Senator Reed Questions Nominee on Caribbean Operation Costs and DoD Hiring

Caribbean Operation and Costs

• 🎯 Senator Reed questioned Alexander J. Velez-Green, nominee for Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, regarding the strategic goal of 16 lethal strikes conducted since September 2nd.
• 💰 The operation, targeting narot terrorists, resulted in 67 deaths and aims to protect Americans from narcotics.
• 🚢 Velez-Green was pressed for an estimate of the daily cost of maintaining multiple ships, B2 aircraft, F-35s, and a Marine detachment in the operation.
• ⚠️ Velez-Green stated she could not provide an estimate with confidence, citing the need for accuracy and that the information is part of a process.
• ❓ Reed expressed concern that a key policy official lacked a rough estimate of daily spending on a major operation, comparing the naval presence to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Department of Defense Hiring Practices

• 🏛️ Senator Reed raised concerns about potential politicization of hiring and advancement for federal civilian employees in the Department of Defense, referencing a directive for hiring committees staffed by political appointees.
• ✅ Velez-Green committed to not politicizing the process and respecting the status of all career officials, stating she would look into the referenced committee if confirmed.
• 🤝 Both Reed and Velez-Green acknowledged the historical non-political grounds for hiring in the DoD and the importance of honoring the nonpartisan status of the career workforce.

Military Readiness and Deployment

• 🎖️ Dr. Todd addressed concerns about readiness issues stemming from troop deployments to the border and non-tactical missions.
• 📈 If confirmed, Dr. Todd would assess how border missions impact readiness for warfighting and work with services to identify gaps and regeneration requirements.