Sen. McCaskill on the Protect Our Defenders report

Sen. Claire McCaskill

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) has reacted to the Protect Our Defenders report that indicated the Pentagon had misled Congress in connection with a proposal to shift charging authority away from commanders:

McCaskill said commanders were not the problem. 

If the Pentagon “misrepresented that data, no one will be tougher on them than I will, than ([Sen. Joni] Ernst) or the rest of us who advocated for commanders continuing to have a role,” McCaskill said. 

But, she said, “commanders were never the problem in terms of cases being brought forward. The problems were not getting support at the beginning of the process. …That is why the reforms that we have enacted address that problem.”

Sen. McCaskill has opposed the Military Justice Improvement Act sponsored by Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand of New York. Details here.