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The high rate of sexual assault in the military is unacceptable, and it's even more unacceptable that so many victims fear reporting those assaults. Thankfully, leaders like Senators Gillibrand, McCaskill, and Levin have brought new focus to this issue, and I am glad that the Senate is debating a new way forward on rooting out sexual assault. Everyday I am hearing from people in Connecticut who demand change so that men and women feel safe in the military and that crimes get reported and prosecuted when they occur. I agree, and that is why I will support Senator Gillibrand's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.

I took my time to decide my vote on this issue because I do believe that the military has taken encouraging steps on their own to make our men and women in uniform feel empowered to report these crimes.  And I believe that the reforms in the underlying bill are not window dressing - they will further protect soliders from sexual assault. However, I do not believe the sky will fall with respect to overall military discipline if the prosecution of serious crimes are taken out of the chain of command. Given the long history of sexual assault in the military, it is time for us to take a leap of faith and move forward with a new approach to solving this vexing and chronic problem.