Tammy Duckworth Questions Trump DoD Nominee Alexander Velez-Green on Military Priorities

Military Asset Repositioning

• 🎯 Senator Tammy Duckworth questioned Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy nominee, Alexander Velez-Green, regarding the repositioning of US military assets away from the Pacific.
• ⚠️ Duckworth cited Velez-Green's previous statement that prioritizing Ukraine aid over Taiwan's defense could cause Beijing to doubt America's commitment.

Homeland Defense vs. Pacific Deterrence

• 🏠 Velez-Green stated that prioritizing homeland defense is a key tenet of President Trump's policy, citing personal experience with narcotics affecting his community.
• ⚖️ He asserted that prioritizing homeland defense is not mutually exclusive with maintaining a robust military deterrent in the Western Pacific against China.
• 🌍 This is also not mutually exclusive with engagement in Europe and the Middle East, consistent with the president's intent.

Disagreement on Military Use

• ❓ Duckworth pressed Velez-Green on whether he agreed with Vice President Vance's assessment that the arrival of the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group and its personnel in the Indo-Pacific represented the highest and best use of military assets.
• 🗣️ Velez-Green initially stated he agreed with the Vice President, then clarified that he did agree.

Consistency and National Security Concerns

• 🚢 Duckworth expressed concern that Velez-Green's logic seemed inconsistent, questioning why he would not object to redirecting naval resources to South America for a law enforcement mission, drawing from the Indo-Pacific.
• 🇨🇳 She also questioned why he would not raise concerns about signals sent to the PRC regarding US capability in the Indo-Pacific, given his stated focus on deterring them.
• 📉 Duckworth worried that Velez-Green's analysis shifted based on audience, suggesting a lack of consistent objective rigor and an inability to speak truth to power, potentially harming national security.