[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Pages 4228-4229]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the nomination.
  The bill clerk read the nomination of Lt. Gen. Herbert R. McMaster, 
Jr., to be Lieutenant General in the United States Army while assigned 
to a position of importance and responsibility under title 10, U.S.C., 
section 601.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the cloture motion 
is withdrawn.
  The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the McMaster 
nomination?
  Mr. TOOMEY. I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There appears to be a sufficient second.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the 
Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Alexander), the Senator from Wyoming (Mr. 
Barrasso), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Corker), and the Senator 
from Georgia (Mr. Isakson).
  Further, if present and voting, the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. 
Alexander) would have voted ``yea,'' the Senator from Wyoming (Mr. 
Barrasso) would have voted ``yea,'' and the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. 
Corker) would have voted ``yea.''
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 86, nays 10, as follows:

                       [Rollcall Vote No. 90 Ex.]

                                YEAS--86

     Baldwin
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Blunt
     Boozman
     Brown
     Burr
     Cantwell
     Capito
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Cassidy
     Cochran
     Collins
     Coons
     Cornyn
     Cortez Masto
     Cotton
     Crapo
     Cruz
     Daines
     Donnelly
     Duckworth
     Durbin
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Feinstein
     Fischer
     Flake
     Franken
     Gardner
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hassan
     Hatch
     Heinrich
     Heitkamp
     Heller
     Hoeven
     Inhofe
     Johnson
     Kaine
     Kennedy
     King
     Klobuchar
     Lankford
     Leahy
     Lee
     Manchin
     McCain
     McConnell
     Menendez
     Moran
     Murkowski
     Murphy
     Murray
     Nelson
     Paul
     Perdue
     Peters
     Portman
     Reed
     Risch
     Roberts
     Rounds
     Rubio
     Sasse
     Schatz
     Scott
     Shaheen
     Shelby
     Stabenow
     Strange
     Sullivan
     Tester
     Thune
     Tillis
     Toomey
     Udall
     Van Hollen
     Warner
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Wyden
     Young

                                NAYS--10

     Booker
     Gillibrand
     Harris
     Hirono
     Markey
     McCaskill
     Merkley
     Sanders
     Schumer
     Warren

                             NOT VOTING--4

     Alexander
     Barrasso
     Corker
     Isakson
  The nomination was confirmed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Colorado.
  Mr. GARDNER. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote, and I move 
to table the motion to reconsider.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
  The motion was agreed to.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I voted to support Lieutenant General H.R. 
McMaster retaining the grade of lieutenant general while serving as the 
National Security Advisor to the President. To be clear, this vote was 
to permit Lieutenant General McMaster to remain in the grade of 
lieutenant general while serving in this position. It is not to confirm 
him as the National Security Advisor.
  Lieutenant General McMaster was appointed by the President to a 
position that does not require Senate confirmation. Indeed, he is 
already serving as National Security Advisor. The only remaining 
question is whether he will serve in the military grade of lieutenant 
general on Active Duty.
  The position of National Security Advisor is one of the most 
important in our government. Not only does it require someone capable 
of providing timely and thoughtful counsel on national security 
matters, it entails coordinating advice and action across multiple 
executive agencies with responsibilities in the national security 
arena. Further, it necessitates a large measure of independence and 
knowledge.
  This is not the first time we have considered an Active-Duty military 
officer for this position. Lieutenant General McMaster would be the 
third such officer to so serve, following Admiral John Poindexter under 
President Reagan and General Colin Powell under President George 
Herbert Walker Bush.
  Many of my colleagues are rightly concerned about this and question 
whether it would be more appropriate for him to retire and serve in a 
civilian capacity. While I strongly believe it would be better for 
Lieutenant General McMaster to retire and avoid all perceptions of 
politicizing the military, he believes that serving in uniform will 
help him remain apolitical in service to this Administration. He can 
expect Congress to hold him to his word that wearing the uniform in 
this position will serve to keep the military above the political fray.
  Some Members have expressed concern about the proper functioning of 
our national security apparatus and clear chains of command with 
respect to military advice provided to the President under this 
arrangement. While Lieutenant General McMaster would be the National 
Security Advisor to the President, providing day-to-day advice and 
counsel on all national security matters, General Joseph Dunford, as 
the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, would continue to be the 
``principal military advisor'' to the President, while Secretary Mattis 
is the ``principal assistant to the President in all matters related to 
the Department of Defense.''
  As Senator Sam Nunn described the issue with respect to the 
nomination of then-Lieutenant General Powell, in Senator Nunn's words, 
``A military officer who knows that his next promotion depends on the 
Secretary of Defense and the top generals and admirals in the Pentagon 
may simply not, over a period of time, be able to make completely 
objective decisions based on the fact that his promotion, his pay, and 
his future depend on one department, and that one department is an 
active player in the government.''
  This question centers on Lieutenant General McMaster's ability to 
retain the necessary measure of independence as he discharges his 
duties to the President. I ultimately believe, after careful 
consideration, that Lieutenant General McMaster will be able to balance 
these roles and provide advice and direction

[[Page 4229]]

designed to further the Nation's interests and not simply those of the 
Department of Defense or indeed, to advance his own ambitions.
  It is also my hope that Lieutenant General McMaster will be a 
moderating influence on a White House that desperately needs talented, 
informed, and professional advisers. This Administration has proposed a 
reorganization of the National Security Council structure that excludes 
the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Director of National 
Intelligence from meetings unless specifically invited. Lieutenant 
General McMaster assured the Committee that General Dunford and the DNI 
will be invited to attend any meeting of the Principals Committee of 
the National Security Council, and I appreciated that assurance.
  The Trump Administration reorganization also added the President's 
chief strategist, Steve Bannon, to the National Security Council. This 
politicization of the NSC is unsound, and I think without merit. The 
law creating the National Security Council is purposeful in trying to 
create a managerial and policy process that develops the best national 
security policy for our Nation. The idea that a partisan political 
operative like Mr. Bannon should serve on the National Security Council 
runs counter to longstanding practice, and must, in my view, be 
reversed.
  It is my hope that Lieutenant General McMaster has the vast 
experience and knowledge and the requisite temperament and independence 
to provide the national security expertise that is sorely needed in the 
White House.
  Moreover, Lieutenant General McMaster must have the support and the 
backing of the President so it is clear that he runs the National 
Security Council on the President's behalf. That support is not yet 
apparent. According to Politico just a few days ago, the President 
overruled Lieutenant General McMaster's advice and chose to listen to 
Mr. Bannon and the President's son-in-law, Mr. Kushner, in regard to 
the retention of a key intelligence analyst who had been brought in by 
Major General Flynn. This is a worrisome sign that Lieutenant General 
McMaster might have a title and responsibilities but not the authority 
he needs. I indeed hope he has that authority and exercises it wisely.
  I would also like to note that there have been reports about 
decisions Lieutenant General McMaster made as Commanding General at 
Fort Benning in allowing lieutenants under his command to attend 
schools while being investigated for allegations of sexual misconduct. 
I want to assure my colleagues that the Committee held a closed and 
classified executive session with Lieutenant General McMaster present 
to answer all our questions. The Committee thoroughly considered the 
facts and voted to confirm his third star by a strong bipartisan vote.
  We are again taking a rather extraordinary step in voting on an 
Active-Duty military officer to serve as National Security Advisor for 
the first time in 25 years, but these are extraordinary times. Our 
Nation faces complex national security challenges, and 3 months into a 
new administration, we are on a second National Security Advisor 
already. We see a disorganized National Security Council and an 
enormous number of vacancies in the State and Defense Departments.
  Lieutenant General McMaster has the opportunity to bring order to the 
chaos. Therefore, I believe the Senate should confirm his grade of 
Lieutenant General while he serves as National Security Advisor.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CARDIN. 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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