WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., asked President Donald Trump’s pick for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff about his ability to be independent of the president, top concerns for the armed services and boosting recruitment for the military.
As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Tuberville questioned retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine, Trump’s nominee to be the top military adviser to the president, during his confirmation hearing Tuesday.
Tuberville asked Caine how he would handle giving military advice to the president when he might disagree with the president’s assessments. Caine pledged that he would act independently when providing his input.
“And pursuant to that job, provide the president with best military advice, even when the president may have different feelings about it,” Caine said. “And that is exactly what the nation pays me to do. So, if confirmed, that is exactly what I’ll do.”
Caine also vowed to be an apolitical military adviser when the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Jack Reed, D-RI, asked him about Trump’s past comments that Caine wore a MAGA hat in front of the president while in Iraq in 2018.
Caine denied ever wearing a MAGA hat. Wearing political merchandise is against Department of Defense policy.
“For 34 years, I’ve upheld my oath of office and the responsibilities of my commission,” Caine said.
Caine was nominated for the role after Trump fired former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown Jr. in February as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to reshape the Pentagon and rid it of military leaders who supported diversity efforts.
Caine was an F-16 fighter pilot and has served in the National Guard and CIA.
Caine told Tuberville his biggest concern as the nation’s highest-ranking military officer would be the military’s readiness to counter any threat.
“The number one concern is the passage of time and ensuring that the joint force is ready, properly armed with the right capabilities out at the tactical edge, properly, globally integrated with the services themselves, with the other elements of the interagency, with our allies and partners, and with the private sector and ready to go tonight,” Caine said.
As chairman of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel, Tuberville has been focused on recruiting more Americans to military service.
Caine said he would be a “voice of encouragement” for young men and women who are thinking about serving their country.
Senate Democrats on the committee asked Caine about the Signal leak, when a journalist was added to a Signal group chat where top national security leaders were discussing plans for strikes on Yemen’s Houthis.
“I think we all can agree that we need to always protect the element of surprise,” Caine said.
Caine is expected to be confirmed in the Senate. A committee vote on his nomination has not been scheduled yet.