One critic of Rooney calls a statement by her 'un-American.' Navy nominee stirs controversy

A second female Defense Department nominee is in trouble over the issue of sexual assaults in the military — this time for a statement that one critic branded “un-American.”

Jo Ann Rooney, selected by President Barack Obama to be the next undersecretary of the Navy, toed the Pentagon line Thursday in voicing deep skepticism about a proposal by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) to remove the chain of command from decisions to prosecute allegations of sexual assault and other major crimes in the military.


But Rooney’s justification — laid out in written answers provided to the Senate Armed Services Committee ahead of her nomination hearing and first reported by POLITICO — veered off script.

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“A judge advocate outside the chain of command will be looking at a case through a different lens than a military commander,” said Rooney. “I believe the impact would be decisions based on evidence rather than the interest in preserving good order and discipline.”

Decisions based solely on evidence, she suggested, would be a bad outcome. “I believe this will result in fewer prosecutions and therefore defeat the very problem that I understand it seeks to address,” she said.

Gillibrand, a member of the Armed Services Committee, pounced on Rooney’s statement, saying she was “extremely troubled.” And Gillibrand’s spokesman, Glen Caplin, suggested the New York Democrat might try to block or delay Rooney’s confirmation, saying the senator “will strongly consider all of her options going forward.”

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Rooney isn’t alone among Pentagon nominees to run into trouble over the handling of military sexual assault cases.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) continues to hold up the nomination of Lt. Gen. Susan Helms to be vice commander of the Air Force Space Command. Helms granted clemency last year to a military officer who had been convicted of sexual assault — an action McCaskill said “sent a damaging message to survivors of sexual assault.”

Air Force secretary nominee Deborah Lee James, meanwhile, dodged the issue last month.

She’s a member of the Pentagon’s Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, which voted in favor of removing the command chain from sexual assault prosecutions despite a personal plea from Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel to conduct more studies on the issue.

( Also on POLITICO: Kirsten Gillibrand gains on chain of command changes)

Ten members of the panel endorsed the concept, while six abstained. James didn’t attend the meeting.

Rooney, who faced some tough questioning on Capitol Hill on Thursday, has also drawn contempt from the Service Women’s Action Network, a leading victim-advocacy group that blasted her remarks as “un-American.”

“Rooney implies that basing legal decisions on evidence is counter to good order and discipline,” SWAN Executive Director Anu Bhagwati said in a statement. “What is counter to good order and discipline is victims’ inability to access justice because legal decisions are based on commander bias rather than evidence.

“Diminishing the importance of evidence in criminal cases is, frankly, un-American,” Bhagwati added.

( Also on POLITICO: Chuck Hagel’s sexual assault panel may be too late)

A Navy official said on Thursday the service looks forward “to continuing to work with Congress throughout Dr. Rooney’s confirmation process.”

“The Navy remains committed to sexual assault prevention and response and has taken important steps in victim support and accountability,” said the official, who discussed Rooney’s statement on the condition of not being identified. “The Navy also maintains that our commanders should be involved in each phase of the military justice process.”

Rooney also defended herself during a fiery exchange with Gillibrand during her nomination hearing on Thursday, saying military commanders had non-judicial tools they could use to deal with allegations of sexual assault.

“They must look at the evidence, of course,” Rooney told senators. “They also have other tools.”

( Also on POLITICO: Military still secretive on sex crimes)

Gillibrand countered that under her proposal those tools “would remain within the commander’s purview,” asking, “In what world would you recommend that the decision to prosecute a serious crime … not be based on evidence?”

The senator has been working to drum up support for her legislation, which she plans to offer as an amendment to this year’s defense authorization bill. She told POLITICO last month that she counts 45 senators, including eight Republicans, on her side, plus additional commitments that she’s gotten in private for when the amendment reaches the floor.

Pentagon leaders oppose the Gillibrand amendment, arguing that military brass must have ultimate authority over their commands.

“The role of the commander is essential to any change we will be able to make on this issue,” Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey told senators during a June hearing.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story listed an outdated title for Rooney.

CORRECTION: Corrected by: Jessica Huff @ 10/11/2013 08:26 AM CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story listed an outdated title for Rooney.