May 04, 2023

Reed Statement on Seven Former Defense Secretaries’ Letter Calling for End to Military Promotions Blockade

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, after seven former U.S. Secretaries of Defense—from both Republican and Democratic administrations—sent a letter to the leaders of the U.S. Senate urging an end to a partisan, months-long blockade of hundreds of senior U.S. military promotions, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement:

“The longer this partisan stranglehold on military promotions wears on, the more harm it does. Secretaries of Defense from both parties came together with a clear message: This irresponsible gambit “is harming military readiness and risks damaging U.S. national security.”

“This blockade is a profound attack on the professionalism of our military. It needs to end. These officers earned their military promotions based on the merits. They do not deserve to be prevented from promotions and positions they deserve because of policy issues that are beyond their control.

“As the former Secretaries make clear, this blockade is not just preventing our military leaders from taking command in critical regions like the Pacific, Middle East, and NATO—it is also hurting those leaders’ families and children. The Secretaries write: “We can think of few things as irresponsible and uncaring as harming the families of those who serve our nation in uniform.”

“I agree. Again, I strongly urge an end to this blanket halt on promotions. There are plenty of other legislative avenues that may be pursued that do not hold our military leaders and their families as political hostages and actively undermine our national security.

“Just as Secretaries of Defense from both parties are speaking out against this harmful tactic, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle need to stand up for our troops and military leaders and condemn this misguided abuse of power.”

Full text of the Secretaries’ letter follows:

Letter from Seven Former United States Secretaries of Defense

May 4, 2023

The Honorable Chuck Schumer

Senate Majority Leader

U.S. Senate

Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Mitch McConnell

Senate Minority Leader

U.S. Senate

Washington, DC 20510

Dear Leader Schumer and Leader McConnell,

As former Secretaries of Defense, we strongly urge the Senate to act expeditiously on the nearly 200 nominees for general and flag officer who are being blocked from Senate confirmation.

The blanket hold on the promotion or reassignment of these senior uniformed leaders is harming military readiness and risks damaging U.S. national security. Because the Senate is required to confirm every general and flag officer for promotion or for reassignment, this practice has traditionally been a pro-forma exercise, except where there have been specific concerns about individual nominees, which were then handled separately.

The current hold that has been in place now for several weeks is preventing key leaders from assuming important, senior command and staff positions around the world. Some are unable to take important command positions, such as leading the 5^th Fleet in Bahrain and the 7^th Fleet in the Pacific, which are critical to checking Iranian and Chinese aggression, respectively. Others include the next military representative to NATO, a post essential to coordinating allied efforts in support of Ukraine, as well as the future Director of Intelligence at U.S. Cyber Command. Leaving these and many other senior positions in doubt at a time of enormous geopolitical uncertainty sends the wrong message to our adversaries and could weaken our deterrence.

Moreover, if this blanket hold is not lifted, nearly 80 three- and four-star commanders who are ending their terms in the coming months will not be able to be replaced. Worse, this will impact certain members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, including the Chairman of the JCS.

There are also real-world impacts on the families of these senior officers. Most cannot move and resettle their families; their children cannot enroll at their next schools on time; and spouses cannot start new jobs at the next duty station. We can think of few things as irresponsible and uncaring as harming the families of those who serve our nation in uniform.

We appreciate that Senators can have sincere and legitimate concerns about a Pentagon policy, including as it may relate to broader domestic or social issues. These lawmakers also deserve timely and thorough responses to their questions. However, we believe placing a hold on all uniformed nominees risks turning military officers into political pawns, holding them responsible for a policy decision made by their civilian leaders.

Rather, senators should leverage the numerous means available to them to challenge and change DOD policy, such as introducing legislation, conducting oversight hearings, or amending the annual National Defense Authorization Act.

We, therefore, strongly urge the Senate to ensure the continued readiness of the U.S. armed forces by lifting the blanket hold and promptly voting to confirm these uniformed nominees.

Sincerely,

The Honorable William J. Perry