[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Pages 2250-2251]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 PRESIDENT'S NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY

  Mrs. FISCHER. Mr. President, this afternoon the Senate voted to 
approve Dr. Carter's nomination as the next Secretary of Defense. I 
supported his nomination and appreciated the candor he displayed during 
both his confirmation hearing and in our private meeting.
  I believe the many challenges facing our Nation require a fresh 
perspective and a strong analytical mind. I am confident Dr. Carter 
possesses both. Despite the fact the international landscape has 
changed dramatically over the past few years, the Obama administration 
has failed to modify its policies to meet the new challenges facing our 
Nation. In fact, top administration officials have emphasized in recent 
interviews their approach is not changing and instead offer Americans a 
laundry list of things they will continue to do. This is unacceptable.
  I am very concerned this administration actually believes the correct 
course of action is to continue what we

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have been doing. In the Senate, the Armed Services Committee has held a 
number of hearings to examine the effectiveness of the current U.S. 
national security strategy.
  Witnesses from across the political spectrum have merged on one 
point. In several key areas, U.S. national security strategy and our 
regional goals are either ambiguous or divorced from events on the 
ground. What is needed is a reevaluation, not a continuation.
  In Syria, for example, President Obama called on Bashar al-Assad to 
step down 3 years ago. However, the President has failed to lay out a 
strategy to accomplish his stated goal. After hundreds of thousands of 
Syrians have died, terrorist groups have seized control of about half 
of that country. Further, thanks to assistance provided by Iran and 
Russia, Assad has fortified his control over much of western Syria.
  In response to all of this, President Obama has continued to call for 
a negotiated transfer of power without any articulation of how this 
would be accomplished. The President's goal was probably unlikely when 
it was first conceived, but now it is thoroughly unimaginable.
  The Obama administration has also stated the United States intends to 
degrade and destroy ISIL. While I support this goal, I am concerned we 
have yet again failed to lay out a strategy to accomplish it.
  Yesterday President Obama sent to Congress his authorization of 
military force. The decision to send young men and women to war is the 
most serious decision that elected officials will make. This deserves a 
serious, open, transparent debate that is worthy of the American 
people. I look forward to a robust committee process on this issue.
  I am also eager to hear more from the President about the exact 
contours of his strategy, particularly when it comes to achieving very 
clear goals. What exactly do we hope to achieve? Simply stating our 
objective is to destroy ISIL doesn't reflect the complexities of 
actually realizing this goal.
  The President has waged a campaign of airstrikes against this 
barbaric terrorist group, but we know airpower alone will not be 
sufficient to destroy ISIL. While the White House has proposed arming 
and training Syrian opposition fighters, this effort will take years to 
produce a force that is strong enough to dislodge ISIL from its 
strongholds in eastern Syria. What is more, it is unclear how the 
Syrian fighters--any of whom view Assad as the primary target--will be 
convinced to first fight ISIL. Questions about the extent to which the 
United States will provide opposition forces direct air support if they 
are attacked by ISIL or Assad--those questions remain unanswered. For 
these reasons, the President has been rightly criticized for not having 
a clear and effective strategy.
  Again, I support the goal of destroying ISIL. But this is a 
multilayered problem. In Iraq, the administration seems to embrace a 
growing Iranian role, even though this puts our goal of maintaining a 
unified Iraq in even greater jeopardy.
  With respect to Iran itself, the administration unequivocally states 
it will not allow that nation to develop a nuclear capability, but we 
hear reports repeatedly that are suggesting the U.S. negotiators are 
crafting an agreement that would accept its enrichment program and 
leave Iran as a threshold nuclear power 1 year away from a bomb, at 
most.
  In Ukraine, the United States imposed sanctions on Russia in March 
for its intervention. Since that time, Russia has continued to pour 
heavy weapons and fighters into that conflict. Clearly our policy is 
not working. We must acknowledge that as Putin continues to build 
momentum on the battlefield, the incentive for him to honor his 
diplomatic commitments and end the conflict diminishes.
  Additional measures--including defensive weapons for the Ukrainians--
are necessary, and they must be implemented. The international 
community and most Americans are understandably confused by the stark 
contrast between what they see and what they hear from the White House. 
They hear vague assertions, but they see no strategy. They hear a goal, 
but they see no discussion on how to achieve it. This damages our 
global credibility.
  In a world where we rely heavily on partner nations to be our boots 
on the ground, we cannot afford to have our international allies 
wondering if we mean what we say.
  Dr. Carter will have a lot on his plate in his new role. I hope his 
appointment will help encourage the strategic reevaluation that is so 
desperately needed.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. BOOKER. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum 
call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  (The remarks of Mr. Booker pertaining to the introduction of S. 502 
are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills 
and Joint Resolutions.'')
  Mr. BOOKER. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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