Executive Session

CONGRESSIONAL RECORD
SENATE
PAGE S15029
Nov. 18, 2003

Executive Session

Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I oppose the nomination of MG Robert T. Clark to the rank of lieutenant general. The facts surrounding his conduct, prior to and after the murder of PFC Barry Winchell, raise questions about his leadership and judgment that have not been answered to my satisfaction.

The Inspector General of the Army, while clearing Major General Clark of fostering a hostile environment at Fort Campbell, raised serious issues about discipline at the base. Furthermore, some of Major General Clark's actions after Private Winchell's murder raise legitimate questions about his fitness for higher command. In the immediate aftermath of the murder, for example, a public affairs officer at the base issued a statement describing the murder as a "physical altercation in a post barracks." This gross distortion of the facts was not corrected. In fact, Private Winchell had been asleep at the time his murderer struck, goaded on by other soldiers. General Clark took no steps to correct this claim in public, and later defended his action as in keeping with his mandate not to prejudice the ongoing investigation. Regrettably, these actions leave the appearance of a general officer who did not want the negative attention that would result from a hate crime under his command.

General Officers are rightly held to incredibly high standards of conduct, and they should be. The men and women under their command are worthy of no less. In this case, Major General Clark appears to have come up short, as evidenced by the Senate Armed Services Committee's failure to pass this nomination unanimously. Instead of clarity, the nomination process has left us with lingering concerns about the general's fitness for higher command.

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Mr. President, I recognize and appreciate Major General Clark's long service in the Armed Forces of our country. But there remain too many legitimate questions about his leadership and judgment stemming from his command of the 101st Airborne at the time of Private Winchell's murder to confirm his nomination to the rank of lieutenant general.