Nomination Hearing – Van Ovost
U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services
September 23rd, 2021 at 9:30 A.M. EDT
Witnesses:
- General Jacqueline Van Ovost – Commander of the United States Transportation Command Nominee
- Jack Reed, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services (D – RI)
- James Inhofe, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services (R – OK)
The United States Senate Committee on Armed Services met on Thursday, September 23rd, 2021, to conduct a nomination hearing on General Jacqueline Van Ovost for the position of Commander of the United States Transportation Command. Led by Chairman Reed, the committee voiced questions and concerns, and votes were cast.
Ranking Member Inhofe (R – OK) presented General Van Ovost with questions regarding her stance on the Global Household Goods Contract and TRANSCOM’s current program. In response, General Van Ovost declared the current TRANSCOM program to be lacking in “quality capacity, accountability, and transparency.” Subsequently, the General vowed to carefully assess the contract and ensure that the single move manager is capable of effectively meeting proper standards.
Senator Deb Fischer (R – NE) inquired General Ovost about key challenges for TRANSCOM and the Department of Defense in the event of potential conflict. In response, General Ovost voiced her ambitions for improving cyber operations and prioritizing data utilization and management.
General Ovost further acknowledged the importance of the commercial industry in projecting and sustaining joint forces. The General advocated for increasing TRANSCOM’s relationship with commercial partners and declared it an access point for global networks that TRANSCOM would not otherwise have connections to. The General further advocated that such a resource would be a tremendous benefit considering China’s recent and intense port investments and influence over allied forces.
Closing remarks were given by Chairman Reed as the voting continued.
For a recording of the full committee hearing, please visit the Committee’s hearings calendar.