intelligence from 
the Joint Military Intelligence College, and a master's in strategic 
studies from the U.S. Army War College. He has distinguished his career 
having been awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal, two Legion of 
Merits, and a Bronze Star.
  He has also been the Air Force combat control officer of the year not 
once, not twice, but three times. We need officers like Brig. Gen. 
Claude K. Tudor, Jr., to stay in the fight, and I am giving him voice 
on the floor of the Senate this evening--actually, at 2 in the morning.
  Mr. President, again, I am rising today to highlight the career of 
Maj. Gen. David A. Harris, Jr., U.S. Air Force, who is Calendar No. 
186. Major General Harris has been selected for promotion to Lieutenant 
General--that is a three-star General--and to be the deputy chief of 
staff for Air Force Futures at Headquarters U.S. Air Force.
  Major General Harris is currently the deputy commander of the Ninth 
Air Force, Air Force Central, and deputy, combined forces air component 
commander, of the U.S. Central Command in Southwest Asia.
  As the deputy commander, he is responsible for the command and 
control of air operations in a 21-nation area of responsibility, 
covering Central and Southwest Asia.
  He graduated from ROTC and received his commission from the 
University of Alabama in 1993. He is a master navigator and basic 
parachutist with more than 2,500 flying hours, having flown in support 
of Operations Deliberate Force, Allied Force, Enduring Freedom, Iraqi 
Freedom, Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, and Inherent 
Resolve.
  He has a bachelor of science in aerospace engineering, a master of 
military art and science from the School of Advanced Military Studies 
at Fort Leavenworth, a master's from the National War College, and was 
a national security fellow at Syracuse University. Major General Harris 
has commanded the squadron group and wing level. He has served as vice 
superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy, deputy director of 
operations for Joint Special Operations Command, and the director of 
strategic plans, programs, and requirements for Air Force Special 
Operations Command.

[[Page S5570]]

  Prior to the current position, Major General Harris was the director 
of integration and innovation and deputy chief of staff for strategy, 
integration, and requirements at Headquarters U.S. Air Force.
  It is officers like this that I am proud to be a staunch advocate of 
in the Air Force community because, again, with the world on fire, we 
need more Air Force command officers in the fight, not out of the 
fight. That is why I am giving Maj. Gen. David A. Harris, Jr., tonight, 
a voice, because he cannot do so on the floor of the Senate.
  Mr. President, now I would like to continue by highlighting MG David 
M. Hodne. He is Calendar No. 190, and he is selected for the grade of 
Lieutenant General. MG David M. Hodne is currently assigned as special 
assistant to the director of the Army staff with the office of the 
Chief of Staff of the Army.
  Hodne attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 
1991 with a bachelor of science degree in aerospace engineering.
  He later earned a master of arts in military studies in 
unconventional warfare from the American Military University. Hodne has 
command of the U.S. Army Infantry School and served as the Commanding 
General of the 4th Infantry Division in Fort Carson, CO, assuming 
command on August 19, 2021, and relinquishing it to David S. Doyle on 
June 13, 2023.
  General Hodne was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal; the 
Legion of Merit three times; the Bronze Star Medal not once, not twice, 
not three times, ladies and gentlemen, but four times; and a Purple 
Heart, which means he was injured in the line of duty.
  Again, I am proud to be a staunch advocate of the U.S. Army 
community, and once again, I am standing up for valiant individuals who 
have answered the selfless call to serve.
  That gentleman, again, was MG David M. Hodne for promotion to 
Lieutenant General.
  Next, I rise today to talk about MG Karl H. Gingrich, Calendar No. 
224, who is being selected for the grade of Lieutenant General to be 
deputy chief of staff of the U.S. Army.
  MG Karl H. Gingrich became the director of program analysis and 
evaluation in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff at U.S. Army 
Headquarters. As the director of program analysis and evaluation, he is 
responsible for developing the program objective memorandum, which 
allocates resources in line with broader DOD guidance.
  Prior to his current assignment, Major General Gingrich served as the 
director of capability and resource integration at USCYBERCOM, which 
included building the joint cyber warfighting architecture, which 
covers everything from data management to command and control at 
CYBERCOM.
  Major General Gingrich's operational experience includes tours 
supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
  Major General Gingrich holds multiple graduate degrees from the 
University of Louisville, Air University, and the National Defense 
University.
  So this evening, again, we will not be voting on MG Karl H. Gingrich, 
but he has earned this promotion, and I do hope we can resolve this 
very soon.
  Next, I rise to talk about MG John B. Richardson IV, Calendar No. 
233, who has been nominated to be Lieutenant General and commanding 
general of the First United States Army.
  John B. Richardson IV was born in Baltimore, MD. He attended the 
United States Military Academy at West Point and graduated in 1991. In 
fact, he was the fifth member of his family to attend West Point, 
exemplifying a commitment to service.
  Major General Richardson was commissioned as an armor officer in 1991 
from West Point. He is a proud armored cavalry man. His first 
assignment was with the 1st Armored Division, serving as a tank platoon 
leader with 4th Battalion, 67th Armored Regiment, in Friedberg, 
Germany. He served in Iraq as the squadron operations officer in the 
2nd Armored Calvary Regiment, and again, a year later, he deployed as 
an aide-de-camp to the commanding general of Multi-National Security 
Transition Command.
  I am so proud of General Richardson, and I am glad to be able to 
stand on the floor of the U.S. Senate tonight and voice his 
qualifications.
  Again, MG John B. Richardson IV and his promotion to Lieutenant 
General and commanding general of First United States Army.
  Next, I am going to rise on behalf of Maj. Gen. Michael G.--oh let me 
start over; this is a tough one, folks--Koscheski. OK. This gentleman 
has a tough name. He also has a tough job. We hope we can get him into 
that tough job.
  So I apologize, General. I owe you a beer.
  OK. Calendar No. 239. He is being nominated to be deputy commander, 
Air Combat Command. Maj. Gen. Michael G. Koscheski--I think I got it 
right that time--is the commander of 15th Air Force, Shaw Air Force 
Base, SC. Fifteenth Air Force organizes, trains, and equips its 
headquarters to prepare for and execute expeditionary tasking.
  The General received his commission from the United States Air Force 
Academy in 1992. That is the same year I received my commission as 
well--only from Iowa State University. He has served as an F-15E 
instructor pilot, a weapons officer, and a flight examiner. He is a 
command pilot with more than 2,800 flying hours. He has flown more than 
650 combat hours over Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
  He is a decorated officer, with awards to include the Defense 
Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters, 
the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and the Air Force Achievement 
Medal.
  Again, I am proud to be a staunch advocate of the Air Combat Command 
community. We need officers like this in the fight, not out of the 
fight, and that is why I am giving voice to them this evening.
  Next, we move on to Lt. Gen. Donna D. Shipton. I am rising to talk 
about Lt. Gen. Donna D. Shipton. She is Calendar No. 240 for the grade 
of Lieutenant General and deputy commander of the Air Force Life Cycle 
Management Center with the Air Force Materiel Command.
  Lieutenant General Shipton received her commission in 1991 as a 
distinguished graduate of the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps 
upon graduating from Clemson University. She also has a long list of 
graduate degrees, including a master's in national security strategy 
from the National War College, a master's in space systems from the Air 
Force Institute of Technology, and a master's of arts in organizational 
management from George Washington University.
  She is currently the military deputy with the Office of Assistant 
Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics. 
Prior to her current position, Lieutenant General Shipton was the 
deputy director for the National Reconnaissance Office, NRO, where she 
assisted the director in managing the strategic and tactical operation 
of the NRO.

  I truly believe we must stand up for the security and protection of 
our Nation, and I am proud to recognize this deserving officer who 
earned this promotion and highlight her selfless call to service. That 
is why I am voicing my support this evening for Lt. Gen. Donna D. 
Shipton and her promotion to Lieutenant General and deputy commander, 
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Air Force Materiel Command.
  Next, I am rising to talk about an officer--Calendar No. 243--MG 
William J. Hartman. He has been nominated to be Lieutenant General and 
deputy commander of U.S. Cyber Command.
  MG William J. Hartman is currently commander of Cyber National 
Mission Force. A native of Mobile, AL, Major General Hartman is a 
distinguished military graduate of the University of South Alabama, 
where he received his commission through the Reserve Officers' Training 
Corps as an infantry officer.
  Major General Hartman served in multiple positions as an infantry, 
military intelligence, and cyberspace operations officer, with 
assignments in the United States, Italy, Germany, the Republic of 
Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Turkey.
  Major General Hartman has commanded a company battalion brigade and 
special mission unit and served as the senior intelligence officer at 
the battalion and the regimental level for the 75th Ranger Regiment--he 
is a bad mamba jamba--and multiple tours as a SOCOM Joint Task Force J-
2.

[[Page S5571]]

  He is a decorated officer, with awards to include the Legion of Merit 
with oak leaf cluster, the Bronze Star Medal with oak leaf clusters, 
the Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf clusters, the Joint 
Commendation Medal, the Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, 
and the Army Achievement Medal with oak leaf clusters.
  It is officers like this that I am very proud to represent on the 
floor of the U.S. Senate.
  We need more folks operating within Cyber Command because we know 
that the world is on fire. We are in a new era. Cyber absolutely needs 
more officers like this in the fight, not out of the fight.
  Again, this gentleman, hailing from the great State of Alabama, MG 
William J. Hartman and his promotion to Lieutenant General.
  Next, we have LTG John S. Kolasheski. Oh my goodness. OK. I owe a lot 
of beers tonight. It is an Army thing, Air Force thing. You got it.
  Calendar No. 244. He is being nominated to be Lieutenant General and 
deputy commanding general of U.S. Army Europe-Africa.
  The Lieutenant General was commissioned as an armor officer and holds 
a bachelor of science in management from Bucknell University and a 
graduate's degree in engineering management from the University of 
Central Florida.
  Lieutenant General Kolasheski has had a variety of command and staff 
assignments, to include deputy chief of staff, U.S. Army Forces Command 
at Fort Liberty, commandant of the United States Army Armor School, 
deputy commanding general for the 1st Infantry Division, the deputy 
chief of staff of strategic communications for NATO, and that is just 
to name a few.
  He is a decorated officer, with awards to include the Distinguished 
Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion--oh gosh; get 
this, Senator Sullivan--Legion of Merit with five oak leaf clusters.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. Heroes.
  Ms. ERNST. Heroes. And a Bronze Star Medal with three oak leaf 
clusters.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. Heroes.
  Ms. ERNST. It is officers like these whom I am proud to be a staunch 
advocate of because the Army community needs them. We need more Army 
command officers in the fight, not out of the fight. This is why I am 
standing up tonight in support of LG John S. Kolasheski and his 
promotion to deputy commanding general of the U.S. Army Europe-Africa.
  Next, we have COL Jack J. Stumme. I am rising to talk about Jack J. 
Stumme. He is a Colonel under Calendar No. 284 for the grade of 
Brigadier General.
  COL Jack J. Stumme is currently serving with the U.S. Army Europe-
Africa as a command chaplain. Colonel Stumme has given years of service 
to our military and to his faith, serving as command chaplain for 
United States AFRICOM, the 18th Airborne Corps, and a staff chaplain 
for the Office of the Chief of Chaplains.
  I firmly believe that Colonel Stumme's qualifications, record, and 
character make him exceptionally eligible for this appointment, and I 
speak with experience here. Our chaplains truly do God's work for the 
men and women who serve. That is why I am providing a voice this 
evening for Chaplain Stumme and his promotion to Brigadier General.
  Next, I rise in support of Col. Matthew S. Allen. Matthew S. Allen is 
an Air Force officer--Calendar No. 336--and he has been selected for 
the grade of Brigadier General.
  I would like to highlight Col. Matthew S. Allen, whom many of us know 
because he works directly with Members of Congress. Colonel Allen is 
the director of the Office of Legislative Affairs for U.S. Special 
Operations Command, the position dedicated to maintaining the good 
relationship between U.S. Special Operations Command and Congress.
  And you will notice that a number of these biographies that I read 
earlier this morning, they were those who served within Special 
Operations Command and Joint Special Operations Command.
  He is the direct link on all legislative issues that deal with 
Special Operations resources, authorities, and oversight, collaborating 
directly with the House of Representatives and us here in the Senate to 
ensure full authorization of U.S. Special Operations Command's annual 
budget.
  Colonel Allen grew up in a military family with assignments all 
across the globe. He graduated high school in Fairfax, VA, received his 
commission from the U.S. Air Force Academy, and was selected as a 
special tactics officer following graduation.
  Prior to his current assignment, Colonel Allen was the commander of 
the 24th Special Operations Wing, where he prepared special tactics 
forces to conduct special operations against threats to the homeland 
and to protect U.S. interests abroad.
  Colonel Allen has been privileged to command at the squadron group 
and wing levels and led joint operations for Special Operations task 
forces throughout the Middle East, the European theater, and the Indo-
Pacific region.
  He has served in Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and 
Inherent Resolve and was the recipient of the Air Force's 2006 Sijan 
Leadership Award. He has spent his career in Special Operations, the 
air staff joint operational assignments, as well as numerous combat and 
contingency deployments.
  I personally know Colonel Allen. He is an incredible officer within 
the Special Operations community. He definitely is an officer we need 
in the fight.
  I thank you and salute you, Colonel Allen, and I do hope that we are 
able to move you on very soon to your well-deserved appointment to the 
grade of Brigadier General.
  Next, I rise to highlight the career of Maj. Gen. Sean M. Farrell, 
U.S. Air Force, who is Calendar No. 339. Major General Farrell has been 
selected for the grade of Lieutenant General and has been appointed to 
the position of deputy commander of U.S. Special Operations Command.
  Major General Farrell is currently the deputy commanding general of 
Joint Special Operations Command. In this role, he oversees the study 
of Special Operations requirements and techniques, ensuring joint 
interoperability and equipment standardization.
  In addition, he prepares assigned, attached, and augmented forces to 
conduct special operations against threats to protect the homeland and 
U.S. interests abroad.
  He was commissioned through the Reserve Officer Training Corps at 
Florida State University. He has a bachelor of science, a master of 
science from Wright State University, and a master of science in 
national resource strategy from the National Defense University.
  He is a command pilot with over 3,500 flight hours in the AC-130H 
Spectre--that is bad; that is bad--AC-130W Stinger, AC-130U Spooky--we 
all know Spooky, Dan, right?--and C-130E Hercules aircraft, and has 
flown combat missions in Bosnia and Afghanistan.
  He has commanded at the squadron group and wing levels, having 
commanded the 16th Special Operations Squadron, the 27th Special 
Operations Group, and the 1st Special Operations Wing.
  He has distinguished his career, having been awarded the Defense 
Meritorious Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and the Distinguished 
Flying Cross with valor device for acts of heroism above what is 
normally expected while engaged in direct combat with exposure to enemy 
hostilities and personal risk.
  It is officers like this that I am proud to be a staunch advocate of 
within our Special Operations community. We need more Special 
Operations command officers in the fight, not out of the fight. And 
that is why I stand tonight and give voice to Maj. Gen. Sean M. Farrell 
on his promotion and his assumption of position at U.S. Special 
Operations Command.
  Next, I rise in support of BG Lawrence G. Ferguson. He is Calendar 
No. 384, which contains a list of Army officers who have been selected 
for the grade of Major General. BG Lawrence G. Ferguson is the 
commanding general of 1st Special Forces Command (Airborne).
  Brigadier General Ferguson is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force 
Academy, who cross-commissioned into the U.S. Army.
  He attended the Army Ranger School, then served with the 101st 
Airborne ``Screaming Eagles'' Division. He earned a master's degree in 
American

[[Page S5572]]

history from Mississippi College, and he was an Army War College Fellow 
at Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy.
  He served with the 7th Special Forces Group and has commanded at all 
levels from Captain through Colonel and served throughout Latin America 
and the Middle East. He has served in Operation Enduring Freedom, Iraqi 
Freedom, and Inherent Resolve in the Army's special missions unit.

  His experience has included, more recently, deputy commander of 
operations, 82nd Airborne Division; chief of staff, U.S. Army Special 
Operations Command; commanding officer, 10th Special Forces Group 
(Airborne); and chief of staff, 1st Special Forces Command (Airborne).
  And this evening, again, I am giving voice to those who cannot on the 
floor of the U.S. Senate this evening, BG Lawrence G. Ferguson on his 
promotion to Major General.
  Next, I rise to talk about another officer within Calendar No. 384, 
and this officer has been selected for the grade of Major General. Now, 
this is BG Steven M. Marks, who is currently the deputy commanding 
general for 1st Special Forces Command (Airborne).
  Are we seeing a pattern here? A pattern here? OK.
  Brigadier General Marks was raised in Columbia, MO--State to my 
south--and earned his commission from the University of Missouri ROTC 
in 1982.
  He served in a variety of tactical assignments in the Airborne Field 
Artillery Regiment and Special Operations units.
  He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval War College and has a master's 
degree in defense analysis from the Naval Postgraduate School in 
Monterey, CA.
  Brigadier General Marks has commanded in Afghanistan at every rank 
from Captain to Lieutenant Colonel and serving most recently as a 
commander of Special Operations Task Force Northeast.
  He commanded the U.S. Army Garrison in Italy before returning to 
Joint Special Operations Command as the director of J5.
  He is a decorated officer with awards to include the Defense Superior 
Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal, and the 
Meritorious Service Medal.
  And, again, it is officers like this that I am proud to stand for on 
the floor of the U.S. Senate. I am a staunch advocate of those within 
our special operations community. We need more of these men and women 
in the fight, not out of the fight. And that is why I stand tonight for 
BG Steven M. Marks and his promotion to Major General.
  So, folks, that does conclude the nominees that I had for this 
evening, and I want to reemphasize that it is the bad policy of the 
Biden administration that we are in opposition to. All of us here--I 
know all of us--are adamant supporters of life. We stand for life. But 
we also stand for other innocents and the innocent men and women who 
are serving in uniform today and continue to serve without advancement 
in their career fields while their families are hanging in the balance.
  My colleague from Utah mentioned earlier: We have so many executive 
orders. We see the executive branch running away, taking additional 
authorities--and I am paraphrasing. It is because Congress has gotten 
lazy and sloppy. Those were two of his words--lazy and sloppy. Members 
of Congress didn't want to do the work. But aren't we getting lazy and 
sloppy when we hold hostage innocent people?
  I understand that we have the opportunity to do these holds, but 
sometimes we have to work very hard to overcome adversity, just as 
these men and women have.
  So let's find a way. Let's lobby other Members here within this body 
because that is our job to do so, not hold these members hostage to 
ever-changing demands.
  Now, we would have asked for individual voice votes tonight because 
that is what has been asked for in the past but, unfortunately, has not 
been honored.
  So, again, I stand for life. I will be an ardent supporter of life, 
and I will continue combating that, but I will not do it at the expense 
of these individuals. I will work with other members to find a way to 
overturn this egregious policy which President Biden and Secretary 
Lloyd Austin have put into place. So let's find a way to overturn the 
policy and advance these men and women.
  And with that, I yield to the Senator from Alaska.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I want to begin by thanking Senator 
Ernst, my good colleague--joint operations here--giving voice to these 
great Americans.
  Now, look, if you are watching--I know it is almost 2:30 in the 
morning--but you are watching your American system. You have got to be 
proud. I am so proud. These are great Americans. These are the best of 
what we have. They are heroes, and their families are heroic.
  And, look, a core principle as Republicans that distinguishes us, in 
my view, from the other side is our serious focus on national security, 
readiness, a strong military, and, yes, taking care of our military and 
their families. That is what we stand for. And it just makes me proud 
to listen to who we have up for confirmation to be a one-, two-, three-
, or four-star General. We need them.
  Senator Graham said: Hey, we are coming on to the holidays. It is 
true. I had two Thanksgivings where I was deployed overseas, and it is 
not easy, right? You are missing your family. You are out there 
protecting your country. You don't think many people are even thinking 
of you when the rest of the country is celebrating and you are doing 
your duty.
  So what we said 2 weeks ago is we are not--we will have your back. If 
you are a military member who is being held up right now, we will have 
your back. And that is what we are doing.
  Like I said, I don't relish this. I didn't relish it 2 weeks ago. 
Kind of down here, as I mentioned, more in sadness and frustration than 
anger. But I also come from a State that is incredibly patriotic--
Alaska--more veterans per capita than any State in the country. And 
they expect this of their Senators. Stand up for our men and women in 
uniform and don't punish the military for something they have nothing 
to do with.
  Every one of those people Senator Ernst talked about who we were 
going to try to confirm tonight have nothing to do with the dispute 
that we are all in agreement--every Senator on the floor right now is 
in agreement.
  I have been working with Senator Tuberville for months together to 
try to reverse this policy of the Biden administration. I agree 100 
percent it violates the Hyde amendment. It violates the rule of law. So 
I want to keep working with Senator Tuberville and others on ways to 
reverse that.
  But what we can't do, what we shouldn't do, but what is happening 
right now is we are punishing those who have nothing to do with it. And 
why punish patriotic military members over a dispute that they have no 
ability to fix and they didn't cause? Go after the civilians. Let's do 
it. I am taking them hostage in terms of holding them. They have the 
power. But why punish these war heroes who have served our country so 
faithfully? Why single out the Americans?

  You know, we have all kinds of Federal workers, but there are very 
few Federal workers who sign a blank check with their life. That is all 
the people Senator Ernst read. They sign a blank check with their life, 
saying: All right.
  You know, less than 1 percent of our great Nation's population does 
this--less than 1 percent. And nobody has told me--I mean, Senator Lee 
had a lot to say tonight. I agree with 99 percent of it, in terms of 
his talk about the Constitution and who has the ability to make laws. I 
couldn't agree more. But no one has come out and said: But here is why 
we are going to punish those people Senator Ernst just read about.
  I don't think we should be doing that. I think we should be giving 
them a voice, and that is what we have been trying to do.
  So, as I mentioned, one of my goals tonight that I mentioned in my 
remarks was to bring up these nominees one by one, try to get them 
cleared, as Senator Tuberville mentioned. But it was--he had mentioned 
he was fine with a while ago.
  By the way, this is regular order. We did some research. There have 
only been two Brigadier Generals confirmed by a recorded vote in the 
last half-century, OK? Twice that has happened in

[[Page S5573]]

the last half-century. So the regular order is actually--you do it by 
voice vote and en bloc.
  What we are offering is, hey, we will do it by voice vote 
individually, every one. We will be down here for all 450. Senator 
Ernst and I would stay here all weekend to do that. But it is very 
clear from my colleagues that that is not going to happen.
  Look, to be honest, if I were blocking all these military heroes, I 
wouldn't want their bios being read on the floor, but we are going to 
do that, because here is the other thing about this: There are a lot of 
emails and texts, and a lot of people are tweeting about this, but 
guess who can't go out and have a press conference on this. The 
military members. It is not their job.
  Finally, one other issue--and then I am going to start talking about 
the people we are going to bring up--is that we really have to think 
about this issue as a strategic risk to the force. We have 450 
officers, one-, two-, 
three-, and four-star Generals.
  Yes, I know a little bit about the military, having served for 30 
years. The system is kind of stymied, so even the ranks below one, two, 
and three star are starting to kind of get blocked. So I am not saying 
that Senator Tuberville has a hold on those, but it is impacting those 
ranks as well.
  Where I am very nervous, because I talk to a lot of my peers in the 
military, is that, you know, you work 30 years, you do deployments, you 
sacrifice--a big sacrifice for your families. These great men and women 
have options, and at a certain point, they time out in terms of their 
ability to move up or they have to get out. So if we start to lose a 
generation of our best, most combat-capable military officers over 
this, especially during this very dangerous time, that is going to be a 
huge strategic national security mistake.
  So what I want to do, similar to Senator Ernst's focus, is bring to 
the floor and to the attention of the American people the people we 
were going to try to get confirmed tonight. I know they are going to be 
objected to, so, like Senator Ernst, I am going to talk about them 
because, again, I think the American people need to know this. The 
American people should take pride in these people because they are 
great patriots. And, remember, less than 1 percent join the military. I 
don't know what the percentage is that gets to flag officer rank, 
general officer or Admiral, but it is the best--not just the best in 
America but the best in the world, and we need them. We need them.
  This dispute that is happening right now--again, I fully agree the 
Biden administration launched this. We are fighting it. But we need 
these people confirmed. Let's go after the confirmations of the 
civilians who actually are in charge of the policy. We have that 
option, too.

  So one of the first nominees I was going to bring forward is on 
Calendar No. 95. That is Col. Robert Weiler. He is being promoted to 
Brigadier General of the U.S. Marine Corps. He is a Colonel right now--
28 years--command of the 5th Marine Regiment.
  I used to be in that regiment. That is the most storied infantry 
regiment in the Marine Corps.
  He has deployed, I think, seven times to Iraq and Afghanistan. 
Imagine that family's sacrifice. He received a Silver Star for bravery, 
gallantry, and intrepidity in action against the enemy while serving as 
a commanding officer of Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, 
5th Marine Regiment.
  I am going to read that citation. There are not many Silver Star 
recipients in America. Here is one right now who could be confirmed to 
Brigadier General. He has earned it. And he is no ``woke'' military 
member; he is a warrior.
  Here is his citation for the Silver Star. It is one of the highest 
awards for combat valor that we have.

       The President of the United States of America takes 
     pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Captain Robert S. 
     Weiler, United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry 
     and intrepidity in action against the enemy while serving as 
     Commanding Officer, Weapons Company, Second Battalion, Fourth 
     Marines, FIRST Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force 
     . . . in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM II from 6 to 10 
     April 2004. On 6 April, Captain Weiler led elements of 
     Weapons Company against an enemy force that was attempting to 
     isolate and destroy a squad-sized element of Echo Company.

  Another unit, an adjacent Marine Corps unit.

       As the column moved east along Route Nova, they were 
     ambushed by enemy forces. Despite the barrage of intense 
     enemy fire, Captain Weiler calmly directed the tactical 
     employment of the unit, leading to the relief of the 
     embattled squad.

  OK. Saving American lives. Saving the lives of other marines. That is 
what this is. And then he led the destruction of the besieging enemy, 
so he killed the bad guys.

       On 7 April, he led the company on a mission to reinforce 
     [another Marine Corps] unit in contact. As they moved 
     northeast along Route Apple, the column encountered heavy 
     rocket-propelled grenade and automatic weapons fire. During 
     the ensuing three-hour firefight--

  Think about that, America. We have been on the floor for 3 hours. 
These guys were in an intense firefight for 3 hours--

       he repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to direct [his] 
     unit's counterattack, personally leading squads as they 
     assaulted enemy firing positions. His courage and leadership 
     were further displayed during Operation BUG HUNT. Heavily 
     engaged by enemy forces over a four-hour period--

  Four hours; combat--

       Captain Weiler continued to fearlessly lead Marines as they 
     destroyed a tenacious enemy. By his bold leadership, wise 
     judgment, and complete dedication to duty, Captain Weiler 
     reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest 
     traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval 
     Service.

  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have this Silver Star 
citation printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

      Silver Star--Awarded For Actions During Global War on Terror

     Service: Marine Corps
     Battalion: 2d Battalion
     Division: 1st Marine Division, I MEF
     General Orders:
     Citation:
       The President of the United States of America takes 
     pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Captain Robert S. 
     Weiler, United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry 
     and intrepidity in action against the enemy while serving as 
     Commanding Officer, Weapons Company, Second Battalion, Fourth 
     Marines, FIRST Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, 
     U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Central Command in support of 
     Operation IRAQI FREEDOM II from 6 to 10 April 2004. On 6 
     April, Captain Weiler led elements of Weapons Company against 
     an enemy force that was attempting to isolate and destroy a 
     squad-sized element of Echo Company. As the column moved east 
     along Route Nova, they were ambushed by enemy forces. Despite 
     the barrage of intense enemy fire, Captain Weiler calmly 
     directed the tactical employment of the unit, leading to 
     relief of the embattled squad and the destruction of the 
     besieging enemy. On 7th April, he led the company on a 
     mission to reinforce a unit in contact. As they moved 
     northeast along Route Apple, the column encountered heavy 
     rocket-propelled grenade and automatic weapons fire. During 
     the ensuing three-hour firefight, he repeatedly exposed 
     himself to enemy fire to direct the unit's counterattack, 
     personally leading squads as they assaulted enemy firing 
     positions. His courage and leadership were further displayed 
     during Operation BUG HUNT. Heavily engaged by enemy forces 
     over a four-hour period, Captain Weiler continued to 
     fearlessly lead Marines as they destroyed a tenacious enemy. 
     By his bold leadership, wise judgment, and complete 
     dedication to duty, Captain Weiler reflected great credit 
     upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine 
     Corps and the United States Naval Service.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. It doesn't mention it here, but do you know what else 
he received during that firefight--two firefights? The Purple Heart. So 
he was wounded in action by the enemy. Then, later, several months 
later, he received a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with 
combat distinguishing device for heroic achievement in combat.
  He took decisive action directing fires of his raid force, quickly 
gaining fire superiority and suppressing the enemy. Although dazed by a 
blast from a mortar round, he continued to lead and direct his team, 
which led to the capture of all five insurgents on the target raid 
list.
  That is another combat medal he won.
  So we were going to bring him up for promotion today to Brigadier 
General, a complete American war hero, but unfortunately Colonel 
Weiler's promotion to Brigadier General is being blocked.
  By the way, he had nothing to do with the policy and dispute that we 
all agree on, that we have to overturn

[[Page S5574]]

that. Nothing to do with it. Nothing. When he gets promoted to 
Brigadier General, he won't have any ability to fix it. This is a war 
hero punished for an issue he has nothing to do with.
  OK. Calendar No. 93. This is for Brigadier General Ronald Ragin--yes, 
that is how you pronounce it; it is not spelled that same way--to be 
Major General. He is in the U.S. Army. Like Senator Ernst, who is an 
expert in Special Operations forces, this General is an expert in 
Special Operations forces.
  Most recently, he is serving as commanding general, 21st Theater 
Sustainment Command, U.S. Army Europe and Africa. His command 
assignments: troop commander, combat sports squadron, 11th Armored 
Calvary Regiment; company commander, 225th Forward Support Battalion, 
25th Infantry Division; battalion commander, Group Support Battalion, 
3rd Special Forces Group-Airborne; squadron commander support, 1st 
Special Forces Operations Detachment, Delta Force. OK. You are not even 
supposed to say that, I don't think. Are you? OK. Delta Force, the most 
elite Special Operations force. It is not even supposed to be talked 
about. A Delta Force commander.
  This guy is unbelievable, his record. So he is an expert in Special 
Operations forces, a Delta Force commander, brigade commander for 
Sustainment Brigade, numerous deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, 
Airborne, 7th Special Forces Group, U.S. Special Operations Command, 
and we are trying to move him from a one-star to a two-star General.
  He is an American hero who, by the way, has nothing to do with the 
dispute. He is being punished--not being promoted, being punished over 
something he has nothing to do with. That is a great American hero 
right there.
  Let's look at another one here we are going to bring up, another U.S. 
Army Brigadier General to move to the grade of Major General. That is 
two-star. This is Brigadier General Lance G. Curtis. Again, another 
Airborne platoon; served at all levels of command--82nd Airborne, 101st 
Airborne; numerous deployments; executive officer; deputy commander for 
U.S. Forces Afghanistan in Kabul during Operation Enduring Freedom; 
battalion commander of the 87th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 
3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, GA, and at Camp Leatherneck, 
Afghanistan, during OEF; commander for Special Forces Command, United 
States Special Operations Command; and the executive officer of the 
commander of Army Personnel; finally, deputy director of headquarters 
in the U.S. Army, G-4.
  Again, I mean, think about this. This is decades of service--decades. 
These are great patriots, and they are being punished over an issue 
they have nothing to do with and can't fix.
  Mr. LEE. Will the Senator yield for a question?
  Mr. SULLIVAN. No. I am getting through--this is really important for 
me to make sure the American people hear about these warriors, so I am 
prioritizing--
  Mr. LEE. I have got a question relative to that. Will the gentleman 
yield for a question?
  Mr. SULLIVAN. No, I won't.
  Mr. President, the next hero that we are trying to confirm is BG 
Michelle Donahue to be Major General of the U.S. Army. With 26 years of 
service, currently, Michelle Donahue is a Brigadier General. She has 
served in the 1st Infantry Division in the U.S. Army Special Operations 
Command. Her combat tours include deployments to Jordan with the 528th 
Special Operations Support Battalion; a deployment to Iraq; a 
deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom; a deployment to 
Afghanistan in 2014 as the squadron commander for the Regimental 
Support Squadron.
  Brigadier General Donahue has served as special assistant to the 37th 
Chief of Staff of the Army and to the 18th Chairman of the Joint 
Chiefs, operational command and command at the highest levels with the 
Chief of Staff of the Army in terms of being a special assistant there 
and trying to get promoted from Brigadier General to Major General--
that is a two-star General--and she is being blocked over something 
that she has nothing to do with. Again, we need these warriors on the 
field.
  Speaking of warriors, this is another nominee who has made the grade 
of Major General, that is a two-star General. He is Brig. Gen. Thomas 
Harrell. He most recently served as the director for the Defense Health 
Network and as the commander of the 59th Medical Wing.
  Now, this is also really important. You don't hear about this element 
of our military that much. The leaders who lead the medical units are 
so important. Brigadier General Harrell has commanded a squadron level, 
a DOD hospital, an Air Force medical center. He previously served as 
the commander of the Air Force Medical Readiness Agency, as the Defense 
Health Agency Headquarters' deputy director of medical operations of 
the Air Force, as the deputy director of medical services in the entire 
U.S. Air Force, and as the subunified Alaskan Command surgeon general 
at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. It is a really important 
job in my State.
  He also received an Air Medal for valor. Let me read that:

       Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Harrell contributed to national 
     security objectives by flying missions in support of 
     Operation Iraqi Freedom. These flights were accomplished in 
     the face of enemy threats to include small-arms fire, anti-
     aircraft artillery, and surface-to-air missiles.

  Think about that. That is a medical officer taking incoming enemy 
fire to go save lives. That is a hero.

       His superior ability in the presence of perilous and 
     dangerous conditions was manifested in the performance of 
     medical observers in addition to addressing the in-flight 
     health needs of the crew and combatants, culminating in the 
     safe and timely delivery of cargo and combat troops.

  That is a war hero right there. Unfortunately, if we move to get that 
Brigadier General promoted to Major General tonight, it looks like it 
is probably not going to happen.
  We are also looking at Brig. Gen. Jeannine Ryder to be a Major 
General in the U.S. Air Force. She is Calendar No. 106. Jeannine Ryder, 
again, is part of the Air Force medical agency units and chief of the 
Air Force Nurse Corps.
  OK. Again, these are really, really important jobs that we need.
  Again, this is somebody in a very competitive world who has moved all 
the way up the ranks from a one- to two-star General. She has been 
involved in the execution of medical readiness programs, expeditionary 
medical capabilities, and the direct support and implementation of 
policy, plans, and programs for healthcare operations of the Air Force 
Medical Service to more than 44,000 U.S. Air Force personnel at 76 
military treatment facilities. That is unbelievable. Brigadier General 
Ryder has commanded at the flight, squadron, and group levels in both 
deployed and in garrison environments.
  Prior to her most recent assignment, Brigadier General Ryder was the 
commander of the 59th Medical Wing, market director of the San Antonio 
Military Health System, Joint Base San Antonio, Lackland, TX.
  She is very deserving of a promotion and can't be promoted over 
something she has nothing to do with--nothing. And if she got promoted, 
she wouldn't be involved in fixing it either.
  You know, when we came down here 2 weeks ago, it kind of struck me 
because we have 450 officers right now, and we are standing with them. 
We are standing with them. We are pro-life Senators who are standing 
with them. I think we have emphasized that enough, but we will 
emphasize it again. One of the things that struck me 2 weeks ago was 
how many one- and two- and three-star Admirals with very significant 
deployment experience, particularly on submarines, are now being 
blocked.
  As anyone who knows about our challenges in the Indo-Pacific theater, 
Xi Jinping, who was visiting America--I haven't gotten a read out of 
the President's meeting, but I am worried that they are weak on them 
and that they are weak on the military.
  Again, what I want to do with my colleagues here on the floor is 
actually get through this issue and turn to the bigger readiness 
problem, which is the weakness of the Biden administration. But where 
we don't have weakness is in submarines. We need more submarines, but 
we have the best commanders in the world. Xi Jinping is scared to death 
of the American sub fleet--scared to death. They know if they try to 
invade Taiwan--and we have subs in the Taiwan Strait--we will take out 
their

[[Page S5575]]

whole invasion force. But we need good commanders.

  And 2 weeks ago, there were six sub commanders who were objected to--
six. As I mentioned then, I guarantee you the Chinese Communist Party's 
military apparatus is going, like: I can't believe our luck with the 
thing we are so frightened of.
  And you can't produce a sub commander overnight. It takes 30, 40 
years.
  So we have some Navy officers here. This is Calendar No. 234, VADM 
Jeffrey Hughes. He is a two-star Admiral to be Vice Admiral. His naval 
career is unbelievable.
  For 34 years, he served as a detachment officer in charge headed 
tours of a helicopter anti-submarine squadron where he deployed on the 
USS Carr, the USS Elrod, the USS John Hancock, supporting strike group 
deployments with the USS America, which is an aircraft carrier, and the 
USS John F. Kennedy, another aircraft carrier.
  He is a pilot who hunts subs. As an MH-60 helo pilot, he was named 
the Pilot of the Year and was the corecipient of the Commanding 
Officer's Helmsman Award for calendar year 1993--so the best of his 
class. He served as executive officer and the 14th commanding officer 
of the Fighting Vipers. He was the Helicopter Maritime Strike Wing 
commander, the U.S. Atlantic Fleet and a recipient of the Navy and 
Marine Corps Association--peer-selected--Leadership Award.
  This is a great Navy aviator leader. As a flag officer, Admiral 
Hughes has served as commander of Navy Recruiting Command, commander of 
Expeditionary Strike Group Two, and, most recently, deputy chief of 
Naval Personnel/commander, Navy Personnel Command. He is an incredible 
Navy leader.
  We need more Navy officers confirmed. He is being blocked over an 
issue he has nothing to do with. We would like to move him on regular 
order tonight. Regular order would be an individual vote, and we are 
ready to take it. Unfortunately, it is going to be blocked. So that is 
not good for our national security. As I mentioned, the Biden 
administration's budget right now shrinks the Navy. That is horrible. 
But we, at least, need to get our great Navy officers on the ships in 
the command.
  The next one we are looking at is a Brigadier General to be a Major 
General in the U.S. Air Force. He is a Brigadier General by the name of 
Curtis R. Bass. He was Calendar No. 110. Again, boy, look at this guy's 
resume. Unbelievable. He was the senior executive officer of the 22nd 
Air Force Chief of Staff, the commander of the E-8C Joint Surveillance 
Target Attack Radar System Combat Flying Squadron at Al Udeid Air Base 
in Qatar.
  By the way, our military members in the Middle East right now are 
taking fire. They are in combat. Some of the officers who are being 
blocked--I have talked to some of them in the Middle East, whose 
promotions are being blocked, are taking fire from the enemy. What? You 
don't think they are bitter right now? I know they are bitter. They are 
taking fire from the enemy. One-star Generals, Colonels--I know this; I 
have talked to them--are being blocked over something they have nothing 
to do with. They are risking their lives right now. Right now. That is 
a fact.
  So he is another one of the Air Force aviation intel systems--one of 
the best--who just recently served as deputy commander of the U.S. Air 
Force Warfare Center at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. He is a 
tremendous operator who is being blocked over something he has nothing 
to do with and has no ability to fix.
  These are apolitical members, right? By the way, of this blanket 
hold--we have done the research--we have never had a blanket hold for 
this long, of this duration, and with this many officers in the history 
of the United States of America.
  The next officer we are going to bring forward is Air Force Brig. 
Gen. Jason T. Hinds to, again, be promoted to Major General, U.S. Air 
Force officer. Boy, oh, boy. Look at this guy's background. He has 
flown all kinds of positions, including First Fighter Wing, commander; 
F-22 Fighter Squadron, commander; F-22 instructor pilot and flight 
examiner; F-15C instructor and weapons officer. I think he has over 
4,000--4,000--hours of flying. I mean, this is probably one of the best 
pilots in the world. He previously served as the director of Plans, 
Programs, and Analyses at the U.S. Air Force in Europe and Air Forces 
in Africa and at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.
  He has been selected to be a two-star General from a one-star, which 
is really hard to do--really hard to do. Unfortunately, we can't get 
him confirmed despite the fact that he has nothing to do with the 
policy that we all want to fix. Everyone here wants to fix that policy, 
but he has nothing to do with it, and he is being punished for this.
  There are a lot of Air Force officers. Boy, are these men and women 
impressive. This is Brig. Gen. Charles D. Bolton to be Major General of 
the U.S. Air Force. Brigadier General Bolton most recently served as 
the U.S. Transportation Command Global Operations Center chief at Scott 
Air Force Base. For 29 years, he has commanded in the U.S. Air Force, 
including, most recently, the 386th Expeditionary Operations Support 
Squadron in southwest Asia and the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing.
  Prior to his current assignment, he was the deputy director of 
Operations, Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration, Headquarters 
Air Mobility Command, Scott Air Force Base.
  He is a master navigator with almost 3,000 hours in a C-130E and a C-
130H. He is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Weapons 
School, with multiple tours to Iraq, Afghanistan, Inherent Resolve, 
Iraqi Freedom--multiple tours.
  By the way, Senator Ernst and I are not even talking about it, but 
think about the families behind all of these officers and all of these 
deployments and their children and how much they have sacrificed. That 
is something else we need to think about. It is not just the men and 
women in the military wearing the uniform. It is their families, and 
this is really negatively impacting the families as well.
  As Senator Ernst has said, they don't have a voice. We are trying to 
give them a voice. We are trying to say: We are remembering. We are 
remembering. We have your back. We are down here again. We told you we 
would be down here again, and we are down here again.
  The next one is another Air Force one-star General to be Major 
General. This is John R. Edwards. He was on Calendar No. 110.
  He most recently served as the director for strategic capabilities 
policy on the National Security Council. He has a 28-year military 
career. Get this, he has commanded the 28th Bomb Wing at Ellsworth Air 
Force Base in South Dakota, the 479th Flying Training Group at 
Pensacola Naval Air Station, and the 96th Bomb Squadron at Barksdale 
Air Force Base in Louisiana.
  He has served on the joint staff at the J-8. Prior to his current 
assignment, he was the director of nuclear enterprise, Defense Threat 
Reduction Agency--just amazing experience.
  He is a master combat systems officer with over 2,500 flight hours, 
including 237 combat hours in Operations Allied Force and Enduring 
Freedom.
  He also has a Valor Award. Let me read that. It is an Air Medal for 
combat action at the onset of Operation Anaconda. That was the military 
operation in Afghanistan. His aircraft extended its alert interdiction 
time over the battlefield to support coalition ground units, providing 
crucial firepower for American troops in contact.
  What does that mean? That means we had troops who were on the ground 
in combat, and he came in with air power to suppress the enemy, saving 
American lives. His crew then released 45 MK-82 gravity bombs, 
destroying the enemy troops that were threatening friendly American 
ground units.
  During another mission, his attack aircraft struck nine targets using 
a complex combination of joint direct attack emissions, and all targets 
were destroyed, saving countless American ground forces.
  That is an American hero right there. I just read his Air Medal 
combat citation--an American hero--and his career right now is being 
punished for something he had nothing to do with.
  We have another one, a Brigadier General in the Air Force, Sean 
Choquette to be Major General. He has 33 years in the U.S. military, 
2,800 hours flying, 300 deployed combat hours flying in terms of Uphold 
Democracy, Southern Watch, Iraqi Freedom,

[[Page S5576]]

Enduring Freedom, and Inherent Resolve.
  He has commanded at the company squadron and wing levels. That is 
literally every level of command in the Air Force. This is a great 
leader, a great leader.
  Again, he was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal in terms of 
combat operations in Inherent Resolve, Deliberate Resolve, and 
Freedom's Sentinel. He enabled the United States and 17 coalition 
nations over the time he was in command to deliver 20,000 strike 
sorties, 39,000 flight hours, and employ and deliver over 8,000 
weapons.
  This is a warrior whom we need right now, who is on the bench. He 
can't get confirmed through no fault of his own on anything.
  The next officer we were looking at trying to promote was Maj. Gen. 
Greg Masiello to be Lieutenant General--a three-star General. He was 
most recently the military deputy to the Under Secretary for Policy at 
the Pentagon. And, if confirmed, the Agency that he would lead focuses 
on operations all over the globe.
  Prior to his current position, he was the executive officer for the 
Air Anti-Submarine Warfare, Assault and Special Missions Programs at 
Naval Air Systems Command, where he previously served as NAVAIR's 
commander for logistics and industrial operations.
  He understands the systems in our Pentagon. He is to be promoted to 
three-star General. We are here talking about his service.
  The next officer that we were going to try and promote through 
regular order, by the way, and by individual voice vote--I still 
haven't heard why that is not acceptable--was Rear Admiral Jeffrey 
Jablon to be a Vice Admiral, a three-star Admiral.
  Again, when you look at Admiral Jablon's career, he is one of the 
ones that I was talking about recently with incredible experience as a 
submarine commander--incredible.
  He was a fleet naval submarine warfare strategist at U.S. Special 
Operations Command, commander of the Submarine Development Squadron 12, 
deputy commander for training, Naval Submarine School, and prospective 
commanding officer instructor.

  Remember, these are nuclear-powered subs, the most advanced 
warfighting machines in the world. The Chinese are scared to death of 
them. But you cannot just grab an Ensign or Lieutenant and say: Hey, go 
command a nuclear sub.
  It takes decades--decades--to train somebody on a nuclear sub.
  He has commanded at all levels in terms of the submarine force, and 
we are trying to get him promoted to three-star Admiral.
  Again, this is a huge strategic advantage we have over China, our 
submarine force. Yet so many of these Admirals are being blocked. They 
are being blocked.
  I have a few more--actually, we have a lot more. It is coming on 3 
a.m. I really appreciate my colleagues being here. But we are trying to 
give voice--trying to give voice--to these heroes whom we need on the 
field of battle right now.
  The next one we were trying to get confirmed tonight was VADM William 
J. Houston to be an Admiral, to be a four-star Admiral. He was on 
Calendar No. 202.
  Again, this officer's submarine experience is unbelievable. He had 
many key positions, including division officer of the USS Phoenix, 
which is a sub; engineer officer aboard the USS Hampton, which is a 
submarine; the executive officer aboard the USS Tennessee, which is a 
strategic ballistic missile sub.
  He has commanded and was commodore of Submarine Squadron 20, out of 
Kings Bay, GA. He also served as the flag lieutenant for the commander, 
Submarine Force U.S. Atlantic Fleet; Nuclear Propulsion Examining 
Board, special assistant to the Director of Naval Reactors; and the 
deputy commander for Sub Squadron 20, among other roles.
  Again, this is a four-star Admiral. I think he has 35 years of 
experience with submarines--the weapons system that Xi Jinping has 
nightmares about--and we are keeping him on the bench over an issue he 
has nothing to do with--nothing. That is the whole thing.
  We want to solve this issue. We are pro-life Senators. We are pro-
military Senators. And these men and women--every American, I hope you 
are listening. I know it is 3 in the morning. We are here to give them 
voice. But if you are an American and you read about Admiral Houston's 
background, think about what his family has gone through. Think about 
the options he has in his world.
  We don't want him to leave. We don't want any of these people to 
leave. We need them. This is the most combat-experienced group of 
general officers probably since World War II.
  Let me turn to another branch, the U.S. Army. This is MG Anthony Hale 
to be Lieutenant General Hale.
  Major General Hale is an expert in Army intelligence--Army 
intelligence. He has served at U.S. Special Operations Command. He 
currently is the deputy chief of staff of the G-2 for the entire U.S. 
Army. The G-2 is the group in the military in charge of intelligence.
  His deployments, I think--I am reading his bio here--six or seven 
deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan. He has gone all the way up the chain 
in the U.S. military--Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq--several times. 
He is the top intel officer for the U.S. Army--top intel officer for 
the U.S. Army--and his career is on hold right now, like 450 others.
  But, again, we could confirm them tonight. This is regular order, by 
the way--regular order. This is, actually, more than regular order. The 
Senate has only done this twice--rollcall votes--in 50 years, for one- 
or two-star officers.
  The next officer we were looking to promote is MG Thomas James. He is 
a two-star General to Lieutenant General. We were looking to move him 
forward. He is an expert in space. He was supposed to be the deputy 
commander of U.S. Space Command, and, boy, do we need that. That is a 
whole other warfare element that people don't talk about.
  He also has a tremendous background in Special Forces and several 
deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. His family sacrificed. He was the 
deputy commander for Joint Functional Component Command for Space, 
leader of the 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne)--Airborne--and a 
space expert.
  Again, we are trying to make sure he knows--Major General James, of 
the U.S. Army, to be deputy commander of U.S. Space Command. We are 
thanking you, General, and your family. We are thanking you for your 
service, General, and your family. We are trying to move your 
promotion, which was hard to get, well-deserved. We are trying to move 
that forward.
  We are trying to fix the policy that we all don't like here on the 
Hyde amendment issues. There are a lot of ways of trying to do that, 
but we think punishing General James and his family, in my view, 
doesn't make any sense.
  Senator Lee mentioned Senator Tuberville has the right to do it. I 
agree with that. He does. But I don't agree with the tactic.
  Mr. President, the next officer we are looking to promote was Major 
General Spain, U.S. Air Force, to be Lieutenant General, three-star 
General. He is to be the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations for the 
entire U.S. Air Force. That is a huge job.
  He has got over 30 years of military service. He is a pilot. He has 
served as a weapons officer for the 58th Fighter Squadron. He led the 
Nation's first Operation Noble Eagle deployment to the National Capital 
Region. He has numerous deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan. He served as 
the 53rd Wing commander, the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing commander. He 
has led the operations for the J3--that is military operations--for 
U.S. European Command during Afghanistan and the J3 at USEUCOM in 
response to Russian aggression in support of Ukraine, up to and through 
the invasion.
  He was a command pilot with more than 2,300 hours in multiple 
aircraft, primarily the F-15C and F-22. An incredible warrior there, 
incredible warrior. Combat sorties. Here is an Air Achievement Medal, 
Legion of Merit. Senator Ernst was talking a lot about Legion of Merit.
  Skilled fleet. Led a rotation force of over 10,000 coalition 
personnel, 50 combat aircraft. His combat team executed

[[Page S5577]]

over 5,600 sorties in 52,000 flying hours, offloaded nearly 2 million 
pounds of fuel, collected intelligence on 172,000 targets, supported 
3,800 strikes against the Islamic State and Syria in Iraq.
  You don't think we need him now? We are bombing terrorist groups in 
Iraq and Syria as we speak. That is exactly the kind of officer we need 
in the field fighting, not on the bench.
  Mr. President, the next one we are looking at was Col. Paul Sellars 
to be a Brigadier General. Colonel Sellars, like a lot of the people we 
have spoken about tonight, has a very significant background in Special 
Operations. He has deployed numerous times to Iraq, Afghanistan, 
Kuwait, with Special Forces operations. He has also conducted exercises 
in the INDOPACOM region, Philippines, Malaysia. And he has served with 
the J3 for Special Operations Detachment in the Pacific.
  Again, Paul Sellars, Colonel, to be Brigadier General--incredible 
background--and, right now, he can't get promoted over something that 
he has no involvement with. So we are giving him voice.
  The next one, Mr. President, is BG Jacqueline Brown to be the grade 
of Major General. Jacqueline Brown is currently serving as the Director 
of Operations, Networks, and Space and Information Systems--so the G-6, 
the group that is bringing in all the communications. Over 30 years of 
service in the U.S. Army. She served as executive officer, Army chief 
information officer, and the plans and strategy division chief of the 
Army G-6.
  She, like everybody else, has deployed to Afghanistan, to Iraq. She 
has been a chief of operations and plans for the G-6 for the Army's 3rd 
Corps at Fort Hood and has served at different levels in her career, 
starting in the 6th Signal Battalion, Fort Richardson, AK, and later 
battalion signal officer in the 106th Military Intelligence Battalion.
  I was talking about how medical units are so important, but so are 
the information systems, comms systems, space systems. And BG 
Jacqueline Brown is one who has an amazing career. We are trying to get 
her promoted to two-star, and I hope we can do that soon.
  Just a couple more, Mr. President. This one should be known to 
everybody here: Col. Matthew Good, Col. Matthew Good. He is a great 
marine. Many of you know him because he served as the top marine 
liaison to the U.S. Senate recently, but he has an incredible bio. He 
knows many legislators. Going on 30 years as an infantry officer. He 
served as a faculty member at Marine Command and Staff; multiple 
deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, and has moved up the chain in the 
Marine Corps like a good Marine infantry officer.
  He served as a platoon commander, a rifle company commander, a 
weapons company executive officer, a rifle company commander, a company 
operations officer, and deployed, like I said, numerous times to Iraq 
and Afghanistan. And everybody who knows him knows what a great leader 
he is--measured, great advice. I relied on Colonel Good's advice many, 
many times over the last several years when he was here as the lead 
Senate liaison. Just a fantastic guy, and so many of us know him; and, 
right now, he cannot get promoted to Brigadier General. He should be 
but can't be.
  Mr. President, the next officer we were trying to promote tonight was 
BG Richard Appelhans, who recently served as commander of the U.S. Army 
Intelligence Center of Excellence at Fort Huachuca. So, again, this is 
a top army officer. He deployed several times: Korea, Kuwait, Germany, 
the Netherlands, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Iraq. Geez, that is like seven 
deployments right there. Think about his family.

  He began his career as an armor officer, and then he transitioned to 
military intelligence. He has served in a variety of command and staff 
assignments and now is trying to get promoted to two-star General. We 
think he should be. He has nothing to do with the current dispute--
nothing--and no ability to fix it.
  I haven't heard one reason why putting a hold on 450 apolitical 
military officers who are being punished--I just--I don't understand 
it.
  Mr. President, another marine Colonel to be promoted to Brigadier 
General--infantry officer who has led and served at the highest levels 
of every infantry unit he has commanded: forward observer, guns platoon 
commander, fire direction officer, artillery. He is actually an 
artillery officer. 26th MEU, Marine Expeditionary Unit. Deployed all 
over the world, extensive experience in the INDOPACOM region, serving 
with 12th Marines during Operation Enduring Freedom. The 12th Marines 
is a Marine artillery unit. Completed several deployments to Iraq, 
awarded the Combat Action Ribbon.
  Again, a great marine, great hero, a Colonel to a Brigadier General. 
And his promotion is being stalled.
  Let's do another Brigadier General. Colonel to Brigadier General, 
U.S. Marine Corps. This is Adolfo Garcia.
  Same thing, Mr. President: Multiple deployments. Iraq, Afghanistan, 
12th Marines. He is also an artillery officer. He served on the Joint 
Staff, so he has a lot of knowledge at the big level of the Pentagon 
and as a military secretary to the 38th Commandant of the Marine Corps. 
So really knows his combat issues and higher-level Marine Corps 
issues--exactly the kind of officer you want--going from Colonel to 
Brigadier General. He has earned it, 30 years in. Again, not involved 
in this dispute.
  So my final one--we have a number more, but it is almost 3:30, and I 
think our attempts at trying to get these officers promoted were not 
successful. Hopefully, we can get through this. I am hoping--I don't 
think anyone in the Senate thinks it is good to punish 450 officers 
over something that they have no control over.
  Mr. LEE. Will the gentleman yield for a question?
  Mr. SULLIVAN. I am going to finish this final one, and then I will.
  This is Col. Trevor Hall, 33 years in the Marine Corps. He served as 
both enlisted and--a military enlisted and officer. His command 
experience includes rifle and weapons platoon commander, 3rd Battalion 
6th Marines; multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. He served 
with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. He served in support of 
Operation Desert Thunder, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Unified 
Protector--that is Libya. Combat marine moving from Colonel to 
Brigadier General.
  That is one more that we would want to promote tonight. We have 
several others, Mr. President. It is 3:30. I am hoping that, my 
colleagues, we can continue to make progress. I am committed to 
continue to work with Senator Tuberville and others on moving forward, 
but at the same time, we have got to keep faith with these military 
members. We have got to keep faith with them. Many of them are deployed 
right now. A number of them are in combat.
  And we committed to come back down here and try to move these, and we 
are going to keep doing it. Hopefully, we can move forward with my 
colleagues here to, as I mentioned, focus on the big issues of national 
security and readiness, which I believe, with regard to the Biden 
administration, are legion. I have been fighting those in the Armed 
Services Committee.
  The Biden budget shrinks the Army, shrinks the Navy, shrinks the 
Marine Corps right now. That is music to Xi Jinping and Putin's ears. 
Next year's budget will be below 3 percent of GDP. We have only been 
below 3 percent of GDP maybe four or five times in the last 70 years. 
So that is not a good number. We need a much more robust military. I 
want to work with my partners, including those on the floor here, to 
focus on those issues. But we need to get through this, and it is 
important. We need to fix the policy, the abortion policy, that we all 
disagree with here. There are a number of ways we can do it. Again, I 
have worked with Senator Tuberville on ways to do that.
  And I do agree with my colleagues here that this was started and 
provoked by the Biden administration. But punishing these 450 members 
and their families is not the best way--is not the way to go about 
doing that.
  So, Mr. President--do you want to say anything else?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
  Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, I do want to thank my colleagues for coming 
to the floor this evening and especially Senator Dan Sullivan of 
Alaska, a Colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve, a fine marine. He has 
deployed in service

[[Page S5578]]

to our Nation. And, as well, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina 
and Senator Todd Young of Indiana--all veterans, all have served in 
uniform, understand the significance, the importance of getting these 
nominees over the finish line. Again, all pro-life, my colleagues here 
as well--adamantly pro-life. We are pro-life.
  There has got to be another way to overturn this policy, change the 
policy. That is our jobs. It is not the jobs of these nominees. It is 
our job to make sure the policy is right.
  It is President Biden's fault we are in this situation. It is Lloyd 
Austin's fault that we are in this situation. It is Chuck Schumer's 
fault that we are in this situation.
  And I understand that a Senator has the prerogative, has the right, 
in this body to put blanket holds on nominees. But, folks, you know, my 
mom and dad always had a saying: Just because you can do it doesn't 
mean you should.
  Yes, you can put blanket holds on these nominees, but what is that 
doing to our Nation right now? It is not solving the travel policy. 
That is our job. We have to figure this out. And it is not getting 
these men and women into the positions that are needed for our 
readiness and our national security.
  So we, as pro-life Senators, need to figure this out, and we need to 
work with our House Members. We need to work with the majority here in 
the U.S. Senate and find a path forward. It is up to us to do that.
  Again, thanks to my colleagues for coming down tonight for, one, 
supporting life--we all support life--but also supporting the military. 
We can have not just pro-life Senators and not just pro-military 
Senators; we can have both. And that is whom we are representing 
tonight.
  Thank you, Senator Sullivan. I will yield back to the Senator from 
Alaska.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. My colleague had a question.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  By the way, Mr. President, I appreciate your staying late, 3:30. And 
it is important work.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, the late Associate Justice Oliver Wendell 
Holmes, Jr., used to say: There is a point of contact in every case. He 
defined that point of contact as the place where the boy got his finger 
caught in the machinery.
  Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin got his finger caught in the 
machinery. Hence, defining the point of contact in this case, in this 
dispute, when he decided to circumvent the plain intent and effect of 
10 U.S.C. 1093, plainly prohibiting the use of DOD funds to perform 
abortions. He did that with clear intent to avoid the impact of the law 
while purporting to comply with it. He did so shamefully.
  I appreciate my colleagues Senator Ernst and Senator Sullivan for 
their service to our country. Their service, along with that of 
Senators Graham and Young, who were with us earlier tonight, is 
admirable, as is their service in the U.S. Senate.
  The service to our country exhibited by Senator Tuberville is no less 
to be commended, no less to be admired. I, frankly, resent the 
suggestion, to the extent anyone is making it, that he is any less 
qualified to make these arguments simply because of the fact that he 
hasn't worn that uniform. He has every bit the right to do that. I do 
appreciate the comments made by my colleague Senator Ernst moments ago 
to the effect that this is, in fact, President Biden's fault; this is, 
in fact, Secretary Lloyd Austin's fault; that this is, in fact, Senator 
Chuck Schumer's fault. I appreciate that.
  Nonetheless, the majority of the remarks that we have heard tonight, 
this morning, have not suggested in any way, shape, or form that the 
true call to action really is being directed to President Biden, to 
Secretary Austin, or to Senator Schumer.
  We have been asked the question over and over again: Why punish the 
innocent? Indeed, why punish the innocent? Do you know who is innocent? 
Babies. Do you know who doesn't have a voice in the Senate? Babies. Do 
you know who can't speak for themselves? Babies.
  You know, a baby doesn't have a name. A baby doesn't have a military 
rank. A baby doesn't have a professional career upon which to rely, 
upon which he or she can have people rallying around the baby in 
defense of that baby's life. It is one of the many reasons why Congress 
saw fit to adopt 10 U.S.C section 1039: to make sure that the Federal 
Government didn't contribute to this. The U.S. Department of Defense is 
supposed to kill America's enemies, not her babies.
  Regardless of how you feel about pro-life issues, you have got to 
accept the fact that Americans, by a margin of three out of four, are 
not willing to tolerate the expenditure of U.S. taxpayer funds for 
abortions. This isn't honorable; this isn't noble.
  And, no, you cannot conflate this. You can't distract from it. You 
can't obfuscate the barbarism inherent in this policy simply by 
referring to the illustrious resumes, to the amazing job qualifications 
of one-, two-, three-, and four-star Generals.
  It doesn't fix the problem, not even for an instant. It begs the 
question: How many future Generals, how many future Admirals are going 
to be aborted by this policy, by the Pentagon itself?
  Who can't go out and hold a press conference? Well, we are told 
tonight it is the one-, two-, three-, four-star Admirals and Generals. 
Babies also can't do that.
  My colleagues posited over and over again tonight in a way that I 
found, frankly, very offensive, that we are somehow afraid to have the 
credentials of these military men and women read from the Senate floor. 
If they think that they read us wrong, 180 degrees wrong, we are not 
afraid of that, not for an instant. Our quarrel is not with them. Our 
quarrel is with those who would circumvent the law in order to kill 
children.
  Any society that sacrifices babies for the convenience of adults is 
in for a rough ride. I resent, also, the fact that some on the Senate 
floor tonight have implicitly challenged our patriotism, our gratitude 
for our soldiers, sailors, airmen, or marines, even our national 
security, because we stand behind one man's effort to protect the 
unborn who can't speak for themselves, who can't fight for themselves, 
who don't have a name or a military rank to secure their position in 
life.
  We have been told over and over again that these one-, two-, three-, 
and four-star Generals and Admirals are being punished for something 
they had nothing to do with. Here again, the same can be said of the 
babies whose will be snuffed out with the assistance of U.S. taxpayer 
dollars.
  We are told over and over again about how pro-life these speakers 
are. And I don't doubt that they are, but one minute they are uttering 
those words, and the very next minute they are accusing Senator 
Tuberville of jeopardizing our national security or not caring about 
the families of these individuals.
  I am sorry. That is not fair, nor is it helpful for them to dismiss 
it or passive aggressively suggest: Well, we just have to deal with 
this. We just have to find a solution. Well, then find one.
  Look, I get it. They don't love the tactic he has chosen. It is not 
the one I chose, not the one they chose. But it is what he has chosen. 
If they are going to passively aggressively tell him that he has to 
find another solution to protect the unborn, then they had darned well 
better direct him to one. But they haven't. The closest they have come 
is to suggest litigation.

  Litigation is of no avail. There is not any plausible existing human 
who has article III standing to challenge this. And, moreover, even if 
we could find one--which we can't--this is the kind of insult to the 
law, the kind of violation of the law, the kind of effort to circumvent 
the law that is not likely to prevail in the courts. It is almost 
certainly doomed to it.
  So, no, litigation doesn't solve the problem. That is, moreover, just 
punting to the judicial branch of government something that is a 
distinctively legislative task. That doesn't do it for me.
  The fact that they say over and over again, ``There has got to be a 
better way,'' if there is one, then help him find it. But don't just 
tell him he is wrong for standing up for this without giving him a 
plausible path in a different direction.

[[Page S5579]]

  Let me outline just a couple of different paths that I think we could 
pursue--and I would like their help in getting them. I would like to 
know whether they would be willing to join with us. Why not have 
Republican Senators say, We are not going to pass the National Defense 
Authorization Act unless we fix this issue? Why not have them sign up 
and say, We as Republicans either aren't going to do that, we are not 
going give another dime to nonmilitary aid to Ukraine or to Gaza or who 
knows whatever else, unless they fix this problem in statute or unless 
the Pentagon and the White House withdraw its abortion travel funding 
policy?
  Those are just a couple of ideas. Those are actually productive 
ideas. And I would love to know whether they would be willing to join 
the fight in that, whether they would be willing to help us get 41 
signatures on a letter committing to do one of those things. Did they 
offer that tonight? No. They just continue to pay lip service to the 
notion that this is Joe Biden's and Lloyd Austin's fault and Chuck 
Schumer's fault, but all the time they are pointing the finger to Tommy 
Tuberville. That is not fair. We owe him better than that. We who 
campaign on the banner of pro-life owe Tommy Tuberville more than that. 
We owe the unborn of this country more than that. We can do better. But 
to do better, we have to actually act.
  I am glad that one man in this body is willing to stand up for the 
unborn, and it is an honor and privilege for me to stand with him.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.

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