November 10, 2011

10 AM Thursday: At Armed Services Hearing, Manchin Will Push for Elevating National Guard to Joint Chiefs of Staff

Military leaders expected to oppose adding National Guard to Joint Chiefs

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, will push military leaders today to elevate the Chief of the National Guard Bureau to a position on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which would give the Guard a voice at the highest levels of the nation’s military. At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing about adding the Chief of the National Guard Bureau to the Joint Chiefs, Manchin will express his strong support for pending legislation and question Defense Department officials about their expected opposition to the bill. 

Senator Manchin is a cosponsor of several measures that would give the National Guard a seat at the table, including a bill sponsored by Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), the “Guardians of Freedom Act of 2011.” Both bills would give the National Guard a seat at the table along with active duty forces. 

“As Governor of West Virginia, I was so proud to be commander-in-chief of the greatest National Guard in the country,” Senator Manchin said. “Our National Guard members are making so many sacrifices as they take on an increasingly important and demanding role both here on the home front and in combat missions abroad. It is only fair that they receive the same recognition and voice that active duty forces.”

Witnesses at the hearing will include: 

  • Honorable Jeh C. Johnson, General Counsel, Department of Defense
  • General Martin E. Dempsey, USA, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • Admiral James A. Winnefeld Jr., USN, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • General Raymond T. Odierno, USA, Chief of Staff of the Army
  • Admiral Jonathan W. Greenert, USN, Chief of Naval Operations
  • General James F. Amos, USMC, Commandant of the Marine Corps
  • General Norton A. Schwartz, USAF, Chief of Staff of the Air Force
  • General Craig R. McKinley, USAF, Chief, National Guard Bureau 

THURSDAY, November 10, 2011

Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing on the Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Act

When: 10 a.m.         
Where: Room SD-G50, Dirksen Senate Office Building   
What: Senator Manchin receive testimony and ask questions at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Act. 

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