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Showing posts with label Force. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Force. Show all posts
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Air Force Sex Scandal Prompts House Committee Hearing On Sexual Assault In Military
By Jim Forsyth
SAN ANTONIO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. House Armed Services Committee will hold a public hearing on Wednesday into sexual assault in the military, prompted by outrage over a sex-with-recruits scandal at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.
The Washington hearing comes after nearly 60 current and former personnel, including two men, came forward with what the Air Force considered credible reports that they were sexually abused by their drill sergeants at the base in San Antonio.
Six drill sergeants have been convicted and six more Lackland Military Training Instructors are awaiting court martial in the case. The probe also recently expanded to a recruiting sergeant who was charged with sexually assaulting women who were discussing joining the Air Force.
More than 70 members of Congress signed a petition calling for an open hearing into the case and a similar public petition drew more than 10,000 signatures.
Air Force Chief of Staff General Mark Welsh and General Edward Rice, commander of the Air Education and Training Command are both expected to testify on Wednesday.
They are likely to address the completed Air Force internal investigation of Lackland, the Air Force's center for basic training, and the alleged incidents dating back to 2009. The Air Force has extended its inquiry back 10 years.
The House committee chairman, California Republican Howard "Buck" McKeon, told Reuters military commanders were expected to provide an environment of security and respect and "without question" had violated that trust.
"I expect them to tell this committee and the American people what went wrong and what they are doing to rebuild the good faith that the Lackland scandal has erased," he said.
Committee member Jackie Speier, a California Democrat, said the Air Force did not appear willing to get to the root of the problem.
"I intend to ask whether General (Margaret) Woodward, who conducted a formal review of the culture at Lackland without speaking to a single victim, amended her report and recommendations to include interviews with any of the young women who were raped, sexually assaulted, or sexually harassed by thirty military training instructors," Speier said.
Nancy Parrish, who leads an advocacy group for victims of sexual asault in the military called Protect Our Defenders, said there was an epidemic of sexual assault in the military and a culture that punishes the victim. She said it was time for President Barack Obama to act.
"We look to the Commander in Chief to make this a top priority in 2013," Parrish said, adding that she hoped the hearings would be a first step.
Paula Coughlin, a former Navy helicopter pilot who exposed the "Tailhook Scandal," in which female pilots were sexually assaulted and harassed during a Las Vegas convention in 1991, believes authority to investigate and prosecute sexual assault cases should be given to an independent civilian panel.
"It has to come out of the chain of command, because the chain of command has really become impotent," Coughlin said. "The chain of command is vested in protecting itself, and so often, the perpetrator of the assault is in the chain of command."
Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Jeff Addicott, a long time Judge Advocate General for the Army Special Forces, argued that the Air Force investigation headed by General Woodward had led to realistic solutions.
The Air Force has increased the number of female Military Training Instructors in basic training, and now requires two squadrons of recruits be trained by four instructors, at least one of whom is a woman.
He said that in many cases the demands of Congress for quick and full integration of women into all military branches had led to the current problem.
"The problem lies not just with the military, but with the people who want to engage in social engineering to create this utopian idea of what men and women should or shouldn't do," he said.
Parrish said a 2010 Pentagon report estimated that there were 19,000 military rapes and sexual assaults each year, but only 3,200 victims reported attacks and only 191 cases resulted in court martial convictions.
"It is yet to be determined whether these hearings will be another footnote in this tragic American story, or whether Congress will take on its responsibility of oversight to fix this problem," Parrish said. (Editing by David Bailey and David Brunnstrom)
Thursday, February 14, 2013
NRA, Joe Biden To Meet As Vice President's Task Force On Guns Intensifies Efforts
WASHINGTON -- Vice President Joseph Biden will be sending his recommendations for gun policy reform to the president in a matter of weeks, according to administration officials.
The recommendations are still being crafted. As part of the process, Biden will be speaking with key lawmakers, officials and stakeholders in the debate, including the National Rifle Association, an NRA official confirmed.
All told, the plan is for the president to introduce a "concrete package of proposals" by the end of January, an administration official told The Huffington Post. President Barack Obama will call for action on his proposal "without delay" shortly after he announces it.
Last week, The Washington Post reported that the vice president's office was looking at a wide range of reforms in search of a proper response to the shooting deaths of 20 first-graders and seven adults in Newtown, Conn. Those potential reforms included bans on certain firearms and magazines, a more expansive federal database on gun purchases and violence and a more comprehensive background check process for those seeking to buy firearms.
This week, Biden and other members of the president's Cabinet will hold several meetings to receive final input. According to an administration official, who shared plans on condition of anonymity Biden "will meet with victims’ groups and gun safety organizations" on Wednesday. On Thursday, meanwhile, he "will hold meetings with advocates for sportsmen and women and gun ownership groups."
NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam told The Huffington Post that the lobbying group, which has recommended placing armed officials in schools as a protective measure, "will have a rep there."
The NRA's participation in the process sets this effort apart from past (more limited) attempts by the White House to respond to gun violence. It's unlikely that the NRA will support any proposal that involves limiting access to firearms. But its inclusion in the discussion does allow the White House to say it consulted a wide swath of stakeholders in the debate.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney was coy when asked to address what role the NRA would play in these discussions. He noted that Obama had previously expressed skepticism at the idea that placing armed guards in schools would be an appropriate response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. But, he added, "the process is ongoing. The vice president has had several meetings and conversations so far and he will have many more before presenting his recommendations to the president."
In addition to the NRA, Biden will also meet with representatives from the entertainment and video game industries and hold conference calls with elected officials as part of his commission. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, meanwhile, will meet with parent, teacher and education groups, while Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will meet with mental health and disability advocates.
"[The president] expected and had asked the vice president to report back to him this month. I think that demonstrates the speed with which the president hopes to act," said Carney. "He is mindful of the need to act. He is also mindful of the need to have a process in place ... that allows for the consideration of a variety of ideas."
UPDATE: 3:15 p.m. -- Arulanandam later told HuffPost that James J. Baker, the director of federal relations for the NRA's lobbying arm, will be representing the NRA in Thursday's meeting with Biden.
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