mr. thornberry: we will put on our radar screen. don't expect, however, for all problems to be solved in a single swoop. mr. hunter: i see dave back there. daviee: formally with the defense department. mr. chairman, over the years many have criticized the military industrial complex starting with president eisenhower, the iron triangle . and there's been great efforts to try to insulate the government from the impact of industry leading to in the current administration an almost complete absence of senior executives from there is defense -- various defense and defense-related firms being able to serve in policymaking decisions. mother is certainly that -- where there is certainly some benefit, others have said this removal of expertise, this removing of people, with the kind of expertise in areas such as procurement of -- means a lot expertise is never able to be used by the government. what are your views on the ability of the potential senior executives from our military industrial firms being able to go back into government? mr. t

mr. thornberry: we shouldn't have let you get away. mr. hunter: i didn't go too far and this is an issue we are tracking closely. i want to ask you a few questions and once you had the opportunity to respond to that we'll open it up to the group here. we have folks with microphones that will come around. let me start out by -- start at the end, i'm curious as to what you see as the ideal or successful outcome for this effort, both in terms of this year's activity and i think you have indicated in the past that this is not a one and done exercise. if you could speak about what does success look like for this year and what might success look like over a five and 10-year type of a time frame. mr. thornberry: this is not a one-year effort. and if you try, you are probably going to make more mistakes than help. so this is just the beginning. and what we are trying to do at the beginning is deal with some of the fundamentals. i talked about the essential nature of the acquisition work force and some tools to help improve that. the acquisition st

mr. thornberry: thank you. mr. aguilar. mr. aguilar: thank you, mr. chairman. i appreciate the change in format. i'll be sure to add you to the christmas card list. thank you for that. thank you, general, for being here. with respect to the aumf, if congress were to pass the proposed aumf, could you provide us with examples of what you could and could not do within that? mr. campbell: thanks for the question, sir. i have not read the entire aumf. i could tell you from looking at it briefly that what that would provide, i mean, the authorities i have today and the resources i have today, i can continue to work hard at the c.t. mission and the train, advise, assist mission that i have. with the aumf, the way i understand it now, with now no geographical boundaries, i think i still would be able to prosecute what i need to for today. after 2015, where my authorities may change, through today i have no issues. mr. aguilar: have detention policies changed? mr. campbell: yes. do i not have the authority to detain the insurgents. all detainees we would have had, they'

mr. thornberry: thank you. mr. aguilar. mr. aguilar: thank you, mr. chairman. i appreciate the change in format. i'll be sure to add you to the christmas card list. thank you for that. thank you, general, for being here. with respect to the aumf, if congress were to pass the proposed aumf, could you provide us with examples of what you could and could not do within that? mr. campbell: thanks for the question, sir. i have not read the entire aumf. i could tell you from looking at it briefly that what that would provide, i mean, the authorities i have today and the resources i have today, i can continue to work hard at the c.t. mission and the train, advise, assist mission that i have. with the aumf, the way i understand it now, with now no geographical boundaries, i think i still would be able to prosecute what i need to for today. after 2015, where my authorities may change, through today i have no issues. mr. aguilar: have detention policies changed? mr. campbell: yes. do i not have the authority to detain the insurgents. all detainees we would have had, they'

mr. thornberry thkspe reason we're in -- mr. thornberry: the reason we're in afghanistan to begin with is because that was the place a plot was launched that ultimately killed 3,000 americans. what can you tell us about your assessment of al qaeda's core ability to reconstitute itself were it not to be under constant pressure from us? general campbell: thanks again for that question. i think we have to make sure we understand the threat and how the threat will continue to evolve, the continued pressure we provide now with our very credible c.t. capable the very best in the world, i believe has prevented another attack on the homeland and i do believe if you don't have pressure, continued pressure on a.q. that it would be a matter of time they would regenerate that capability. mr. tornbury: -- mr. thornberry: under the current draw down plan, would your ability to gather intelligence for the c.t. mission be significantly downgraded in this calendar year? general campbell: as i look at it i'd much rather go into a classified sessio

chairman thornberry: mr. zinke. representative: mr. secretary can, i thank you for taking this chapter we have heard the testimony of general abbott's izaid and others, and both have said, it is not a snowball's chance in hell that our operations are going to degrade and defeat isis. given the recent success of our iran, they have embedded commanders in their force even though it is a sheer force which has great remic -- shia force which has great ramifications.

mr. thornberry, the gentleman from california, mr. nunez, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. frelinghuysen, the gentlelady from texas, ms. granger the gentleman from california -- the gentlewoman from california, ms. pelosi, the gentleman from maryland, mr. hoyer, the gentleman from california, mr. becerra, the gentleman from new york, mr. crowley, the gentlewoman from connecticut, ms. delauro, the jeement maryland ms. edwards the gentleman from new york, mr. engel the gentlewoman from california ms. eshoo the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee, the gentlewoman from california, miss susan davis, the gentleman from california mr. schiff, the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. bolden. vice president biden: friends of the senate at the direction of that body appoints the following senators and members of the committees on the part of the senate to escort ashraf ghani into the chamber. mr. mcconnell, the senator from texas, mr. cornyn, the senator from utah, mr. hache, the senator from wyoming mr. barrasso, the senator from mississippi, mr. wicker, the senator from tennessee,

mr. chairman. rep. thornberry: mr. turner. rep. turner: thank you everyone for your hard work and we are very happy that you're in your position, you do have very difficult times and issues as the chairman was indicating and we need some plain answers and talk on the issue of this budget. we had a brief conversation about this. let me tell me where you are and tell you why we immediate your help. the president had submitted a budget that had a base amount of 561 and our budget committee is currently marking up a budget with the base of 523. they're indicating that they want to make up the difference to that jagged edge of the lower number as you said, mr. chairman, so that the aggregate number would be around 613. you sort of said, however you cobble it together. how you cobble it together does make a difference. i would like you guys to help us with this. i have told the budget committee that making up does not work. 70 members of the house signed a letter and sent to the budget committee asking to honor the base budget number of

mr. thornberry: we shouldn't have let you get away. mr.r: i didn't go too far and this is an issue we are tracking closely. i want to ask you a few questions and once you had the opportunity to respond to that we'll open it up to the group here. we have folks with microphones that will come around. let me start out by -- start at the end, i'm curious as to what you see as the ideal or successful outcome for this effort both in terms of this year's activity and i think you have indicated in the past that this is not a one and done exercise. if you could speak about what does success look like for this year and what might success look like over a five and 10-year type of a time frame. mr. thornberry: this is not a one-year effort. and if you try you are probably going to make more mistakes than help. so this is just the beginning. and what we are trying to do at the beginning is deal with some of the fundamentals. i talked about the essential nature of the acquisition work force and some tools to help improve that. the acquisition strategy a

mr. thornberry. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. thornberry: thank you, mr. chairman. i want to thank the chairman of the budget committee for not only yielding but for all of his work in putting this budget together. i spent some time on the budget committee. putting a budget together is never easy, and i believe that committee has done excellent work in putting together a budget that as the whip just described leps increase economic opportunities for -- helps increase economic opportunities for the whole country. and i particularly appreciate the gentleman as he's had to navigate through a variety of interests and a variety of concerns in putting that budget together. i know firsthand that chairman price and other members of the committee are very concerned about national security, and so i want to take a moment to explain why i believe the amendment we're considering now, price number 2 is better than price number 1 when it comes to national security. i think members deserve that explanation. the amount of funding that the president has asked for for our m

mr. chairman. rep. thornberry: mr. turner. rep. turner: thank you everyone for your hard work and we are all very pleased and very happy that you're in your position, you do have very difficult times and issues, as the chairman was indicating, and the worldview that we see in front of us. we need some plane answers and talk on the issue of this budget. chairman density, as you were walking in, we had a brief conversation about this. let me tell me where you are and tell you why we immediate your -- need your help. the president had submitted a budget that had a base amount of 561 and our budget committee is currently marking up a budget with the base of 523. they're indicating that they want to make up the difference to that jagged edge of the lower number as you said, mr. chairman, by oco, so that the aggregate number would be around 613. you sort of said, however you cobble it together. how you cobble it together does make a difference. i would like you guys to help us with this. i have told the budget committee that making up wi

mr. thornberry made a major speech. he previewed what he was going to do in acquisition. talked about the fact that it would be bite sized look. it would not be a sweeping mccain type of bill that we saw two congresses ago. which i think finally is a good thing. usually, when you add more people about the regulation and dollars, it's just a recipe for more reform problems in the future. >>> how can you ask for a single more dollar when so much is being wasted. how can you ask for more? so there have been occasional scandals where you learn about some fraud and abuse. but, waste, by far and away, is the biggest problem that people are targeting. i think the message that's important is we can't inform our way out of this budget pry even crisis. it's especially the acquisition or procurement that has the greatest trouble. let's deal with it that way. so obviously, in some ways the jury is still out on the mccain levin reform. they tend not to generate big-ticket savings in the near term. acquisition reform is an area where so much intellectual effort has been invested, peopl

mr. thornberry: and by way of explanation, i might say that one of our committee members has tentatively been appointed to another committee and his replacement has tentively been named mr. russell from oklahoma, but it has not been ratified by the republican conference yet. and so mr. russell is with us today, but, without objection, noncommittee members will be recognized at the appropriate time. let me welcome our distinguished witnesses to today's hearing. secretary carter, thank you for being with us. you have been in this room in a variety of capacities over the years. but this is the first hearing since you were confirmed as secretary of defense roughly a month ago and we are very glad to have you with us. general dempsey, thank you for being here. being here, and the fact that you would take time to come out here and meet with us and discuss some of the challenges that we face was asked really hope all and meant a lot and we are very grateful for that and for being here today and for your many years of service. as you all know, this committee has him things a little differently th

mr. thornberry: the committee will come to order.oday the house armed services committee meets to discuss the conflict in afghanistan. week of been engaged in military action in afghanistan for 14 years. the predictions that this would be a long conflict have proven accurate. while there have been setbacks in recent years, there's also cause for cautious optimism. the united states and its allies, especially the afghan forces, have made some meaningful gains. counterinsurgent is one of the toughest types of war a democracy can fight. while this conflict has been a difficult one, it's not impossible. both our future security and the future of the afghan people depend on our success. the people of afghanistan currently have, in my opinion, the best opportunity for a stable, relatively peaceful country that they have had in over four decades.

mr. thornberry: thank you, doctor. appreciate those kind words and i appreciate the chance to be back at csis and also everything that you and this organization does to help inform and educate and guide many of us, as we try to think our way through the national security challenges that we face. you know how when you're on an airplane, they're about to close the boarding door and somebody says, if you're not going to dallas, this is it's time to get off? i'm kind of thinking that anybody who is here who is thinking this is a texan about to announce something about the presidency, you're in the wrong place. [laughter] there's another speech that you may have a chance to get to if you run. it's ok to slip out the back. i was here in november, 2013, to launch a defense reform project that former chairman buck mckeon had asked me to work on. so i thought it made sense to come back here to unveil the first installment of where we are. when i was here before, i mentioned that nobody that i'd run into thought that everything

mr. secretary --chairman thornberry: mr. smith has introduced legislation along be with me that would require legal assessments beat writers ukrainians so they can defend themselves, so they can do some thing about these tanks and armored carriers that are pouring in from russia. we've been told in our previous hearings from the administration witnesses, every day that the white house dithers about this, more equipment is pouring in for what i presume is going to be a renewed offensive at some point. can you help me understand what the timeline is for a decision from the administration on providing legal assistance to the ukrainians? secretary carter: yes, thank you, chairman. two things. the first is you are right, our support for ukraine as it tries to create a place for itself in europe situated as it is between europe and russia, is very important. and i know you are asking about the military side of it, but the part i would preface though, that is principally a political and above all economic challenge , because the ec

mr. thornberry: thank you. i appreciate the da da that you brought to us -- data that you brought to us. some of this is surprising to me and some of the information about the attitudes of the afghan people i think are helpful to us. particularly helpful to us. i think mr. smith and irgoing to withhold our -- i are going to withhold our questions at the moment. i would request if we could put the posters down just to -- unless members have questions about it, just to not block folks' view. and i would yield five minutes to the distinguished gentleman from new jersey, mr. mcarthur -- mr. macarthur. mr. macarthur: thank you mr. chairman. and, general i also really appreciated your comments and want to echo what you said about our men and women in uniform and their families and the sacrifices they've made. i think it's important at every opportunity to remember them. i had a question about a comment that secretary carter made yesterday and want to get your take on it. secretary carter told the senate armed service

mr. chairman, i yield back. rep. thornberry: thank you. ms. graham. rep. graham: thank you mr. chairman, and thank you. secretary carter congratulations on your recent confirmation. general dempsey, thank you not only for your generosity of time but with new members in general, you have been very, very kind. thank you. first i would like to start, secretary carter, in 1915, 100 years ago this year, the mark 5 dive helmet, the trademark of diving, was created. military divers are located at a number of military installations around the country, including at the naval support activity center in panama city which is in my district. i had the opportunity to visit recently, and it's just phenomenal. with the 100th year upon us, mr. secretary, i would much appreciate if you would support the designation of 2015 as the year of the military diver, to honor those who are serving and have served and will serve as military divers for our country. gen. dempsey: well, first of all, thank you for hosting our folks and for supporting servicemembers in your district. we don't take it for grant

mr. secretary, again, thank you for being here. without objection your full written statement will be made part of the record. please proceed. >> thank you very much chairman thornberry. thank you, congresswoman davis. thank you also. and all the members of the committee, thank you for having me here today. it's a pleasure to be with you once again. i've had the opportunity to speak with many of you before but this is my first time testifying as the secretary of defense. and i know that all of you, all of you on the committee, including the 23 veterans, on this committee, share the same devotion that i do to what is the finest fighting force the world has ever known. and to the defense of our great country. and i thank you for that. and i hope that my tenure as secretary of defense will be marked by partnership with you on their behalf. i'm here to present the president's budget for the department of defense for this year, fiscal year 2016, and i strongly support the president in requesting a defense budget above the artificial caps of the budget control act. that is above so-called sequester levels. next year, and in the years thereafter. i also share the president'

mr. secretary, again, thank you for being here. without objection your full written statement will be made part of the record. please proceed. >> thank you very much chairman thornberry. thank you, congresswoman davis. thank you also. and all the members of the committee, thank you for having me here today. it's a pleasure to be with you once again. i've had the opportunity to speak with many of you before but this is my first time testifying as the secretary of defense. and i know that all of you, all of you on the committee including the 23 veterans, on this committee share the same devotion that i do to what is the finest fighting force the world has ever known. and to the defense of our great country. and i thank you for that. and i hope that my tenure as secretary of defense will be marked by partnership with you on their behalf. i'm here to present the president's budget for the department of defense for this year fiscal year 2016, and i strongly support the president in requesting a defense budget above the artificial caps of the budget control act. that is above so-called sequester levels. next year, and in the years thereafter. i also share the president's d

mr. speaker service by your local -- public service by your local cable or satellite provider. >> starting in about half an hour remarks from house armed services committee chair thornberry. he'll speak at the center for strategic and international studies. you can see it live at 9 a.m. eastern here on c-span2. also today hillary clinton speaks about ways to improve urban development. she'll be joined by several panelists including housing and urban development can secretary julian castro at this event held at the center for american progress. it starts live at ten the a.m. eastern on c-span. and after that arkansas republican senator tom cotton speaks about national security priorities and the role of congress. senator cotton is a freshman who serves on both the armed services committee and the intelligence committee. the event is hosted by the american action forum. you can see it live at 11 eastern on c-span3. >> c-span2, providing live coverage of the u.s. senate floor proceedings and key public policy events. and every weekend booktv. now for 15 years the only television network devoted to nonfiction books and authors. c-span2, created by the cable tv industry and b