In rare dissent, US Republican senators voice frustration with Trump’s defense policy team

ISTANBUL

In a rare dissent within the US party in power, Republican senators on Tuesday openly criticized President Donald Trump’s defense team, voicing frustration over what they described as growing secrecy and poor communication between the Pentagon and Congress.

According to The Washington Post, during a tense Senate Armed Services Committee hearing as millions of voters took to the polls in off-year elections, lawmakers repeatedly challenged Austin Dahmer, Trump’s nominee for a senior Pentagon policy role, accusing him and other defense officials of withholding key information from Congress on US military strategy and foreign operations.

Roger Wicker, the committee chair, said the Pentagon’s policy office had been “an exception” to an otherwise cooperative relationship. “I have been disappointed to find one exception to that cordiality,” he said.

Republican Sen. Tom Cotton pressed Dahmer to address reports from earlier this year that the administration was pausing aid to Ukraine – which Dahmer denied – and conducting a review of the Pentagon’s nuclear-submarine deal with Australia and the United Kingdom. Dahmer dismissed the reports as “fake news.”

Lawmakers also questioned the Pentagon’s recent decision to withdraw a US Army brigade from Romania, a move several senators said undermines efforts to deter Russian aggression, from a president who has long been accused of being overly friendly with Moscow. “I can’t even get a response,” said Dan Sullivan, an Alaska Republican. “And we’re on your team.”

The Pentagon later said Congress had been informed about the Romania decision and that additional briefings were offered this week. Dahmer promised to improve communication if confirmed, and while declining to answer several questions, he said he would be more forthcoming in a classified session.

It remains unclear whether the committee will advance his nomination, as divisions within the GOP over Trump’s foreign policy continue to surface.

For months the opposition Democrats have accused Trump of sidelining Congress – making it a mere rubber stamp for his agenda, instead of a co-equal branch of government – and accused Republicans of happily agreeing to this, while Trump expands presidential power more and more.

In the wake of disappointing results for Republicans in Tuesday’s off-year elections, more Republicans may seek to give Congress a stronger voice, with an eye on their own future when they have to face the voters in congressional contests next year and the years ahead.