[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 81 (Wednesday, May 14, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2908-S2909]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



             Unanimous Consent Request--Executive Calendar

  Mr. MORAN. Mr. President, I rise today to seek the confirmation of 
Retired Army CPT Sam Brown to be the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs.
  President Trump nominated Captain Brown for this important position. 
Sam Brown demonstrates a history of service, love of country, and 
commitment to serving other veterans. A West Point graduate, 
Afghanistan combat veteran, husband, and father of three, Captain Brown 
understands the sacrifices the men and women of the U.S. military and 
their families make every day and is well-qualified to undertake the 
significant responsibility of being the Under Secretary for Memorial 
Affairs.
  The National Cemetery Administration's mission is to honor the memory 
of our Nation's veterans by caring for their final resting places and 
providing services to their surviving loved ones. Captain Brown, if 
confirmed, will fill this position with the utmost respect, honoring 
and remembering those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice.
  More than 4 million Americans are interred in NCA's 156 national 
cemeteries. Kansas is home to 3 of those cemeteries, where more than 
62,000 Kansas veterans and their family members are buried.
  Another responsibility of the National Cemetery Administration is 
safeguarding the veterans' legacies by documenting their stories. In 
doing so, NCA helps to make certain that no generation of Americans 
forgets the sacrifices made for our freedoms.
  Mr. President, notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent 
that the Senate proceed to the consideration of the following 
nomination: Executive Calendar No. 85, Sam Brown, to be Under Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs for Memorial Affairs; that the Senate vote on the 
nomination, without intervening action or debate; that 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 Connecticut.
  Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, the chairman and I share a bipartisan 
commitment to putting our veterans first, including providing them with 
the kind of memorial and cemetery recognition that they have well 
earned. There is no difference between us on that point.
  And I think we also share a belief that Members of the U.S. Senate 
have a duty--it is a constitutional duty--to hold accountable the 
executive branch and demand information from the executive branch to 
perform our obligations of oversight and scrutiny.
  I think we also share a respect for Sam Brown's service to our 
Nation. As a veteran--as a decorated veteran--who has earned 
appreciation for his service, the kinds of qualifications he brings to 
this office are impressive. But this nominee was advanced out of 
committee by a 10-to-9 vote. So it is clear he does not have unanimous 
support.
  He said, when he was asked about whether he would support the Trump 
administration's plan to fire nearly

[[Page S2909]]

one-fifth of the VA's workforce, including many who are veterans 
themselves--in fact, one-third of the VA's workforce are veterans:

       We owe it to the Secretary in good faith to hear his full 
     plan, which none of us have heard yet.
  That is really the point. This issue is bigger than Sam Brown. It is 
about information that has been denied to our committee and to us as 
Senators.
  The Secretary of the VA is actively working to undermine our 
bipartisan oversight efforts. Cuts have been made to contracts that 
delivered critical support and services to veterans. Despite multiple 
bipartisan requests, the Secretary refuses to share the list of 
canceled contracts. Thousands of VA employees have been bullied, driven 
off their jobs, or fired by Elon Musk and Secretary Collins. And there 
are plans to fire 83,000 employees, and we haven't seen those plans. 
All the Secretary has told us is that it is his goal and he will 
accomplish that goal. He denied us that basic information.
  So I have said I am opposing this nomination until we are given the 
information and disclosure we need to do our jobs. The Secretary has 
issued a pause on rulemaking that effectively halts efforts underway to 
provide veterans, including K2 veterans suffering from radiation 
exposure, the benefits they desperately need, or PFAS victims or other 
victims of toxic exposure. And he has refused to indicate when this so-
called pause will be lifted or whether it is permanent.
  Again, we have a job to do, and we have a right to demand--in fact, 
the Constitution requires that we make that demand--the VA must be 
transparent and accountable. Instead, the Secretary has come before our 
committee. He dissembled, he obfuscated, he has attacked anyone who 
questions him, and he denies us the basic information--denies the 
American people the information--that he owes us.
  My request is simple. If the President or my Republican colleagues 
believe that a certain nominee is a priority, come clean with the 
American people. Give us the information we need. What contracts have 
been canceled? Who is impacted by that action? What research has been 
stopped? Who has been fired, and who will be fired? What is the plan? 
Address the unprecedented levels of obstructionism from this 
administration and give the American people, including our Nation's 
veterans, the full and public debate they deserve.
  For these reasons, I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
  Mr. MORAN. Mr. President, on the last Monday of May--less than 2 
weeks away--we observe Memorial Day. As Americans, we gather at 
cemeteries and memorials worldwide to honor the courage, sacrifice, and 
legacy of the men and women who served and are now in their final 
resting place.
  With the approach of Memorial Day, the U.S. Senate has the 
responsibility to honor the servicemembers who died in service to our 
Nation. And we can, in part, do so by confirming a qualified leader as 
the Under Secretary of Memorial Affairs, CPT Sam Brown. We can do that 
while we wait for other things to occur. These things are not mutually 
exclusive. Captain Brown could begin to perform the duties of his 
office.
  I urged my colleagues to do so today. Those laying of our veterans to 
rest with honor, serving their families with dignity--it is not a 
Republican or a Democratic issue--and our committee has worked side by 
side over a long period of time in that manner.
  I am discouraged that we cannot work in that manner today to confirm 
this qualified and capable leader for the National Cemetery 
Administration. That position is responsible for carrying out our 
Nation's most solemn responsibilities in burying our veterans. It is 
incumbent upon us to confirm a nominee to lead the NCA and to lead it 
well. I believe CPT Sam Brown would do just that.
  In his testimony before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, 
Captain Brown shared his story of suffering excruciating burns in the 
line of duty in Afghanistan. He recounted how, in the midst of his 
suffering and anguish, he heard his gunner shout the words: Sir, I've 
got you, as he worked to extinguish the flames, ultimately saving 
Captain Brown's life. That declaration of rescue, that cry for support, 
that message of hope is the same message of hope that Sam Brown will 
take with him to the National Cemetery Administration.
  Under his leadership, NCA will be there to tell veterans' family 
members and loved ones: We've got you.
  The National Cemetery Administration puts veterans first. Sam Brown 
will put veterans first. And it was my hope that this body could come 
together to put veterans first today.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
  Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, I respect the points that my colleague 
from Kansas has just made as chairman. We have worked together in a 
bipartisan way. I hope we will continue to work together to make sure 
that the National Cemetery Administration is given the resources it 
needs and the personnel that are required to make sure this Nation 
honors our veterans.
  As we speak, members of that workforce, the National Cemetery 
Administration, have been fired or are being fired or will be fired. 
Resources may be strangled. We deserve to know--we need to know--to 
honor our veterans. That is the information we are demanding from this 
Secretary of the VA.
  I respect the assurances that Sam Brown will do his job. But when he 
was asked specifically at his hearing whether, if directed by the 
President to take action that would break the law, he responded that he 
could not ``imagine a scenario where the President would ask me to do 
anything unlawful.'' We know the President has asked members of this 
administration to do unlawful actions.
  But the main point is bigger than Sam Brown. What are the resources 
that are being withheld in both workforce and dollars to expand our 
cemeteries as is required to make sure we provide places that honor our 
veterans? This basic information is an absolute prerequisite for us to 
do our job and assure that veterans are really honored on this Memorial 
Day and every day of the year.
  We owe our veterans that honor--honor with action--every day, not 
just Memorial Day. Americans who lay wreaths this Memorial Day are 
entitled to know what dollars, what commitments, what plans there are 
for our national cemeteries. We need and deserve that disclosure.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.