Senate Armed Services (Sullivan): Hearings to examine the nomination of Lieutenant General Douglas A. Schiess, USSF, to be general and Chief of Space Operations.

The committee meets today to consider the nomination of Lieutenant General Douglas Schiss, who is nominated to be Chief of Space Operations for the U.S. Space Force. This hearing comes at a pivotal moment for both our nation's security and the future of the Space Force. If confirmed, General Schiss will become the third Chief of Space Operations. That distinction reflects the relative youth of this service. While the Space Force has already proven its value to the joint force, it is still building the institutions, culture, talent pipeline, and operational concepts that will define the service for generations.

The Space Force was established because our nation recognized that superiority in space is essential to maintaining deterrence on Earth. Today, that mission is more important than ever. The next Chief of Space Operations will assume responsibility as two trends converge. First, the strategic environment is becoming more dangerous even as the demands of the service continue to grow. The United States no longer has the luxury of viewing space as a permissive environment.

China and Russia have made clear that they see space as a critical warfighting domain. They continue to invest in capabilities designed to challenge America's military advantage. Beijing and Moscow are developing weapons to disrupt our satellites, degrade our communications, interfere with navigation, and threaten the systems that enable every joint military operation. So to meet that challenge, we need two things: increased resources and faster production timelines. Faster production timelines.

On the latter point, I'm pleased to see how the Space Force is adopting the FORGE Act's requirements for portfolio acquisition executives. This is a significant opportunity to streamline decision-making, improve accountability, and accelerate the development and fielding of the resilient space capabilities that our warfighters need. We must successfully implement these reforms if the Space Force is to keep pace with rapidly evolving threats and deliver operational advantages at the speed today's strategic environment demands. All of this will require an agile workforce. Congress enacted the Personnel Management Act, PMA, to help the Space Force build such a team.

The PMA gives the Space Force the flexibility to build and sustain a workforce that can move seamlessly between full-time and part-time service, which can attract specialized talent and adapt as mission requirements evolve. Congress has an important role to play in ensuring that the Space Force has the resources, authorities, and leadership necessary to meet those challenges. We also have a responsibility to help the American people understand why the Space Force exists and why its mission matters. Space capabilities underpin our national security, our economy, and our way of life. Space technology enables the systems we use for missile warning, precision navigation, communications, intelligence collection, and the operations of every military service.

As the threat in space grows, public understanding must grow as well. The American people should understand that investments in the Space Force are investments in our security, our prosperity, and our strategic advantage. One of the defining responsibilities of the next Chief of Space Operations will be ensuring that the Space Force grows at a pace that matches the threat. Our competitors are rapidly expanding their forces and fielding new capabilities. The United States cannot afford to respond with incremental growth while the threat accelerates.

So I look forward to hearing how General Schess will expand the Space Force to meet increasing mission requirements. With that, I turn to my friend and colleague, Ranking Member Reed. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and General Shest, and welcome to you and your family, and congratulations on your nomination to be the next Chief of Space Operations, and thank you for your continued willingness to lead. I would take a moment to acknowledge that the conflict in Iran, which has tested the Space Force considerably in the past 5 months, Space Force assets were among the first to be deployed in Operation Epic Fury and among the first to be targeted. Iran has specifically targeted Space Force command and control nodes and weapons systems throughout this conflict.

Clearly, space is no longer a support domain. It is a warfighting domain, and our adversaries understand its importance to our warfighting capabilities. General Chest, your experience in the domain is welcome and encouraging. Your predecessors, General Saltzman and General Raymond, spent the better part of the past 5 years building an organization from scratch, initially relying heavily on the Air Force personnel and infrastructure for everything from base maintenance to legal and medical support. That was appropriate for a new service finding its footing, but the Space Force is quickly becoming a mature warfighting entity, and I want to understand your vision— vision, rather, for what the next phase of institutional development will look like.

I'd like to know how you see the Space Force organizational footprint and support infrastructure evolving over the next 5 years, and what framework you envision for determining where it makes sense to build independent capacity versus maintaining the current relationship with the Air Force. In the same vein, I would note that the Air Force and Space Force each possess electronic warfare capabilities that, if integrated, would be considerably more effective than operating independently. The FY 2027 National Defense Authorization Act includes language directing a joint Air and Space Force electronic warfare roadmap, and I would like to understand your commitment to supporting that effort and where you believe the institutional barriers to integration are the greatest. Finally, if confirmed, you will face significant challenges to prepare our guardians and the broader force for future conflicts. In particular, China has built a space-based kill chain capable of tracking carrier strike groups from the moment they leave port and cueing missile systems in near real time.

That capability, among others, poses a serious threat. Tactical space-based ISR, offensive and defensive space control, and electronic warfare from both ground and space will determine whether the joint force can operate in a future contested environment.

I would appreciate your perspective on the existing gaps in Space Force capabilities and what resources you need to close them. General Chesky, congratulations again on your nomination. I look forward to your testimony. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you very much for that fine statement, Mr.

Ranking Member. Lieutenant General Shest, you are recognized for your opening statement, sir. Chairman Wicker, Ranking Member Reed, and the distinguished members of this committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you as the President's nominee to be the next Chief of Space Operations of the United States Space Force. I'm grateful for the confidence placed in me by the President, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Air Force, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. To start, I'd like to recognize the most important people in my life, my family.

My wife Debbie and I will celebrate 36 years of marriage later this month. Debbie is a passionate advocate for military members and their families. She has put her own career ambitions aside to serve our military families for decades. She's been by my side from my second lieutenant commissioning through 34 years of military service, 18 military moves, many operational alerts and shifts, and a year-long deployment to the Middle East. I know if I am confirmed, she will do everything she can to advocate for and serve our military families.

Also today, we are joined by our daughters, Caitlin and Kendra. They have endured multiple moves and many different schools to include going to several different high schools. Caitlin has just completed the curriculum for a Doctor of Theology and is finishing her dissertation, and Kendra recently graduated with a Juris Doctorate and will be taking the bar soon. Both of our daughters continue to make us proud for the many accomplishments, but more importantly, for the incredible women they are. We're also thankful for our son-in-law Matthew and Caitlin's fiancé Noah.

Both our mothers, Vicki and Eleanor, will be watching online today, and if our fathers were still with us, they would be watching too. I know the demands of military service are borne by our spouses, our children, parents, and loved ones. I'm deeply thankful for the support my family has given me throughout my career, which makes my service possible. I'd like to thank the second Chief of Space Operations, General Chance Saltzman, and his wife Jennifer, who have tirelessly worked for the last 4 years to transform our Space Force to the warfighting service it is today. Debbie and I have had the privilege of working with and for them for many years, and we are thankful for their 35 years of dedicated service to our nation, our military, and their families.

We wish the best for them in their upcoming, much-deserved retirement. I would also like to acknowledge the uniform and civilian guardians, families, and mission partners who secure our nation's interests in, from, and to space. The United States Space Force was created by the President and Congress, recognized that the space is a warfighting domain. Our way of life, our economy, and our national security all depend on our ability to achieve space superiority. The Space Force must organize, train, and equip forces for several related but distinct purposes.

We must defend our nation's space capabilities so the joint force can project power. We must protect the joint force from space-enabled attack, and we must deliver the capabilities the joint force needs to prosecute the full range of its missions. The president has directed that the Department of War maintain a favorable balance of military powers in the Pacific region. U.S. space capabilities are foundational to this pursuit. The threat China poses is real.

The People's Liberation Army has rapidly expanded its space capabilities and is fielding systems designed both to exploit space for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, and to deny U.S. ability to use space capabilities in a crisis or a conflict. Albeit not at the same scale as China, Russia continues to field and employ capabilities, including systems that threaten satellites, ground infrastructure, and the electromagnetic links that connect our forces. Along with other actors, the result is a domain that is contested. Our purpose is not confrontation, but deterrence, considering— ensuring no adversary believes aggression against the United States will succeed. As I speak, Guardians around the world are standing watch for our nation.

They provide missile attack warning, they enable precision strike, and they connect forces across the globe. They protect and defend the space domain. They develop, acquire, and field war-winning capabilities. They support national decision-making, and they operate in a domain where mission failure can have strategic consequences for the U.S. national security and our way of life. I believe my past assignments, to include service staff, joint, and command, have prepared me to be the CSO.

If confirmed, it will be the honor of my professional life to lead the guardians of the United States Space Force, and I promise to lead the Space Force into its next chapter, building on the legacy of our past leaders. I will work tirelessly to ensure our guardians are ready, our capabilities are robust, our partnerships are strong, and our service is worthy of the trust placed in us by the American people. Thank you for your support of the Space Force and for your consideration of my nomination. I look forward to your questions. Thank you very much.

It's now in order for me to ask standard questions we ask all military nominees. And sir, if you just answer yes or no. To exercise its legislative and oversight responsibilities, it's important that this committee and other appropriate committees of the Congress be able to receive testimony, briefings, and other communications of information. Have you adhered to applicable laws and regulations governing conflicts of interest? Yes.

Do you agree when asked to give your personal views, even if those views differ from the administration in power? Yes. Have you assumed any duties or undertaken any actions which would appear to presume the outcome of the confirmation process? No. Will you ensure your staff complies with deadlines established for requested communications, including questions for the record in hearings?

Yes. Such as this. Will you cooperate in providing witnesses and briefers in response to congressional requests? Yes. Will those witnesses be protected from reprisal for their testimony or briefings?

Yes. Do you agree, if confirmed, to appear and testify upon request before this committee? Yes. Do you agree to provide documents, including copies of electronic forms of communication, in a timely manner when requested by a duly constituted Committee or to consult with the committee regarding the basis for any good faith delay or denial in providing such documents? Yes.

Very good. Now let's turn to a round of 5-minute questions.

And let me, let me ask you this. You know, you're the third, you're going to be, I'm Hope, the third person to hold this position. And so we're still, even after two others, we're still sort of developing the personality of, um, of the space domain. Um, you say that, um, in particular on page 3 of your testimony You mentioned China, and then to a lesser but still important extent, you mentioned Russia. Why do you say that the space capabilities are particularly important in the Pacific?

And then you say that China, the threat China poses is real. What can you say to us and to the public today to expand on why you believe that the threat of China is real.

Senator, thank you for allowing me to take that question. As I said in my test— in my written testimony, China's threat is real, and what I would say, what they are doing with what I'll call counter-space and space superiority capabilities is breathtakingly fast. They have watched the Space Force and the Air Force before that and the activities that we have had to enable the joint force, and they have determined that they need to come up with capabilities to do that. So we've seen anti-satellite tests from the ground. There are capabilities in space that hold our satellites at risk, and they continue to do that at a rapid pace.

And I'd love to have a conversation with you in a more classified session to talk about that. But I would say their electromagnetic jamming, The capabilities that they continue to develop are very worrisome, and specifically in the Pacific, they are, as has been said, they are using their intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance efforts to target our forces much farther than they ever have in the past. They've built a kill chain to be able to see our carrier strike groups, our bombers at much farther, pace, speed, and distances, and they've also developed missiles and weapon systems to go after that. So the Space Force needs to be able to bring capability to deny, degrade that kill web to be able to protect the joint force. With regard to the threat against the satellites, what would that mean to Americans and to American service people?

Specifically to service people, it would, it puts us in danger of not having the capabilities that the joint force needs. You can think about Global Positioning System, satellite communications, as important as we've seen in many different conflicts, missile warning, and so it puts all of those at risk from some of those capabilities. I would say too, our economy and our way of life. When I talk to my mother and mother-in-law about Global Positioning System and tell them that that's the Space Force that does that for them, they obviously need that to get around where they're going, be able to do financial transactions, and so it's not just our military, but also our way of life. Okay, I mentioned the need to move seamlessly between full-time and part-time service.

I hope you agree with my statement, and if you do, tell me why that's particularly pertinent to the Space Force. Thank you, Senator. The The ability for our folks to be part-time or full-time is a kind of a novel thing that the Space Force is doing. And many of my conversations with many on the committee here, I believe that some of the other services might want to start to look at that too. What it does is it allows us to have guardians that come in, wanna serve their country, be able to do incredible things in the service, and then they may decide to do things different, go out and get a job within industry or something else, maybe even a government job, in another organization, but then still be able to serve.

And we're able to capture that knowledge, that experience, bring it back into the Space Force. They could also do that for a way of life. They need to take some time off to take care of family, but it still allows them to bring that back to the service. One of the things that we continue to work is how we, how we do that, how we allow them to continue to serve in other ways. Work in industry and then bring that back.

But we believe we're just at the beginning stage of this. We believe this will be something that is very, very effective for the Space Force. Look forward to watching how that develops. Senator Reid. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, General Chest.

Some companies want to lease certain space assets that are actually military weapons systems that can be used to destroy other systems and even kill people. Last year's NDAA prohibited temporary ownership of space weapon systems, and the analogy is very plain. We don't lease M4 rifles, we don't lease F-15s, et cetera. This year's NDAA further clarifies the Space Force must own title to a space weapon system. What are your views on this matter?

Thank you, Ricky. Member, I agree that the Space Force has many things that they need to be able to do with commercial, and there are definitely different mission areas where having commercial leasing, different ways to do that makes sense— satellite communications, space domain awareness, things like that. But I also agree when it is a weapon system or capability that would be able to harm another person's equipment, their assets, or even people. That needs to be completely owned by the Space Force and needs to be controlled. There's other ways that we do this.

The National Reconnaissance Office has contractors that operate systems, but they always have a military member or a National Reconnaissance Office civilian that is the mission director over that. I, if confirmed, happy to work with you on that. But I, but I agree that we have to have Guardian control over those systems. Thank you. It's important that obviously that you work synergistically with the Air Force on combined efforts since you're both in really sort of overlapping spaces.

One area of cooperation is electronic warfare, whether it's from the ground, air, or space, and each service is developing capabilities that combined will be better than one individual weapon system. What are your views on joint operations and integration with the Air Force in electronic warfare? Ranking Member, thanks. I believe that there's a lot of work that we can do together with the Air Force, and I would say not just the Air Force, but the other services as well. In my past, I was the service component to United States Space Command, and I was the combined joint force space component commander, which I had capabilities from all of the services.

The Navy has electromagnetic warfare capabilities, as the Marine Corps is bringing that on too, and then of course the Air Force, and so I believe that we can be complementary of each other, and I believe that we can work together, obviously a little bit different sometimes, and so we just made sure that we're not duplicative, but we're complementary of our efforts, and if confirmed, look forward to working with the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Wilsbach, and others, and the other service chiefs as a member of the Joint Chiefs to make sure that we do that right. Well, the ideal situation would be that every sensor is connected to every shooter. We're not there yet, is that right?

Yes, Senator, I agree with you on that. As the Department of the Air Force battle network is going through, where the Space Force is a big part of that working through, and then as you've seen in our budget request with the SDN, the capability to connect all of those forces together. I do agree that we need to be able to bring all of the information to the right person at the right time to make the decisions they need to make to be able to have the right effect against the target. And lately, this is an inescapable question, but AI will be an important component of doing that? Yes, Senator, I believe that AI is, is a huge part of how we do things.

I would say there are certain areas that we're going to push that space domain awareness and the ability to sense and see what's going on in the domain is ripe for that, and we will continue to work that. Obviously, we need to make sure that we still have a guardian in the loop on that, but use that to the most effective ability to make those guardians better at their job. Now, General Sullivan spent a great deal of time standing up the organization that was very small and lean about 10,000 uniformed personnel, 5,000 civilians, and the Air Force has provided most of the infrastructure for base maintenance and legal, medical services, et cetera. What do you see changing over the next 5 years? How much will you absorb and how much will continue to depend on the Air Force?

Ranking Member, thanks. I agree that the Air Force has been an incredible partner to us, and having been an Air Force member for almost 30 years, I'm thankful for the service that they provide for us. I think there's lots of areas that we'll look at over the years, and again, if confirmed, I'll work with General Wilsbach to do that. I think all of those areas you mentioned are areas that we'll look at to see if those are right for us to continue or to do other things. Well, you're too young to have served in the Army Air Corps, but I forgive you.

Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thank you, Senator Reid. Senator Fischer. Good morning, General.

Thank you for your service, and my thanks to your family for their service and sacrifice for many years. I'm, I'm glad that you want to continue your service in this new position. Can you explain to the committee, but also to the American people, why it's— why we need that steady and predictable funding for programs like the Airborne moving target indicator satellites important for our warfighters? And if there is a pause in fielding these capabilities, what risk does that present to our forces?

Senator Fischer, uh, incredible discussion on AMTI and airborne mobile target indicator and the, and the need for that. What I would say to the committee and to the American people, it is something that we need to do for, for multiple reasons, but I think one of the first reasons is to is to save American lives. As I talked about previously, the capability of the Chinese and others to target our forces at much greater distances and much greater speed with missile systems and ability that, it sometimes pushes our forces out farther and we need to be able to get our forces in. And so Airborne Mobile Target Indicator, and for that matter, Ground Mobile Target Indicator, allows us to have our forces farther out and be able to still provide that capability. I think those are complementary.

We will have airborne forces and others that do that mission as well, but we will be complementary with them. But in the end, it saves American lives, but it also can provide us much greater fidelity of information that we can get. And as we continue to use other capabilities with automation and the networks behind that to bring, bring that capability right to the warfighter, will help us be able to be more effective in our missions. Many of our space-based programs, they rely on that guaranteed access to electromagnetic spectrum. Can you speak to this committee on the importance of ensuring that that access continues?

Yes, Senator, it's very, very important that we have the proper accesses that we need for different frequencies and different spectrums. And if confirmed, I'll continue the work I do now in my current role working with our cyber folks, but the CIO of OSW as well, to ensure that we are providing that necessary information to the administration on what frequencies, what spectrums are needed, and the cost associated with them if we were to move those spectrums. But it is very, very important to make sure that we can have the spectrum, be able to do our missions. And not just the cost, but also the time factor involved in having to move all those assets that are currently in certain spectrums, correct? Yes, Senator.

Thank you. Section 1505 of this year's NDAA, it requires the department to ensure that space weather is integrated into space domain awareness, into that doctrine and operations. And I'm deeply concerned that space weather, in other words, understanding how solar activity, how radiation impact our satellites, has been historically underprioritized. If we allow this capability to decline, we could incur serious risks. For example, not being able to react in time to protect our satellites from harmful solar flares.

If confirmed, will you commit to working with me to ensure that this mission is appropriate— appropriately elevated? Yes, Senator. Thank you. General Shas, what does combat readiness look like for the Space Force? Senator, combat readiness makes sure that we, one, have the equipment that we need at the right place at the right time, but we also have the guardians trained with advanced training.

They have all the capabilities, and then we can actually run them through the paces. And so we can do exercises and things like that to make sure that they're qualified, that they're ready to do the mission. And if confirmed, I promise you that that will be a high priority for me. Good. Do you believe that the Space Force is organized and resourced appropriately to meet that goal?

Senator, I believe the Space Force is organized properly. Obviously, with our FY27 president's budget request, we are asking for more. I believe that the threats—. I think it's 124% more. $71.1 Billion for the Space Force.

I believe those are needed because of the threat from China and Russia. And the capabilities the joint forces needs. What do you think are your most pressing challenges in the next 3 to 5 years, short term? Senator, I believe obviously with that amount of money, being able to acquire those systems, but we're thankful to the Congress for, in this committee, for some of the acquisition reforms and the things, and if confirmed, I'll work with Secretary Mink and our Secretary, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition and Integration to make sure that we can field those capabilities rapidly. Obviously, we're bringing on more people too.

Do you have worry about supply chain? Yes, Senator, supply chains are always important issues that we got to make sure that we have at the right time. And if confirmed, I promise you to work on that. Okay, thank you, sir. General Schess, you're not adequately resourced right now.

If the proposal is adopted by the House and Senate and signed by the president, You would be. Isn't that correct? Yes, Senator. Okay. Senator King.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to begin by an acknowledgment that I was a skeptic of the Space Force when it was first proposed. Senator Cramer was the principal sponsor, and as painful it is for me to acknowledge, he was right and I was wrong. I believe that the Space Force now is providing an essential part of the deterrent and the defense of this country.

Put that in the bank, Senator Cramer.

But General, it's been touched upon in terms of your budget. Your budget's increasing by 124% this year. This country is facing a serious budget and deficit problem, as you know, and please explain to the committee and to the American people why this really massive increase is necessary. My father used to say, when I put my rat in your trap, I expect him to lose his tail but not up behind his ears. And more than doubling of the budget is pretty substantial.

So please make that case. Senator, I will. I won't talk about the rat, but, but yes, I will do that. One thing I would say right away is the Space Force budget is fairly small compared to the other services, but I do understand, and as a taxpayer, I want to make sure that we're, we're being as, uh, um, as judicious in that as possible. I would say that the $71.1 billion that the president has asked for is exactly what we need in a couple areas in there.

We talked about the threat earlier. I think that is the thing that is driving us to that, holding our satellites at risk that then danger American soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines. Is it accurate to say that Heaven forbid there would be another major conflict, it would really probably start in space. Senator, I believe that's a possibility, uh, that it could start in space, but if not, uh, definitely space would be very, uh, at the very beginning of any conflict, especially with, uh, potential adversaries of China or Russia. I, I interrupted.

Please go ahead to make the case for the, for the budget increase. What I'd say is, for, for decades, uh, before the Space Force, uh, in the Air Force, and then now, we have provided incredible combat-relevant effects to the joint warfighter. We can talk about GPS, we can talk about SATCOM. What is different now is we need the ability to have space superiority, and what that means is we have to have the ability to counter someone else's ability to, to hold our satellites at risk and to be able to destroy them. And the vast bulk of that money is for, is for equipment, not, not personnel.

You're, you're not a very large organization in terms of personnel, but You're talking— we're talking about space-based infrastructure, is that correct? Yes, Senator, uh, weapon systems, facilities, uh, training capability, all of those things are in there. We are requesting an increase in Guardians, 2,800 personnel, but it is mostly equipment. I also serve on the Intelligence Committee. Assure me that we're not going to be duplicating with NRO.

Uh, Senator, I have a great relationship, uh, with, uh, well, with Dr. Scalise, who just retired, but looking forward, if confirmed, with the new NRO director. But the Space Force provides many different guardians that work within the NRO, and I believe that we are not duplicative, and if confirmed, I will ensure that we, we do not do duplicative efforts. You mentioned personnel. Uh, the mindless cuts in the, in the civilian defense establishment last year cut the, the guard— the, uh, civilian personnel at the Space Force by something like 14 or 15%. Are you rebuilding that?

And I worry that a lot of expertise walked out the door during that period. Senator, we did have large folks that took the DRP and other programs. And so that, that was a significant cut to us. But we are working to bring those back. As a matter of fact, Space Systems Command is trying to hire 100 civilians a month, and we're thankful to Congress.

And are you able to find those 100 civilians a month? We are. We are able to do that. Some of those are different locations, but we are— the Space Force doesn't have a problem with people wanting to join, and it's just finding the right spot for them. And so— and then in our request, we also asked for an additional 2,000 civilians.

Finally, briefly, do you see the Space Force modernizing and scaling up launch capacity, working with the various now competitors in terms of launch?

Senator, yes, launch is obviously very critical for our ability to get our new assets into space. And having done the launch business several times in my career, We will continue to work to make sure that the infrastructure is needed. We're at an incredible pace right now, and that pace is going to continue to grow. Thank you. Thank you, and congratulations on your nomination.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Senator King. The chair recognizes perhaps the most prescient member of the Armed Services Committee, Senator Cramer. It's amazing how good timing and luck can make you look really smart, but thank you for the compliments. Thank you, General, for stepping up again, and Debbie, thank you for being a good partner.

I've appreciated your hospitality at Vandenberg and look forward to working with you, and to Caitlin and Kendra, and more importantly to the two young men that, like all of us, are going well above their heads. Thanks for being in the fight with everybody, but I know it's a family effort and I appreciate you acknowledging them right up front. As you know, this year's NDAA authorized the $250 million for a space operations facility at the Grand Forks Air Force Base. And, and I know you know Grand Forks well, like General Raymond, a missileer from Grand Forks at one point. And, and we're delighted by playing an important role going forward.

So, um, my first question is simple. I just want to make sure that you, you maintain the commitment that your predecessors have made to Grand Forks as we, as we look forward. Yes, Senator. I also look forward to maintaining that relationship with the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks as well. As you know, General Raymond signed the very first Space Force University partnership with them, and they've built up quite an expertise at the school.

I want to talk now though a little bit about the SDA culture, because of course Grand Forks started with Space Force as that, you know, and with an SDA investment that's growing dramatically. And we eliminated in this year's NDAA Space Development Agency. That wasn't my idea, but I'm willing to play a along and go along with this, and I understand the vision, and I'm confident because of Space Force's vision that the new PAEs, you know, the Portfolio Acquisition Executives, will operate and function much like Space Development Agency Director, particularly as a result, as it aims to get a constellation, the LEO constellation, the transport layer, utilizing spiral development. But I also know we need to go fast, And I would love to get sort of your vision for how that will operationally work, because you're coming in at such a critical time when those decisions are being made or have been made. Now you get to implement them.

I'd be interested in how you see that playing out. Senator, thanks. The Space Development Agency has been an incredible organization, and we've learned a lot from them and obviously doing great work. And as a matter of fact, I believe we have a launch later today out at Vandenberg for some capability capabilities there, so we're hoping for the best for that. What I would say in working with Secretary Mink, and if confirmed, continuing to work with him, the portfolio acquisition executives is trying to take all of the things that the SDA did correct and put those in all of the PAEs, and so, you know, Secretary Mink talks about giving 90% of contracting to them, and so what I would say to you, if confirmed, I promise you to continue to work that so that all of our PAEs take some of that capability to bring on fast systems That's great.

You just sparked a memory in that discussion because I remember saying to General Raymond early on, you've been given a white sheet of paper and a brand new organization, try to be innovative and don't gravitate, you know, innovate, don't gravitate to what you know. Not that everything he learned was bad, obviously, and so I'm, and I in fact I remember saying to him one time, in fact, what I would suggest is that you'd show a new way for the rest of the forces, and I think that's sort of what you've described. I'd also just add something to you in your answer to Senator King was with regard to NRO, and I appreciate, and I think we should highlight, I think this is a moment and an opportunity, I think space and NRO and the various silos, the various silos working more jointly is an example that can be built upon by the entire joint force, because it's necessary. I mean, we just can't afford duplication, but we also can't afford a clumsy, you know, a clumsy joint force. So with that, I just thank you again for your service and your willingness to step up and look forward to working closely with you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you very much. Senator Blumenthal. Thanks, Mr. Chairman. Thank you and your family for your service.

I think the common refrain is that we're all learning from Ukraine. I would be interested in knowing from you how and what we've learned, uh, the Space Force has learned from the war in Ukraine, and how those lessons have changed the way you were thinking about war in space, and more broadly, how it should affect our thinking about it. Senator, thanks, uh, appreciate that question. It's really important for us to always learn from any conflict, whether we're in it or not. And obviously we're providing support through NATO and others to Ukraine.

What I'd say some of the lessons that the Space Force has learned is one, obviously one-way attack UAVs has been huge, not only there, but also in Iran. And so our ability to track those and ability to use capabilities against those. So that's one thing that we've learned. I think also is the jamming environment, GPS jamming, satellite communications jamming. In a previous job as the commander of this U.S. Space Command component, we were continually working through jamming situations on SATCOM, and we learned a lot about how to do that very quickly to re-give the capability to our forces.

And so we'll continue to do that. As a matter of fact, we're always working with the J7 of the Joint Staff to bring those lessons learned and make them part of our tactics, techniques, and procedures.

Is there a way to do the Golden Dome at a scaled-down version?

Senator, if confirmed, I look forward to working with General Gutlein and his DRPM role from the Space Force perspective. What I would say is a lot of the things that we are doing in Golden Dome also provide us capabilities for space superiority, whether that's tracking, communications, data, all those kind of things. So I do believe that we will continue to get good things from that, from Golden Dome. But if confirmed, looking forward to working with General Gutlein on, on what that looks like for the future. Let me, let me ask you whether you think in space warfare China is ahead of us.

Senator, United States is a very, very capable Space Force and we're the best in the world. But what I would say is China is rapidly trying to make that gap much, much smaller, and they are bringing on capabilities on a daily basis and would love to talk to you in a different session there to talk about some of those capabilities. But I think our budget that request that we have asked helps us to continue to stay in the lead, and we need to do that to make sure that the Chinese can't catch up. Well, I'm very gratified to hear that. I didn't mean to imply that the United States was second, uh, but obviously we hear a lot of worry and anxiety about China being ahead of us in space, and I would like to explore that issue with you, uh, in a classified setting.

Yes, Senator, happy to do that. I, I, I think about China every day. Yeah, I'm sure. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Um, thank you very, very much, Senator Blumenthal, and this concludes today's hearing.

I want to thank our witness for his testimony and wish him the best in the remainder of this process. For the information of members—. Mr. Chairman, could I interject a comment, please? Yes, sir. General, I think you should take heart from the fact that not all of our members are here today.

That's a compliment to you. The other problem is that we need AI to schedule us because most of us have about 3 hearings at the same time. But the fact that we didn't have a large turnout is an indication, I believe, of the committee's confidence in you. And I— this is a rare case where a small audience is probably better. Being non-controversial is not a bad thing.

And you're competing with the Todd Blanch Attorney General hearing, so—.

I hope you can accept this compliment. I'll take it, Senator. You're a chef. And for members who did show up or who may be wanting to avail themselves, questions for the record will be due to the committee by 5:00 PM on Friday. And thank you, and this committee hearing is adjourned.