Hirono Questions Top Military Officials on Readiness, Impacts of Iran War, Women in Combat

~ Watch Senator Hirono's Opening Remarks Here ~

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Ranking member of the Senate Armed Services (SASC) Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support, questioned the vice chiefs of all five military services and the Director of Capabilities and Management from the U.S Government Accountability Office (GAO) in a Readiness Subcommittee hearing on the current readiness of the U.S. joint forces. During the hearing, Senator Hirono questioned the witnesses about the readiness of their respective forces in light of the ongoing war in Iran. Hirono also raised alarms about the Administration's "review" of women in combat roles.

"I must begin by acknowledging the tragic loss of multiple U.S. servicemembers in the Middle East. Our thoughts are with them and their loved ones, along with the thousands of other Americans who are serving in harm's way as we speak. We must also acknowledge how we got here. President Trump chose to launch airstrikes without so much as consulting with Congress," said Senator Hirono.

Senator Hirono asked each witness how the war will impact the force readiness, "How are you supposed to determine impact on readiness if you don't know the extent of this war, what it is going to take?"

The witnesses each responded it that was too early to determine the war in Iran's impact on readiness. At Senator Hirono's urging, each witness committed to providing critical readiness information via classified email once it was available.

Senator Hirono also raised concerns about a Pentagon decision to review the "effectiveness of women in combat jobs."

"This is extremely offensive and likely reflects an effort by the Secretary of Defense to lay the groundwork to reverse the policy allowing women to serve in combat arms positions," Hirono said.

Senator Hirono asked each of the witnesses if they believed the presence of women in combat units lowers standards. Each witness agreed it does not.

Senator Hirono then asked, "Over the last decade since combat arms have been open to women, have you seen any instance where the standard your service established resulted in a degradation of combat effectiveness?"

Each witness answered, "no."

Senator Hirono also highlighted several issues of importance to Hawaii, including how the Army intends to balance necessary training requirements while respectfully engaging with the Native Hawaiian community as they negotiate upcoming land lease renewals. She posed a similar question to the Navy and Air Force.

Senator Hirono concluded her questioning by expressing concerns about the use of the U.S. Department of Defense's (DOD) resources to support the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) immigration agenda. She highlighted how Army bases and Navy contracts were being utilized to build ICE detention facilities, expressing concerns about how this allocation of resources impacts readiness.

"The Navy is enabling DHS to use a naval process to fast track these detention facilities, and I would like to know ASAP how many Navy personnel are working in that regard," Senator Hirono said.

A video of Senator Hirono's opening remarks is available here. To watch the full committee hearing click here. A transcript of her opening remarks is below.

Gentlemen, thank you for your dedicated service to our nation. Especially in these turbulent times, I thank the servicemembers in each of your respective branches. Ms. Maurer, I look forward to having you here every year. Thank you for the constant and effective work by you and your team at GAO.

I must begin by acknowledging the tragic loss of multiple U.S. servicemembers in the Middle East. Our thoughts are with them and their loved ones, along with the thousands of other Americans who are serving in harm's way as we speak.

We must also acknowledge how we got here. President Trump chose to launch airstrikes without so much as consulting with Congress. What's worse, he denies we are engaged in regime change, while taking out the current regime without articulating any plan for what comes next.

As Leader Schumer said, "When the rationale for war keeps shifting, the strategy is missing." This lack of strategy directly increases the risk to our servicemembers, while negatively impacting military readiness.

Readiness is a fleeting commodity in the military. Even with well-executed training cycles, it must be managed ruthlessly to balance operational needs with force sustainment. Our witnesses have proven time and again that a well-trained, well-led military can execute a wide range of tasks effectively.

It is incumbent upon you all to lay out - without equivocation - your service's current state of readiness and the impact to its readiness of missions it is tasked to perform.

This is particularly important when planned events like ship maintenance cycles, combined training exercises, and support to combatant command exercises are disrupted. It is also important to clearly articulate the cost and time to replace war stocks when they are employed.

Standards are a critical component of training. And this administration has employed the term "standard" with great vigor. No one is opposed to well-defined, task-based standards.

Personally, I have confidence that the uniformed leadership of the military invests itself consistently and over time to set and continuously review its training standards.

However, the Secretary is Defense is concealing - poorly - his personal attack on women in the military, more specifically women in close combat formations, by questioning "standards." He is questioning your ability to man, train, and equip a ready force. He is questioning whether current physical fitness standards and unit effectiveness and cohesion are making your services less ready. I am very interested in your assessment in these areas.

Just yesterday, we heard from the Department of Defense about their National Defense Strategy (NDS). The number one stated priority was to do the job of another agency: the Department of Homeland Security.

And to that end, the DoD is delivering on that promise, handing over $2 billion to DHS in the last year alone. Not only does this drain readiness and resources, it also depletes morale and diverts units from training and executing the full range of their core missions.

Yet we are often told there are no adverse readiness impacts from deploying to the border with no end in sight. You can't have it both ways.

In reality, readiness challenges will only be further exacerbated by the war in Iran, as ships will be deployed longer. We have sadly already lost three aircraft to what sounds like a friendly fire incident in Kuwait. And the joint force is burning through costly inventories of precision guided munitions, which are already in short supply. Moreover, these munitions take a long time to replenish and risk being unavailable for unforeseen contingencies elsewhere, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, where we face a peer adversary.

To the witnesses on today's panel, I recognize you all are in a precarious position. Four-star generals have been fired without cause over the last year and we have repeatedly seen this administration blur lines, using the military in ways we haven't seen before.

While only one of you is a repeat witness from this hearing a year ago, each of you have earned the four stars on your shoulders. We rely on your experience - as do the servicemembers you lead - to candidly speak truth to power and give us your best military advice.

Especially in these unprecedented times, decisions have consequences. And short-sighted decisions can have dangerous consequences. Launching another war in the Middle East, improperly using the military for DHS operations on a non-reimbursable basis - these misguided policy decisions have real, tangible costs on readiness, and our ability to deter major adversaries like China and Russia.

To my colleagues, we can and must do something to reassert our constitutional authority. And it begins by voting for Senator Kaine's War Powers Resolution.

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