Hirono Lobbies For Missile Defense Radar During Hearing On Afghanistan

The Hawaii Democrat said the Biden administration’s budget doesn’t reflect its promises to shift focus to the Pacific after ending America’s longest war.

By Kevin Knodell

September 28, 2021

President Joe Biden’s administration has said one reason for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan was the need to shift its focus to the Pacific. Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono wants to make sure that happens.

Hirono grilled military leaders Tuesday about what the Defense Department will do with money and troops freed up by the end of America’s longest war, asking specifically about a $1.9 billion missile defense radar that has been planned for Hawaii.

“The president has touted the Afghanistan pullout as necessary to free up time and money to deal with near peer competitors like Russia and China,” Hirono told Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing. “But that stated rationale is somewhat I think at odds with the administration’s budget.”

With the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan complete, Hirono wants the Pentagon to pay closer attention to the Pacific.

The hearing was on the end of America’s two decade-long intervention in Afghanistan and the future of counterterrorism operations.

Hirono noted that the Pentagon’s proposed budget for operations in the Pacific fell short of requests by the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command at Camp Smith on Oahu, which oversees all operations in the region.

The Homeland Defense Radar – Hawaii is a controversial missile defense project that Congress has continued to fund despite efforts by Pentagon officials to zero out its budget.

“Hawaii is protected,” Austin told Hirono during the hearing. “This is an issue that we continue to look at and we can be rest assured that Hawaii will not be unprotected.”

The latest congressional funding authorizes $75 million to support the continued

anopenmind

This women continues to be the most insipid member of congress.

At a hearing to discover the cause of 13 American service member murders, the leaving of unknown number of American citizens behind, unknown numbers of our allies left behind, leaving pallets of American dollars and the lose of billions of dollars of military equipment, she interrupts this hearing with questions that had been answered for her by the Secretary of Defense in a proper setting.

This women has no unscripted question and has to read questions while at the same time does not listen to answers but looks at her script for the next scripted question by her staff.

I have yet to hear her talk of the women left to the culture of the Taliban. What happen to her only talking point involving the "ME TOO" cause. This was a perfect opportunity to call out the failures of protecting our soldiers, citizens and friends that have served this countries service personal and all the young women that grew up as free citizens but are now the property of the Taliban.

She fails to serve the people of Hawaii and the nation.

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