Statement by Senator John McCain on Confirmation of General Dempsey and Admiral Winnefeld

Statement

U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) released the following statement on the confirmation today of Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey and Navy Adm. James A. Winnefeld Jr. for second two-year terms in their respective offices as chairman and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff:

"This week, as part of the Senate Armed Services Committee's consideration of presidential military nominees, I voted against approving the nominations of General Dempsey and Admiral Winnefeld. On a vote of its members, the Committee sent the nominations of these officers forward for consideration by the full Senate, and they were confirmed by voice vote this evening.

"I continue to be seriously concerned about the advice that our nation's top military leaders have given the President and National Security Council regarding the most serious and time-sensitive crises in the world today. More than 100,000 Syrians have been slaughtered in what General Dempsey himself has called "a human tragedy' yet we have done nothing to stop it. He cites "the complexity and the myriad actors that are involved' as the reason he has not recommended military action.

"In my many years, I have seen a lot of military commanders overstate what is needed to conduct military action for one reason or another. But, regarding Syria, rarely have I seen an effort as disingenuous and exaggerated as what General Dempsey has proposed. The option that many of us have proposed is limited stand-off strikes to degrade Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's air power and ballistic missile capability -- an approach that the Institute for the Study of War recently demonstrated as eminently feasible. But, what General Dempsey described would be needed to conduct "limited stand-off strikes' is completely disingenuous as to both the problem and the solution.

"Without sound professional military judgment guiding our top decision-makers, Syria will become a failed state in the heart of the Middle East and a safe haven for Al-Qaeda and its allies and degrade into a regional conflict that threatens the national security interests of the United States and its allies.

"My votes in the Armed Services Committee against rubber-stamping General Dempsey and Admiral Winnefeld's nominations reflect my continuing concerns about the professional military advice they have given the President. America needs to take the lead on addressing this international calamity before another 100,000 have to die at the hands of the Assad regime and our regional security interests are further damaged."

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