At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing prior to the Congressional recess, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) slammed the Trump Administration's cuts and changes to the military.
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00:00Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. So our annual posture review hearing provides the department and the military services the opportunity to discuss personnel priorities for the coming year.
00:13It's also a chance for members of this subcommittee to continue to address the major challenges confronting our all-volunteer force. After all, our ability to defend ourselves and defeat our adversaries depends on brave men and women stepping up and volunteering to serve.
00:33So I am pleased to see the military services are making progress in addressing their recruiting challenges since our last posture hearing. It's critical that we welcome and support anyone who wants to serve their country.
00:48But in just the last two months, President Trump has fired General C.Q. Brown and Admiral Lisa Franchetti. It sends a chilling message about who is and who is not welcome in our military.
01:03Secretary Hegseth has removed the military's top legal advisors, and the Army has reportedly cut training on combat medicine and the laws of war.
01:15Secretary Hegseth has announced plans to fire or push out 50,000 to 60,000 civilians, and he has already fired civilians who do everything from acquisitions to missile defense to child care for military families.
01:32So let's start with the civilian workforce.
01:36As Secretary Hegseth told this committee during his confirmation process, civilians are, quote, important, end quote, provide continuity and expertise to our armed forces.
01:50DOD civilians are not just critical to supporting the military, they're also a bargain for taxpayers.
01:58The most recent study from the Federal Salary Council found that civilian employees earned nearly 25 percent less than their counterparts in the private sector.
02:11They come to work because they believe in the most important mission we have, and that is to keep Americans safe.
02:19But what are co-presidents Trump and Musk doing?
02:23Well, just last week, President Trump signed an illegal executive order attacking federal unions and stripping federal employees of their rights.
02:33At DOD, this won't make us safer. This won't make us more efficient. It will diminish morale and harm recruiting.
02:42DOD has plans to slash the DOD workforce by 8 percent. The results will fall into one of three buckets, and none of them are good.
02:55First, the military manpower could be pressed into service to accomplish the tasks that are more appropriately performed by civilians.
03:09Or the federal government could pay billions more to backfill these employees by using contractors.
03:17Or critical work could just be left undone.
03:22So far, neither Elon Musk nor Secretary Hegseth has given any indication of how they plan to deal with the workload that these civilian employees currently perform.
03:35As part of the 8 percent planned reduction, Elon Musk has taken a chainsaw to DOD's probationary workforce.
03:44Think about what that means. It means firing workers who've been recently promoted or have been hired to fill a critical need,
03:53often to fill gaps identified by members of this very committee.
03:59The law makes very clear that the Secretary must make sure that reductions do not jeopardize our national security.
04:08Specifically, the law, 10 U.S.C. Section 129A, mandates that the Secretary may not reduce the civilian workforce,
04:18quote, unless the Secretary conducts an appropriate analysis of the impacts of such reductions on workload,
04:27military force structure, lethality, readiness, operational effectiveness, stress on the military force, and fully burdened costs, end quote.
04:39We have no indication that this analysis has occurred,
04:43and I look forward to working with members of this subcommittee to ensure that this administration complies with the law.
04:52It is also important for this subcommittee to understand how damaging the Trump administration's efforts to shut down the CFPB
05:02will be for service members and their families.
05:06An entire division of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau functions as the cop on the beat to enforce service members' consumer rights,
05:17and it has been remarkably effective.
05:20The CFPB has discovered more than $363 million in financial scams directly affecting our service members and veterans,
05:32and it has gotten that $363 million returned directly to the service members and vets who were cheated.
05:42Dismantling the CFPB will devastate the enforcement of the Service Member Civil Relief Act and the Military Lending Act,
05:53which provides special protections for service members.
05:57For example, current law permits service members to break their lease if they are deployed or if their duty station is transferred.
06:06The law also protects service members from being foreclosed on or having their car repossessed without a court order.
06:13Without the CFPB to enforce these key laws, service members are now vulnerable to scams and predatory practices
06:23that distract from the mission and undermine our military readiness.
06:29I also continue to be concerned that this administration does not understand how essential women are to our military.
06:38None of our military branches would have met their recruiting goals if women had not volunteered,
06:46and we cannot afford to dismiss the talents of more than half our population.
06:52I am very concerned that this administration is more focused on pushing women out of combat roles
06:59and reinstalling a glass ceiling that will only make us weaker.
07:04There are several topics I want to focus on with our witnesses today.
07:08First, childcare.
07:10We need to make sure that service members have access to high-quality, affordable childcare.
07:16The most recent Blue Star Families survey confirmed that childcare, quote,
07:22continues to be a top barrier to employment for active-duty spouses, close quote.
07:29Failing to address these shortfalls threatens retention and will drive out the military families we need.
07:37And second, making sure that service members receive the benefits they deserve and are protected against predatory companies.
07:45To thank service members for the sacrifices they make,
07:49Congress has created programs like the Public Service Loan Forgiveness and Tuition Assistance Program,
07:55making it easier for service members to get the education that they want and that they need.
08:01I look forward to discussing how we can improve those programs in a bipartisan fashion.
08:07I want to thank all of our witnesses for being here today, and I look forward to your testimony.
08:12Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
08:14Thank you, Washington.
08:15Thank you, Commissioner.
08:18Thank you, Mayor for the appointment.
08:19Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
08:20Thank you very much, Mr.