Unanimous Consent Requests--Executive Calendar

Floor Speech

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Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, the world is on fire because of Joe Biden's failed leadership and ongoing weakness. Our enemies are on the march. Our servicemembers are under attack by Iran-backed proxies. And our country is under greater threat than it has been in years.

Innocent lives are on the line here at home and abroad. At home, the Biden DOD is waging a war on the unborn--a war that is immoral and unlawful.

I am a mother. I have carried a baby girl in my womb who is now a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army, and my baby girl is now carrying a baby of her own. And I am proudly, adamantly, and unabashedly pro-life. I always will be. That is why I have--I have--led the legislation to overturn this woke Dodd policy and will not rest in this fight for life, especially as we work through this year's Defense bill.

Abroad, our friend and ally Israel is under assault by ruthless Iran- backed Hamas. Jewish babies have been murdered, burned in ovens, and some even stripped from their mothers' wombs.

As a 23-year combat veteran and retired lieutenant colonel of our great U.S. Army, I firmly believe the Pentagon should be focused on protecting innocent life, not destroying it.

Joe Biden and Secretary Austin are weak and woke. The architects of this immoral policy should be held accountable. Anyone trying to insert their radical agenda into the military has no place in the Pentagon. No Senator should support any person or dollar that threatens the lethality of our warfighters.

Catering to the far left does not win wars or keep Americans safe. Our servicemembers have been failed by their Commander in Chief, and we must do right by them and the security and protection of our own Nation.

For over 9 months now, Chuck Schumer has used our military men and women as political pawns, refusing to allow the Senate to do its job of vetting and voting on military nominees. Only when Republicans forced the majority leader's hand did he finally relent and move on a few of those nominees.

Tonight, we are once again standing up for valiant individuals who have answered the call to selfless service. Unlike in the past, when promotions were quietly approved en bloc with no discussion, tonight we will be highlighting the distinguished careers of each and then putting their nomination before the Senate for confirmation individually by voice vote.

And with that, I will yield the floor.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, I know this is a frustrating exercise, but we are going to flesh out some of these nominees tonight, truly incredible individuals who have served our Nation through thick and thin. These are folks who deserve to be promoted.

So I rise today to talk about Lt. Gen. Gregory M. Guillot on his promotion to the grade of General and his nomination to be the next Commander of U.S. Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, also known as NORAD.

General Guillot is from Tucson, AZ, and he is a proud graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. I am sorry he could not get into West Point. He has successfully commanded a flying squadron operations group, two flying wings, a numbered Air Force, and has admirably served on numbered Air Force, major command, and combatant command staffs.

He is an expert in his field, as demonstrated by having been an Air Force Weapons School instructor and graduate of the National War College.

General Guillot is a decorated warfighter and a senior air battle manager by training who is currently the Deputy Commander of U.S. Central Command. He has been instrumental integrating air, missile, and drone defense systems across the Middle East--experience that is applicable to the challenges facing NORTHCOM's air and missile defenses.

I believe that General Guillot's qualifications, his record, and his outstanding character make him the right nominee to serve in this important role.

236, Lt. Gen. Gregory M. Guillot to be General; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, if I can just address this very briefly before we move to my colleague from Indiana, I have a discharge petition that was signed at our conference lunch the other day for Lt. Gen. General M. Guillot. That discharge petition was signed by Senator Tuberville, meaning that Senator Tuberville believed that we should be voting on General Guillot. I was asking for a voice vote for General Guillot this evening.

I am not sure how we remedy this situation, but I can tell you we will keep working on these nominations, and we will get answers someday, and they will be confirmed someday if we have the intestinal fortitude to do what is right by our military men and women, who have absolutely nothing to do with the policy that was put in place by Secretary Lloyd Austin and President Joe Biden.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, we have got another incredible officer that we are bringing to the floor this evening for a voice vote, and I do hope my colleague from Alabama will explain to everyone out there who is watching why he has asked for individual votes, and, when given the opportunity, he is objecting to individual votes. I feel like we are in a holding pattern. But maybe he will care to explain that to us in a moment.

But, right now, I do want to focus on this really incredible officer. I have had the opportunity to work with this officer, and I will talk about the most recent time that I interacted with him.

I am bringing to the floor right now VADM Brad Cooper on his nomination to be the next Deputy Commander of U.S. Central Command.

I just saw Admiral Cooper in Bahrain. The day I saw him in Bahrain was October 7--October 7, the day that Hamas overran defenses that separated the Gaza Strip and Israel; the day that Hamas went into Israel and murdered babies, raped women, cut babies out of their mother's stomachs, killed innocent elderly men and women, abducted Americans and took them into the Gaza Strip. That is the last day that I saw Brad Cooper--October 7, the terrorist strikes against Israel.

Deputy Commander of U.S. Central Command--what region is that? That is the region where Israel is located. They need fine men and women at U.S. Central Command. This is an area where we have seen great terrorist threats.

Our dear friends, the Israelis, are struggling under the weight of Iran-backed terrorist proxies. At U.S. Central Command, we need leadership.

I am bringing forward VADM Brad Cooper. I will remind the body, just as I did with General Guillot, that I passed around the Republican conference the other day a discharge petition, which means we would have a vote on VADM Brad Cooper. One of the signatures on that petition is of my colleague from Alabama. He agreed to vote on this nominee, and we are giving him the opportunity to vote on this nominee, who will be the Deputy Commander of U.S. Central Command, where we have what could be World War III brewing. Our friends the Israelis need every last good man and woman that the United States has serving in these important positions.

A little bit about VADM Brad Cooper: He is the son of a career Army officer. He attended high school in Montgomery, AL. Vice Admiral Cooper joined the Navy and received his commission from the U.S. Naval Academy. He is a career surface warfare officer. He served on guided missile cruisers, guided missile destroyers, aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, and successfully commanded both the USS Russell and the USS Gettysburg.

If anyone knows Admiral Cooper, he is a very humble man. He is very proud of the extraordinary men and women with whom he served on sea duty during his 9 deployments and 13 real-world operations all around our globe.

He has served in a variety of positions throughout his career, and he has been nominated to serve in the U.S. Central Command as their Deputy Commander.

He has been instrumental in maintaining the stability and security of the Middle East regions' maritime environment through NAVCENT. His skills and experience gained in this position at NAVCENT make him absolutely the right choice to be the Deputy Commander of U.S. Central Command, and I am excited to see him confirmed.

So, Madam President, we can confirm that nomination by voice vote tonight--tonight. We will vote on this man: 9 deployments, 13 real- world operations. He is a warrior.

196, Charles B. Cooper, II, to be Vice Admiral; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, we see another one bite the dust. It is a good thing I still have that discharge petition, and we will see Vice Admiral Cooper on the floor once again, and I hope that my colleague will choose to support him.

So I served in the Iowa Army National Guard, and I am really proud of that service. So I deployed overseas with the Iowa Army National Guard as a young Company Commander. I was the first female to command my unit. It was the same unit that my father had served in when he was a young Sergeant in the Iowa Army National Guard. He was a mechanic. He is the salt of the Earth.

And I was so proud to grow up and serve alongside some really incredible Iowa Army National Guardsmen. They worked so hard. They worked so hard on that deployment, Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Now, I was gone from 2003 to 2004. My daughter, she was 3 years old when I deployed, and she was nearly 5 years old when I returned home. So my daughter--again, she is a Second Lieutenant serving Active-Duty U.S. Army. And she told me--it has probably been a year ago--she had read an interesting statistic about children who have mothers that served in uniform. And she told me that that statistic was that 80 percent of the children who have mothers that wore the uniform will go into the service.

She said: Mom, I didn't have a choice. So she did; she went into the U.S. Army. And I encouraged that, and I am so proud of her for her service. Again, she is a young officer. I know she is disappointed by what she sees today--in particular, this evening.

And what I want the folks to know--and in a roundabout way I am coming to this. But all of these holds are affecting our men and women in the military. They are affecting the families of these men and women. Like I said, 80 percent of the children whose mothers wore the uniform are more likely to go in than those who didn't have a mother who served.

But right now, today, 37 percent of Active-Duty families are likely to recommend military service--37 percent. They see what is going on today.

And I have heard my colleague say we shouldn't be injecting politics into the military and that President Biden did that and Lloyd Austin, Secretary of Defense, did that. But what are we doing to these military men and women? Politics are being injected right here, today. We have men and women who deserve to be promoted, to serve where their country knows they are needed.

And our military families today are saying: You know what, I don't want my kid serving in the military because they will be used as political pawns.

That is dishonorable, and it is abhorrent. So I served. Col. Dan Sullivan served. We understand the significance of service and being willing to lay down your life for a fellow countryman.

This next gentleman that I am bringing forward, we have something in common because this gentleman is a native of Spencer, IA. He enlisted into the Iowa Army National Guard. OK? He enlisted in 1981. He also was salt of the Earth, just like my father, who enlisted in the Iowa Army National Guard.

This gentleman is LTG James J. Mingus. He has been appointed to the grade of General and nominated to be the next Vice Chief of Staff of the Army. Again, he enlisted into the Iowa Army National Guard in 1981. He graduated from Winona State University in Minnesota, our neighbor to the north, and he commissioned into the Army infantry.

During more than 38 years of service, Lieutenant General Mingus has commanded at every echelon from company to brigade in addition to working in key staff positions in both Army, Special Operations Forces, and joint units. He is a decorated warfighter with extensive combat service. He deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom 12 times from 2001 to 2012.

Lieutenant General Mingus has distinguished himself with honor, having been awarded for meritorious achievement in a combat zone. He is a hard-working public servant who knows the needs of our soldiers and their families.

I have full confidence that he will continue to modernize the Army and maintain our highly trained and lethal force to fight and win our Nation's wars. The problem is, he can't do it if he is not serving in that position.

I firmly believe that his qualifications, record, and character--and, of course, his great home State of Iowa--make him the right nominee to serve in this important role.

288, James J. Mingus, to be General and Vice Chief of Staff of the Army; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, now, I have the honor and privilege of talking about MG John W. Brennan, Jr., on his appointment to the grade of Lieutenant General in the U.S. Army and his nomination to be the Deputy Commander of U.S. Africa Command.

Major General Brennan is currently serving as Special Assistant to the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. This is no paper pusher, Madam President--and I have heard that phrase.

Army Special Operations play a crucial role in competition and deterring great power war. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure this deserving officer, who earned this promotion, is confirmed to this key national security position.

The good Major General is a decorated warfighter with extensive combat service in Iraq, Afghanistan, and in the Inherent Resolve Campaign, having recently served as Commander of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve just last year. He distinguished himself with honor, having been awarded a Bronze Star with ``V'' for valor.

I firmly believe that Major General Brennan's qualifications, record, and character make him exceptionally eligible for this promotion, and I look forward to confirming him to be the Deputy Commander of U.S. Africa Command, a very important position. Again, ``V'' for valor.

130, John W. Brennan, Jr., to be Lieutenant General and Deputy Commander, U.S. Africa Command; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, another great, decorated officer--and we are going to keep going because these men and women deserve to be confirmed.

Madam President, I am going to talk now about CAPT Frank Schlereth on his appointment to the grade of Rear Admiral, lower half, in the U.S. Navy. CAPT Frank Schlereth is currently serving as the Senior Defense Official and Defense Attache within the U.S. Embassy, Israel.

It is crucial at this time in history to ensure this deserving officer, who earned this promotion, is recognized for serving in a key position to national security and regional stability. The Captain is a two-time Naval Attache, having served in Athens, Greece; and Tel-Aviv, Israel.

He has extensive experience within the Defense Intelligence Agency Directorate of Operations, having served as the Chief of Operations for the DIA, Defense Attache Service, and the East Asia Division Chief.

He is a decorated warfighter with extensive combat service, having deployed to Afghanistan in direct support of Operation Enduring Freedom as a team leader in support of a sensitive collection mission.

Captain Schlereth distinguished himself with honor, having been awarded the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat ``V'' for valorous achievement in a combat zone during his deployment.

I also believe that the Captain's qualifications, record, and character make him exceptionally eligible for this appointment and promotion.

103, Frank G. Schlereth, III, to be Rear Admiral (lower half); that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that, if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, we will proceed to COL Peter G. Hart.

I call to the floor Executive Calendar No. 94, COL Peter G. Hart, to the grade of Brigadier General.

Colonel Hart is currently fulfilling a crucial role as an Army Strategist for the U.S. Central Command. As a 23-year combat veteran and retired Lieutenant Colonel of our great U.S. Army, I am proud to stand up for this valiant officer who has answered the selfless call to service and earned this promotion in the U.S. Army.

Again, I want to talk about making these individuals political pawns in the grand scheme. So the VFW had recently done a survey. And they did surveys in every State and overseas territory of their members.

These are veterans. Polls indicate there is a growing wedge between the veteran community and the colleagues on this side of the aisle and ``political decisions that harm the troops will affect the decisions of BFW members in upcoming elections.''

People don't like men and women who are used as political pawns, especially those who are sworn to be apolitical. Those are the men and women who serve in uniform. There is a growing division. It will continue to grow wider.

Hart to be Brigadier General in the U.S. Army, under Executive Calendar No. 94; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, we have another opportunity to vote on another outstanding officer. This one is COL Scott D. Wilkinson, and he has been promoted to the grade of Brigadier General.

As an Army veteran myself, I know and I understand the importance of recognizing this deserving officer who earned his promotion in the U.S. Army. He is a decorated warfighter. He distinguished himself with honor for meritorious achievement in a combat zone during his deployment.

As a Captain--a young O3 is what we call them in the Army--Colonel Wilkinson provided precision close air support over a 6-hour period using night vision goggles, with zero illumination, in a complex urban environment, enabling the assault and exfiltration of a combined joint task force under heavy enemy fire.

I am proud to be here on this floor as well standing shoulder to shoulder with my Marine Corps friend, Col. Dan Sullivan of Alaska.

You can read through this little, brief description of COL Scott D. Wilkinson.

For those of us who have served and have been part of a team and have been deployed, we understand the significance of having close air support.

I served as a Transportation Company Commander when I deployed, and I will tell you that having close air support--knowing they were a phone call away--always made my drivers and me feel a lot better about things. I know Colonel Sullivan, as an infantryman, also understands what it is to have that close air support and how important those men and women overhead are during battle.

So, COL Scott D. Wilkinson, I am really glad to give you close air support tonight. Those of us who have worked on a team understand how significant it is to have one another's back and make sure these men and women are protected.

Wilkinson to be Brigadier General in the U.S. Army under Executive Calendar No. 94; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, we are going to move next to COL Joseph W. Wortham II.

I call to the floor Executive Calendar No. 94, COL Joseph W. Wortham II to the grade of Brigadier General.

Again, we are seeing a pattern. We have Colonel Wortham. He is a decorated warfighter and, again, as a Captain, as an O3, his brave and decisive actions saved the life of a severely wounded American and defeated a large enemy force in Iraq in 2005.

My colleague Colonel Sullivan, Senator Sullivan from Alaska--we have been talking about what it is to serve and the way these heroes have reacted in combat. Because of Colonel Wortham's actions in combat, he saved the life of a fellow countryman, saved the life of an individual willing to lay down his life for his country.

Colonel Wortham was willing to do the same. He saved the life of a severely wounded American, and he defeated a large enemy force in Iraq in 2005. Again, he was part of an incredible team. He didn't turn his back on his teammate; he saved his life. It is crucial to ensure that this deserving officer, who earned this promotion, is afforded the opportunity to be recognized.

Colonel Wortham, again, is part of a glorious team and was first commissioned into the Army in 1996 through Auburn University's Reserve Officer Training Corps.

During his 25 years of service, he participated in operations in Egypt, Israel, and Lebanon, as well as combat operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. His understanding of Kurdish culture and training in the Turkish language proved essential for his repeated deployments to the Kurdish regions of Iraq and Syria.

I firmly believe that Colonel Wortham's qualifications, record, and character make him exceptionally eligible for this promotion, and by the fact that he went through Auburn University's ROTC Program.

Wortham II, to be Brigadier General in the United States Army under Executive Calendar No. 94; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. Next, Madam President, we will move on to CAPT Thomas A. Donovan--CAPT Thomas A. Donovan, for appointment to Rear Admiral (lower half). Captain Donovan is currently serving as the Executive Officer to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

I know Captain Donovan, and I know of his service. I will not go into details tonight on this floor. I will explain it to Members who are on this floor, off the floor, if they would like to talk about Captain Donovan.

I truly believe that we must stand up for the security and protection of our Nation, and I am proud to recognize this deserving officer, who earned this promotion, and highlight his selfless call to serve.

I firmly believe that Captain Donovan's qualifications, record, and character make him exceptionally eligible for this appointment and promotion.

Now, again, I know Captain Donovan. I know him quite well. There may be mumblings over some of these younger officers. We have spent just a brief time talking about them on the floor of the U.S. Senate. Those who are out watching on C-SPAN, or maybe in clips tomorrow, will understand why some of these presentations are very brief.

For those in this Chamber that don't understand why these presentations are very brief, they shouldn't be here objecting to these nominations. I will let that sink in.

OK, CAPT Thomas A. Donovan.

Donovan to be Rear Admiral (lower half) in the Navy, under Executive Calendar No. 97; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST. And I am very sorry to hear that.

Again, we have got another very short presentation here. I will have to explain it to my colleagues that maybe haven't served why they are brief.

Madam President, I call to the floor Executive Calendar No. 97, CAPT Joshua Lasky, for appointment to Rear Admiral (lower half).

As a 23-year combat veteran myself and a retired Lieutenant Colonel of our great U.S. Army, I am proud to stand up for this valiant officer who has answered the selfless call to service and earned this promotion in the U.S. Navy.

I firmly believe that Captain Lasky's qualifications, record, and character make him exceptionally eligible for this promotion. And, again, I will have to visit with folks off the floor to explain more about Captain Lasky. He is fully deserving of this promotion, and I am very sorry to acknowledge that he also will probably be objected to-- one more hero that will be objected to this evening.

So not only have we seen Senator Schumer dragging his feet on these nominations, but tonight we have had the exceptional opportunity--I think we have had maybe 40 of these nominations brought forward, but we are still dragging our feet on these. We are voting on them one by one, one by one, one by one--just as our colleague asked, one by one. These are men and women of honor. They are sworn to uphold the Constitution, the very Constitution that my colleague is saying he is protecting. They are sworn to uphold, and they would do it with their blood. Some of these men have done it with their blood. I am waiting.

So, Madam President, we can confirm this nomination by voice vote right here, tonight, individually--individually brought up, just as my colleague has asked.

97; that the Senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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Ms. ERNST.

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